--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Democracy is nothing more than an…" description: "\"Democracy is nothing more than an experiment in government, more likely to succeed in a new soil, but likely to be tried in all soils, which must stand..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93e/james-russell-lowell-561_democracy_democracy-is-nothing-more-than-an-experi_2174332.png" --- # Democracy is nothing more than an experiment in… ![“Democracy is nothing more than an experiment in government, more likely to succeed in a new soil, but likely to be tried in all soils, which must stand or fall on its own merits as others have done before it. For there is no trick of perpetual motion in politics any more than in mechanics.” quote by James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93e/james-russell-lowell-561_democracy_democracy-is-nothing-more-than-an-experi_2174332.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93e/james-russell-lowell-561_democracy_democracy-is-nothing-more-than-an-experi_2174332.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93e/james-russell-lowell-561_democracy_democracy-is-nothing-more-than-an-experi_2174332.png) > “Democracy is nothing more than an experiment in government, more likely to succeed in a new soil, but likely to be tried in all soils, which must stand or fall on its own merits as others have done before it. For there is no trick of perpetual motion in politics any more than in mechanics.” [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Democracy is an experimental system that works best in suitable conditions and cannot rely on perpetual motion. **In simple terms:** Democracy is experimental, needing the right environment. Key Takeaway Test democratic ideas in supportive contexts. Themes politics experimentation government soil merits Mood analytical thoughtful Type philosophical critical When to use this quote - policy design - civic education - community building Key Concepts systems theory political philosophy environmental fit Questions to Reflect On - What conditions make democracy thrive? - How to avoid perpetual motion fallacy? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy/) [Democracy Experiment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy-experiment-3057730/) [Done](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/done/) [Experiment Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/experiment-government-4668407/) [Experiments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/experiments/) [Fall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fall/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Mechanic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mechanic/) [Merit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/merit/) [Motion Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/motion-politics-4668409/) [Perpetual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perpetual/) [Perpetual motion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perpetual-motion/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Politics Mechanics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics-mechanics-4668408/) [Soil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soil/) [Succeed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/succeed/) [Tricks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tricks/) ## Related quotes > [Democracy is only an experiment in government, and it has the obvious disadvantage of merely counting votes instead of weighing them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/democracy-is-only-an-experiment-in-government-and-it-has-the-obvious/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [America's experiment with government of the people, by the people, and for the people depends not only on constitutional structure and organization but also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-hutchins/america-s-experiment-with-government-of-the-people-by-the-people-and/) [Robert M. Hutchins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-hutchins/) > [Democracy is an experiment, and the right of the majority to rule is no more inherent than the right of the minority to rule;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-allen-white/democracy-is-an-experiment-and-the-right-of-the-majority-to-rule-is/) [William Allen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-allen-white/) > [Democracy is but an experiment in the long history of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/democracy-is-but-an-experiment-in-the-long-history-of-the-world/) [Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/) > [“Experiment or not, the government is always watching. - Felix”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-galanti/experiment-or-not-the-government-is-always-watching-felix/) [Donna Galanti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-galanti/) > [All things are made of atoms-little particles that move around in perpetual motion, attracting each other when they are a little distance apart, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/all-things-are-made-of-atoms-little-particles-that-move-around-in/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [Marketing's job is never done. It's about perpetual motion. We must continue to innovate every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-comstock/marketing-s-job-is-never-done-it-s-about-perpetual-motion-we-must/) [Beth Comstock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-comstock/) > [“Leo Szilard, in 1929, showed that the very act of acquiring information about a system increases its entropy in proportion to the amount of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/basil-mahon/leo-szilard-in-1929-showed-that-the-very-act-of-acquiring-information/) [Basil Mahon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/basil-mahon/) > [“He scolded his listeners for being eager to sell off their few productive assets in exchange for articles of prestige. “You say you want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-branch/he-scolded-his-listeners-for-being-eager-to-sell-off-their-few/) [Taylor Branch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-branch/) > [This game wears on you. It tears you down. It's perpetual motion for some people who've achieved a level of independence, like Madonna and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lupe-fiasco/this-game-wears-on-you-it-tears-you-down-it-s-perpetual-motion-for/) [Lupe Fiasco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lupe-fiasco/) > [Does it seem to you impossible to imagine anything more inextricable than the social contract, when you think of the frightful number of relations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-joseph-proudhon/does-it-seem-to-you-impossible-to-imagine-anything-more-inextricable/) [Pierre-Joseph Proudhon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-joseph-proudhon/) > [“Marketing is a never-ending story. It’s about perpetual motion where innovation plays the lead role.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-kehoe/marketing-is-a-never-ending-story-it-s-about-perpetual-motion-where/) [Stacey Kehoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-kehoe/) > [“You drive, walk, eat, look at television, read, and all the while, beyond you and the cozy circle created by your lady around herself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coleman-dowell/you-drive-walk-eat-look-at-television-read-and-all-the-while-beyond/) [Coleman Dowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/coleman-dowell/) > [“Maybe it came from whacking at two-by-fours and dreaming about perpetual motion. I don't know. All I know is that compared to her, Shelly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendelin-van-draanen/maybe-it-came-from-whacking-at-two-by-fours-and-dreaming-about/) [Wendelin Van Draanen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendelin-van-draanen/) > [Painting' and 'religious experience' are the same thing. It is a question of the perpetual motion of a right idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-nicholson/painting-and-religious-experience-are-the-same-thing-it-is-a-question/) [Ben Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-nicholson/) ## More by James Russell Lowell > [We kind o' thought Christ went agin war an' pillage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/we-kind-o-thought-christ-went-agin-war-an-pillage/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [He gives only the worthless gold who gives from a sense of duty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/he-gives-only-the-worthless-gold-who-gives-from-a-sense-of-duty/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [As life runs on, the road grows strange with faces new - and near the end. 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They have tempted the body with large promises of possessions in their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/most-religion-mongers-have-bated-their-paradises-with-a-bit-of/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [The thing we long for, that we are For one transcendent moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/the-thing-we-long-for-that-we-are-for-one-transcendent-moment/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [O reputation! dearer far than life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/o-reputation-dearer-far-than-life/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [Keats longed for fame, but longed above all to deserve it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/keats-longed-for-fame-but-longed-above-all-to-deserve-it/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [It is beginning to be doubtful whether Parliament and Congress sit in Westminster and Washington, or in the editorial rooms of the leading journals,--so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/it-is-beginning-to-be-doubtful-whether-parliament-and-congress-sit-in/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [ \[B\]ut in literature, it should be remembered, a thing always becomes his at last who says it best, and thus makes it his own. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/b-ut-in-literature-it-should-be-remembered-a-thing-always-becomes-his/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [It may be glorious to write Thoughts that shall glad the two or three High souls, like those far stars that come in sight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/it-may-be-glorious-to-write-thoughts-that-shall-glad-the-two-or-three/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [It is the vain endeavor to make ourselves what we are not that has strewn history with so many broken purposes and lives left…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/it-is-the-vain-endeavor-to-make-ourselves-what-we-are-not-that-has/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [Take winter as you find him, and he turns out to be a thoroughly honest fellow; with no nonsense in him, which is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/take-winter-as-you-find-him-and-he-turns-out-to-be-a-thoroughly/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [The intellect has only one failing, which, to be sure, is a very considerable one. It has no conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/the-intellect-has-only-one-failing-which-to-be-sure-is-a-very/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) [Explore all 471 James Russell Lowell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) ## More Democracy quotes > [Elections belong to the people. It's their decision. If they decide to turn their back on the fire and burn their behinds, then they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/elections-belong-to-the-people-it-s-their-decision-if-they-decide-to/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [If the members of parliament no longer consider themselves mandatories of the taxpayers but deputies of those receiving salaries, wages, subsidies, doles, and other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/if-the-members-of-parliament-no-longer-consider-themselves/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [For not only every democracy, but certainly every republic, bears within itself the seeds of its own destruction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-not-only-every-democracy-but-certainly-every-republic-bears/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [There is plenty of time for Republicans to have a Macaca moment. 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Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-d-roosevelt/) > [There are certain things you must not say in spite of the fact that supposedly democracy means free speech. 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