--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Voltaire remarked that it is possible to…" description: "\"Voltaire remarked that it is possible to kill a flock of sheep by witchcraft if you give them plenty of arsenic at the same time. The sheep, in this fi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95a/joan-robinson-11438_arsenic_voltaire-remarked-that-it-is-possible-to_1008351.jpg" --- # Voltaire remarked that it is possible to kill a flock of… ![“Voltaire remarked that it is possible to kill a flock of sheep by witchcraft if you give them plenty of arsenic at the same time. The sheep, in this figure, may well stand for the complacent apologists of capitalism; Marx's penetrating insight and bitter hatred of oppression supply the arsenic…” quote by Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95a/joan-robinson-11438_arsenic_voltaire-remarked-that-it-is-possible-to_1008351.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95a/joan-robinson-11438_arsenic_voltaire-remarked-that-it-is-possible-to_1008351.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95a/joan-robinson-11438_arsenic_voltaire-remarked-that-it-is-possible-to_1008351.jpg) > “Voltaire remarked that it is possible to kill a flock of sheep by witchcraft if you give them plenty of arsenic at the same time. The sheep, in this figure, may well stand for the complacent apologists of capitalism; Marx's penetrating insight and bitter hatred of oppression supply the arsenic, while the labour theory of value provides the incantations.” [Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Marxist critique likens complacent defenders of capitalism to sheep poisoned by ideological rhetoric, showing how theory can be weaponized. **In simple terms:** Marxist theory can poison complacent capitalism supporters. Key Takeaway Recognize and challenge ideological complacency. Themes capitalism ideology critique marxism Mood critical analytical Type philosophical political When to use this quote - academic debate - political activism - education - media analysis Key Concepts theory poison incantation Questions to Reflect On - How does theory become a weapon? - What safeguards prevent ideological poisoning? A Different Perspective The analogy may oversimplify complex economic dynamics. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Arsenic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arsenic/) [Capitalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capitalism/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Hatred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hatred/) [Labour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/labour/) [Oppression](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oppression/) [Values](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/values/) [Witchcraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/witchcraft/) ## Related quotes > [It is indeed paradoxical that, while the apologists of capitalism usually consider the 'price mechanism' to be the great advantage of the capitalist system,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michal-kalecki/it-is-indeed-paradoxical-that-while-the-apologists-of-capitalism/) Michal Kalecki > [“There is no law of progress, and everything will depend on ourselves. But the actual situation is briefly and fairly summed up by Parkes36…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-r-popper/there-is-no-law-of-progress-and-everything-will-depend-on-ourselves/) [Karl R. Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-r-popper/) > [“Cockshott and Cottrell argue that improvements in computer power, together with the application of advanced maths and information theory removes, in principle, the Hayek/Robbins…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-mason/cockshott-and-cottrell-argue-that-improvements-in-computer-power/) [Paul Mason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-mason/) > [“I know a lot of people were praying for us to find the arsenic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeannie-walker/i-know-a-lot-of-people-were-praying-for-us-to-find-the-arsenic/) [Jeannie Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeannie-walker/) > [Arsenic sticks around and today it's easily found after death if somebody thinks of looking for it, because the problem with arsenic, it isn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-baden/arsenic-sticks-around-and-today-it-s-easily-found-after-death-if/) [Michael Baden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-baden/) > [“Plutonium may give you grief for thousands of years, but Arsenic is for ever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/plutonium-may-give-you-grief-for-thousands-of-years-but-arsenic-is/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“Arsenic turned out to work even better, and was cheaper. Until it was banned in the 1890s, it was used widely, and heavy arsenic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-weisman/arsenic-turned-out-to-work-even-better-and-was-cheaper-until-it-was/) [Alan Weisman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-weisman/) > [Today, about 40 percent of America's carbon pollution comes from our power plants. There are no federal limits to the amount those plants can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/today-about-40-percent-of-america-s-carbon-pollution-comes-from-our/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [“L'art Green arsenic smeared on an egg-white cloth, Crushed strawberries! Come, let us feast our eyes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/l-art-green-arsenic-smeared-on-an-egg-white-cloth-crushed/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [Berlin stimulates like arsenic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-nicolson/berlin-stimulates-like-arsenic/) [Harold Nicolson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-nicolson/) > [A fit of anger is as fatal to dignity as a dose of arsenic is to life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-g-holland/a-fit-of-anger-is-as-fatal-to-dignity-as-a-dose-of-arsenic-is-to-life/) [J. G. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-g-holland/) > [“As there are six kinds of metals, so I have also shown with reliable experiments... that there are also six kinds of half-metals: a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandt/as-there-are-six-kinds-of-metals-so-i-have-also-shown-with-reliable/) Georg Brandt > [You should try them, Nick. They’re delicious. No one makes cookies that taste like this.” – Kara ‘Probably because arsenic was a key ingredient.’…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/you-should-try-them-nick-they-re-delicious-no-one-makes-cookies-that/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [“Important Tip: Avoid arsenic in any dishes. Seems that a dead guest has a way of putting a damper on a party. Go figure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josie-brown/important-tip-avoid-arsenic-in-any-dishes-seems-that-a-dead-guest-has/) [Josie Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josie-brown/) > [The value of a dollar is to buy just things; a dollar goes on increasing in value with all the genius and all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-value-of-a-dollar-is-to-buy-just-things-a-dollar-goes-on/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) ## More by Joan Robinson > [ The very nature of economics is rooted in nationalism. ... It \[was\] developed ... in the hope of throwing light upon questions of policy.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-robinson/the-very-nature-of-economics-is-rooted-in-nationalism-it-was/) [Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/) > [Unequal distribution of income is an excessively uneconomic method of getting the necessary saving done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-robinson/unequal-distribution-of-income-is-an-excessively-uneconomic-method-of/) [Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/) > [we make a great fuss about national conscience, but it consists mainly in insisting upon everyone ascribing our national policy to highly moral motives,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-robinson/we-make-a-great-fuss-about-national-conscience-but-it-consists-mainly/) [Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/) > [Marx, however imperfectly he worked out the details, set himself the task of discovering the law of motion of capitalism, and if there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-robinson/marx-however-imperfectly-he-worked-out-the-details-set-himself-the/) [Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/) > [Economic theorists should not make such a production about taking a rabbit out of a hat after having put the rabbit into the hat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-robinson/economic-theorists-should-not-make-such-a-production-about-taking-a/) [Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/) > [science progresses by trial and error, and when it is forbidden to admit error there can be no progress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-robinson/science-progresses-by-trial-and-error-and-when-it-is-forbidden-to/) [Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/) > [Marxism is the opium of the Marxists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-robinson/marxism-is-the-opium-of-the-marxists/) [Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/) > [The orthodox doctrines of economics which were dominant in the last quarter of the nineteenth century had a clear message. They supported laisser faire,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-robinson/the-orthodox-doctrines-of-economics-which-were-dominant-in-the-last/) [Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/) > [It's a terrible thing to be a worker exploited in the capitalist system. The only worse thing is to be a worker unable to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-robinson/it-s-a-terrible-thing-to-be-a-worker-exploited-in-the-capitalist/) [Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/) > [Not only subjective poverty is never overcome by growth, but absolute poverty is increased by it. ... Absolute misery grows while wealth increases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-robinson/not-only-subjective-poverty-is-never-overcome-by-growth-but-absolute/) [Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/) > [Reality is never a golden age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-robinson/reality-is-never-a-golden-age/) [Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/) > [“After the war, when the problem of deficient effective demand seemed to have faded into the background, a fresh question came to the fore…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-robinson/after-the-war-when-the-problem-of-deficient-effective-demand-seemed/) [Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/) > [In all the talk in the Principles (as opposed to the formal analysis) it is not the saving of rentiers but the energy of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-robinson/in-all-the-talk-in-the-principles-as-opposed-to-the-formal-analysis/) [Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/) > [I do not regard the Keynesian revolution as a great intellectual triumph. On the contrary, it was a tragedy because it came so late.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-robinson/i-do-not-regard-the-keynesian-revolution-as-a-great-intellectual/) [Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/) > [The purpose of studying economics is not to acquire a set of ready-made answers to economic questions, but to learn how to avoid being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-robinson/the-purpose-of-studying-economics-is-not-to-acquire-a-set-of-ready/) [Joan Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/) [Explore all 60 Joan Robinson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-robinson/) ## More Arsenic quotes > [The value of a dollar is to buy just things; a dollar goes on increasing in value with all the genius and all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-value-of-a-dollar-is-to-buy-just-things-a-dollar-goes-on/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“Important Tip: Avoid arsenic in any dishes. Seems that a dead guest has a way of putting a damper on a party. Go figure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josie-brown/important-tip-avoid-arsenic-in-any-dishes-seems-that-a-dead-guest-has/) [Josie Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josie-brown/) > [You should try them, Nick. They’re delicious. No one makes cookies that taste like this.” – Kara ‘Probably because arsenic was a key ingredient.’…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/you-should-try-them-nick-they-re-delicious-no-one-makes-cookies-that/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [“As there are six kinds of metals, so I have also shown with reliable experiments... that there are also six kinds of half-metals: a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-brandt/as-there-are-six-kinds-of-metals-so-i-have-also-shown-with-reliable/) Georg Brandt > [A fit of anger is as fatal to dignity as a dose of arsenic is to life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-g-holland/a-fit-of-anger-is-as-fatal-to-dignity-as-a-dose-of-arsenic-is-to-life/) [J. G. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-g-holland/) > [Berlin stimulates like arsenic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-nicolson/berlin-stimulates-like-arsenic/) [Harold Nicolson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-nicolson/) > [“L'art Green arsenic smeared on an egg-white cloth, Crushed strawberries! Come, let us feast our eyes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/l-art-green-arsenic-smeared-on-an-egg-white-cloth-crushed/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [Today, about 40 percent of America's carbon pollution comes from our power plants. There are no federal limits to the amount those plants can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/today-about-40-percent-of-america-s-carbon-pollution-comes-from-our/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [“Arsenic turned out to work even better, and was cheaper. Until it was banned in the 1890s, it was used widely, and heavy arsenic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-weisman/arsenic-turned-out-to-work-even-better-and-was-cheaper-until-it-was/) [Alan Weisman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-weisman/) > [“Plutonium may give you grief for thousands of years, but Arsenic is for ever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/plutonium-may-give-you-grief-for-thousands-of-years-but-arsenic-is/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [Arsenic sticks around and today it's easily found after death if somebody thinks of looking for it, because the problem with arsenic, it isn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-baden/arsenic-sticks-around-and-today-it-s-easily-found-after-death-if/) [Michael Baden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-baden/) > [“I know a lot of people were praying for us to find the arsenic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeannie-walker/i-know-a-lot-of-people-were-praying-for-us-to-find-the-arsenic/) [Jeannie Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeannie-walker/) > [Family, like arsenic, works best in small doses...unless you prefer to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/family-like-arsenic-works-best-in-small-doses-unless-you-prefer-to-die/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [ARSENIC, n. A kind of cosmetic greatly affected by the ladies, whom it greatly affects in turn. "Eat arsenic? Yes, all you get," Consenting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/arsenic-n-a-kind-of-cosmetic-greatly-affected-by-the-ladies-whom-it/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [Don't be too quickTo break bad habits: better stick,Like the Mission folk, to your arsenic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bret-harte/don-t-be-too-quickto-break-bad-habits-better-stick-like-the-mission/) [Bret Harte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bret-harte/) [Browse all 27 Arsenic quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arsenic/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Voltaire remarked that it is possible to kill a flock of sheep by witchcraft if you give them plenty of arsenic at the same time. 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