--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To vest a few fallible men — prosecutors…" description: "\"To vest a few fallible men — prosecutors, judges, jurors — with vast powers of literary or artistic censorship, to convert them into what J. S. Mill ca..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce0/jerome-frank-37624_another-day_to-vest-a-few-fallible-men-prosecutors-j_282016.jpg" --- # To vest a few fallible men — prosecutors, judges, jurors… ![“To vest a few fallible men — prosecutors, judges, jurors — with vast powers of literary or artistic censorship, to convert them into what J. S. Mill called a "moral police," is to make them despotic arbiters of literary products. If one day they ban mediocre books as obscene, another day they may…” quote by Jerome Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce0/jerome-frank-37624_another-day_to-vest-a-few-fallible-men-prosecutors-j_282016.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce0/jerome-frank-37624_another-day_to-vest-a-few-fallible-men-prosecutors-j_282016.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce0/jerome-frank-37624_another-day_to-vest-a-few-fallible-men-prosecutors-j_282016.jpg) > “To vest a few fallible men — prosecutors, judges, jurors — with vast powers of literary or artistic censorship, to convert them into what J. S. Mill called a "moral police," is to make them despotic arbiters of literary products. If one day they ban mediocre books as obscene, another day they may do likewise to a work of genius.” [Jerome Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-frank/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Empowers a few to police literature, risking tyranny over art and ideas. **In simple terms:** Few control art, leading to tyranny. Key Takeaway Guard against censorship. Themes freedom of expression artistic liberty authority censorship tyranny Mood cautious critical Type philosophical political When to use this quote - publishing decisions - court rulings - educational curricula - media regulation Key Concepts Moral policing power dynamics literary criticism Questions to Reflect On - Who decides what is obscene? - How can we balance protection and freedom? A Different Perspective Even with oversight, subjective taste can still suppress innovation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Another day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/another-day/) [Arbiter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arbiter/) [Artistic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artistic/) [Artistic Censorship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artistic-censorship-2732268/) [Bans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bans/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Books Obscene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books-obscene-2732269/) [Censorship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/censorship/) [Eye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eye/) [Fallible Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fallible-men-2155412/) [Genius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genius/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Imagination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagination/) [Judging](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judging/) [Jurors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jurors/) [Jury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jury/) [May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/may/) [Mediocre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mediocre/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Mills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mills/) [Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral/) [Moral Police](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral-police-1494035/) [Obscene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obscene/) [One day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/one-day/) [Originality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/originality/) [Plentiful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plentiful/) [Police](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/police/) [Products](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/products/) [Prosecutor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prosecutor/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Vests](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vests/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Alas, our rulers are not gods, but puny, fallible men, like the kings who constantly forget their parts, and we common men should be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-yutang/alas-our-rulers-are-not-gods-but-puny-fallible-men-like-the-kings-who/) [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) > [“It's much easier to blow our moral police horns on all those transgressors running around than it is to live penetrating lives of holiness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-minter/it-s-much-easier-to-blow-our-moral-police-horns-on-all-those/) [Kelly Minter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-minter/) > ['Moral police' is my new word. I am very against the media doing moral policing, giving opinions on actor's lives. Media should not become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katrina-kaif/moral-police-is-my-new-word-i-am-very-against-the-media-doing-moral/) [Katrina Kaif](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katrina-kaif/) > [Offence is no longer defence - it's a full-time profession. Everyone is so offended all the time. The new police force that we weren't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karan-johar/offence-is-no-longer-defence-it-s-a-full-time-profession-everyone-is/) [Karan Johar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karan-johar/) > [And it is not difficult to show, by abundant instances, that to extend the bounds of what may be called moral police, until it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-stuart-mill/and-it-is-not-difficult-to-show-by-abundant-instances-that-to-extend/) [John Stuart Mill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-stuart-mill/) > [One point is certain, that truth is one and immutable; until the jurors all agree, they cannot all be right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washington-irving/one-point-is-certain-that-truth-is-one-and-immutable-until-the-jurors/) [Washington Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washington-irving/) > [Jurors want courtroom lawyers to have some compassion and be nice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnnie-cochran/jurors-want-courtroom-lawyers-to-have-some-compassion-and-be-nice/) [Johnnie Cochran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnnie-cochran/) > [Evidence of defendants' lavish lifestyles is often used to provide a motive for fraud. Jurors sometimes wonder why an executive making tens of millions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-berenson/evidence-of-defendants-lavish-lifestyles-is-often-used-to-provide-a/) [Alex Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-berenson/) > [ \[N\]o American should retreat an inch on the right of jurors to acquit if they perceive the law or its administration to be unjust. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charley-reese/n-o-american-should-retreat-an-inch-on-the-right-of-jurors-to-acquit/) [Charley Reese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charley-reese/) > [I am not in favor of making voters or jurors of Negroes, nor of qualifying them to hold office.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/i-am-not-in-favor-of-making-voters-or-jurors-of-negroes-nor-of/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [The humorist who invented trial by jury played a colossal practical joke upon the world, but since we have the system we ought to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-humorist-who-invented-trial-by-jury-played-a-colossal-practical/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Physicians ought not to give their judgment of religion, for the same reason that butchers are not admitted to be jurors upon life and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-swift/physicians-ought-not-to-give-their-judgment-of-religion-for-the-same/) [Jonathan Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-swift/) > [“The compensation question was where they had to deliberate the most. “Probably took three or four hours to just settle on a number,” Tom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-loudenberg/the-compensation-question-was-where-they-had-to-deliberate-the-most/) [Kelly Loudenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-loudenberg/) > [Jurors should acquit, even against the judge's instruction . . . if exercising their judgment with discretion and honesty they have a clear conviction…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/jurors-should-acquit-even-against-the-judge-s-instruction-if/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [Global warming ... may be a plaintiff lawyer's dream. And it's interesting, in a perverse way, to imagine how a jury in 2050 might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ignatius/global-warming-may-be-a-plaintiff-lawyer-s-dream-and-it-s-interesting/) [David Ignatius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ignatius/) ## More by Jerome Frank > [Increasingly constructive doubt is the sign of advancing civilization. We must put question marks along many of our inherited legal dogmas, since they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-frank/increasingly-constructive-doubt-is-the-sign-of-advancing-civilization/) [Jerome Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-frank/) > [We want no dictatorship of physicists, as physicists. If our democracy is to realize its full promise, we want no dictatorship at all -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-frank/we-want-no-dictatorship-of-physicists-as-physicists-if-our-democracy/) [Jerome Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-frank/) > [Every lawyer of experience comes to know (more or less unconsciously) that in the great majority of cases, the precedents are none too good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-frank/every-lawyer-of-experience-comes-to-know-more-or-less-unconsciously/) [Jerome Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-frank/) > [The test of the moral quality of a civilization is its treatment of the weak and powerless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-frank/the-test-of-the-moral-quality-of-a-civilization-is-its-treatment-of/) [Jerome Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-frank/) > [Any treatment of an illness that does not also minister to the human spirit is grossly deficient.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-frank/any-treatment-of-an-illness-that-does-not-also-minister-to-the-human/) [Jerome Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-frank/) > [The inexpressible is the only thing that is worthwhile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-frank/the-inexpressible-is-the-only-thing-that-is-worthwhile/) [Jerome Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-frank/) > [Increasingly constructive doubt is the sign of advancing civilization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-frank/increasingly-constructive-doubt-is-the-sign-of-advancing-civilization-2/) [Jerome Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-frank/) > [To the somnambulist, sleep-walking may seem more pleasant and less hazardous than wakeful walking, but the latter is the wiser mode of locomotion in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-frank/to-the-somnambulist-sleep-walking-may-seem-more-pleasant-and-less/) [Jerome Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-frank/) > [Only a very foolish lawyer will dare guess the outcome of a jury trial.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-frank/only-a-very-foolish-lawyer-will-dare-guess-the-outcome-of-a-jury-trial/) [Jerome Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-frank/) > [To say I removes a false impression of a Jovian aloofness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-frank/to-say-i-removes-a-false-impression-of-a-jovian-aloofness/) [Jerome Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-frank/) > [Justice is what the judge ate for breakfast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-frank/justice-is-what-the-judge-ate-for-breakfast/) [Jerome Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-frank/) [Explore all 12 Jerome Frank quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-frank/) ## More Another day quotes > [In the entire history of the universe, let alone in your own history, there has never been another day just like today, and there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/in-the-entire-history-of-the-universe-let-alone-in-your-own-history/) [Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/) > [“We have no idea, now, of who or what the inhabitants of our future might be. In that sense, we have no future. Not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/we-have-no-idea-now-of-who-or-what-the-inhabitants-of-our-future/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [A very small percentage of the people in this world will actually experience and live today. So many people will be stuck on another…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-maraboli/a-very-small-percentage-of-the-people-in-this-world-will-actually/) [Steve Maraboli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-maraboli/) > [“TOMORROW IS ANOTHER DAY. Not true. Today is another day. We have no idea what tomorrow is going to be. It might turn out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/tomorrow-is-another-day-not-true-today-is-another-day-we-have-no-idea/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) > [Consider developing your whole self with the same raw focus and intensity that you develop a particular skill set. Get focused. Go out, have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-holden/consider-developing-your-whole-self-with-the-same-raw-focus-and/) [Anthony Holden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-holden/) > [David Rockefeller is the most conspicuous representative today of the ruling class, a multinational fraternity of men who shape the global economy and manage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-moyers/david-rockefeller-is-the-most-conspicuous-representative-today-of-the/) [Bill Moyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-moyers/) > [If you live for today you can live another day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalya-johnson/if-you-live-for-today-you-can-live-another-day/) [Natalya Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalya-johnson/) > [Today isn't just another day off, it's a day to remember those who have sacrificed their life for your FREEDOM. Happy Memorial Day!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonya-parker/today-isn-t-just-another-day-off-it-s-a-day-to-remember-those-who/) [Sonya Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonya-parker/) > [Another day is another blessing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mhaj-porras/another-day-is-another-blessing/) [Mhaj Porras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mhaj-porras/) > [You load 16 tons, and what do you get? Another day older and deeper in debt. St. Peter don't you call me 'cause I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/merle-travis/you-load-16-tons-and-what-do-you-get-another-day-older-and-deeper-in/) [Merle Travis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/merle-travis/) > [“Dawn. Another day is given us, R’hllor be praised.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/dawn-another-day-is-given-us-r-hllor-be-praised/) [George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/) > [“Just another day in my life. 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I should really consider being a back up singer...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/another-day-feeling-unimportant-i-should-really-consider-being-a-back/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 1,021 Another day quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/another-day/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "To vest a few fallible men — prosecutors, judges, jurors — with vast powers of literary or artistic censorship, to convert them into what J. S. Mill called a \"moral police,\" is to make them despotic arbiters of literary products. 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