Authority Quote by Pierre-Joseph Proudhon
“Democracy is nothing but the Tyranny of Majorities, the most abominable tyranny of all, for it is not based on the authority of a religion, not upon the nobility of a race, not on the merits of talents and of riches. It merely rests upon numbers and hides behind the name of the people.”
About This Quote
Source Book: What is Property?, 1840
Democracy can become oppressive when majority rule ignores individual rights and merit.
In simple terms: Majority rule can be tyrannical.
Key Takeaway
Protect minority rights and meritocratic principles.
Themes
democracy
tyranny
majority rule
individual rights
Mood
critical
reflective
Type
political
philosophical
When to use this quote
- elections
- legislative processes
- civil rights movements
- community decision making
Key Concepts
political theory
social contract
justice
Questions to Reflect On
- What safeguards ensure majority decisions respect minorities?
- How balance merit with popular will?
A Different Perspective
Majority decisions may still be unjust if not checked.
![“The faults of which we ask you [God] the remittance, it is you who make us commit them; the traps of which we implore you to deliver us, it is you who has set them for us; and the Satan which surrounds us, this Satan, it is you.” quote by Pierre-Joseph Proudhon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/4df/pierre-joseph-proudhon-11634_asks_the-faults-of-which-we-ask-you-god-the-r_28053.jpg)
![“The rationale which accompanies that imposition of male authority euphemistically referred to as 'the battle of the sexes' bears a certain resemblance to the formulas of nations at war, where any heinousness is justified on the grounds that the enemy is either an inferior [part of the] species or…” quote by Kate Millett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/895/kate-millett-7301_accompany_the-rationale-which-accompanies-that-imp_8896.jpg)