--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The mob is easily led and may be moved by…" description: "\"The mob is easily led and may be moved by the smallest force, so that its agitations have a wonderful resemblance to those of the sea.\" — Polybius" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39d/polybius-21895_agitation_the-mob-is-easily-led-and-may-be-moved-b_2158359.jpg" --- # The mob is easily led and may be moved by the smallest… ![“The mob is easily led and may be moved by the smallest force, so that its agitations have a wonderful resemblance to those of the sea.” quote by Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39d/polybius-21895_agitation_the-mob-is-easily-led-and-may-be-moved-b_2158359.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39d/polybius-21895_agitation_the-mob-is-easily-led-and-may-be-moved-b_2158359.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39d/polybius-21895_agitation_the-mob-is-easily-led-and-may-be-moved-b_2158359.jpg) > “The mob is easily led and may be moved by the smallest force, so that its agitations have a wonderful resemblance to those of the sea.” [Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The crowd can be swayed by tiny influences, making its behavior mirror the unpredictable, of the ocean. **In simple terms:** Crowds react to small pushes like waves. Key Takeaway Recognize how minor cues can shift group opinion. Themes mass psychology influence instability Mood cautious analytical Type sociological political When to use this quote - political rallies - advertising campaigns - stock market panics - public protests Key Concepts social dynamics collective behavior Questions to Reflect On - How can leaders responsibly guide public sentiment? - What safeguards prevent manipulation? A Different Perspective Small manipulations may not sustain long‑term change. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Agitation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agitation/) [Agitations Wonderful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agitations-wonderful-4568327/) [Easily Led](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/easily-led-840235/) [Force](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/force/) [May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/may/) [Mob Easily](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mob-easily-4287543/) [Moved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moved/) [Moved Smallest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moved-smallest-4568328/) [Resemblance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/resemblance/) [Sea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sea/) [Smallest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smallest/) [Smallest Force](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smallest-force-2746193/) [Wonderful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wonderful/) ## Related quotes > [If the subject's easy we may all be wise; What stands unfirm, the smallest force overthrows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/if-the-subject-s-easy-we-may-all-be-wise-what-stands-unfirm-the/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [An audience can become a mob very easily.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-f-tompkins/an-audience-can-become-a-mob-very-easily/) [Paul F. Tompkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-f-tompkins/) > [There is good and evil in each of us, and you can easily be led to the dark side.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-lowe/there-is-good-and-evil-in-each-of-us-and-you-can-easily-be-led-to-the/) [Rob Lowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-lowe/) > [People are more easily led than driven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-harold-fink/people-are-more-easily-led-than-driven/) [David Harold Fink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-harold-fink/) > [It is not proper to project our feelings onto things or to attribute our own sensations and passions to them. Can it also be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/it-is-not-proper-to-project-our-feelings-onto-things-or-to-attribute/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Agitation is that part of our intellectual life where vitality results; there ideas are born, breed and bring forth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-edward-woodberry/agitation-is-that-part-of-our-intellectual-life-where-vitality/) [George Edward Woodberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-edward-woodberry/) > [“Mirabeau: “If you have been told to clear us from this hall, you must ask for orders to use force. We shall leave our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/mirabeau-if-you-have-been-told-to-clear-us-from-this-hall-you-must/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [The wisest among my race understand that agitations of social equality is the extremist folly, and that progress in the enjoyment of all privileges…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/the-wisest-among-my-race-understand-that-agitations-of-social/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [We too are called to withdraw at certain intervals into deeper silence and aloneness with God, together as a community as well as personally;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-teresa/we-too-are-called-to-withdraw-at-certain-intervals-into-deeper/) [Mother Teresa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mother-teresa/) > [“If lies comfort, and truth disturbs - self is being agitated as a result of prideful living.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-f-hodge/if-lies-comfort-and-truth-disturbs-self-is-being-agitated-as-a-result/) [T.F. Hodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-f-hodge/) > [“It is unworthy of great spirits to spread abroad the agitation they feel”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/it-is-unworthy-of-great-spirits-to-spread-abroad-the-agitation-they/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [This position is untenable, and there can be no pause in the agitation for full political power and responsibility until these are granted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-kelley/this-position-is-untenable-and-there-can-be-no-pause-in-the-agitation/) [Florence Kelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-kelley/) > [...the Government must not think that they can stop this agitation. It will go on...We are here not because we are law-breakers; we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmeline-pankhurst/the-government-must-not-think-that-they-can-stop-this-agitation-it/) [Emmeline Pankhurst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmeline-pankhurst/) > [Indifference is harder to fight than hostility, and there is nothing that kills an agitation like having everybody admit that it is fundamentally right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/crystal-eastman/indifference-is-harder-to-fight-than-hostility-and-there-is-nothing/) [Crystal Eastman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/crystal-eastman/) > [The party in Alobar’s head, which agitation and anxiety were throwing, now was crashed by a notion: existence can be rearranged.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/the-party-in-alobar-s-head-which-agitation-and-anxiety-were-throwing/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) ## More by Polybius > [In our own time the whole of Greece has been subject to a low birth rate and a general decrease of the population, owing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/in-our-own-time-the-whole-of-greece-has-been-subject-to-a-low-birth/) [Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) > [A good general not only sees the way to victory; he also knows when victory is impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/a-good-general-not-only-sees-the-way-to-victory-he-also-knows-when/) [Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) > [The common people feel themselves oppressed by the grasping of some, and their vanity is flattered by others. Fired with evil passions, they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/the-common-people-feel-themselves-oppressed-by-the-grasping-of-some/) [Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) > [The government will take the fairest of names, but the worst of realities--mob rule.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/the-government-will-take-the-fairest-of-names-but-the-worst-of/) [Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) > [Nor ought we ever to allow any growing power to acquire such a degree of strength as to be able to tear from us,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/nor-ought-we-ever-to-allow-any-growing-power-to-acquire-such-a-degree/) [Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) > [From this I conclude that the best education for the situations of actual life consists of the experience we acquire from the study of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/from-this-i-conclude-that-the-best-education-for-the-situations-of/) [Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) > [Monarchy degenerates into tyranny, aristocracy into oligarchy, and democracy into savage violence and chaos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/monarchy-degenerates-into-tyranny-aristocracy-into-oligarchy-and/) [Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) > [Knowing how to win is the first step. We must also know how to make use of our victories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/knowing-how-to-win-is-the-first-step-we-must-also-know-how-to-make/) [Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) > [When the ancients said a work well begun was half done, they meant to impress the importance of always endeavoring to make a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/when-the-ancients-said-a-work-well-begun-was-half-done-they-meant-to/) [Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) > [“They want the centurions not so much to be venturesome and daredevils, as to be natural leaders, of a steady and reliable spirit. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/they-want-the-centurions-not-so-much-to-be-venturesome-and-daredevils/) [Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) > [“At the sight of the city utterly perishing amidst the flames Scipio burst into tears, and stood long reflecting on the inevitable change which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/at-the-sight-of-the-city-utterly-perishing-amidst-the-flames-scipio/) [Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) > [ \[There can be no\] rational administration of government when good men are held in the same esteem as bad ones. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/there-can-be-no-rational-administration-of-government-when-good-men/) [Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) > [Those who know how to win are much more numerous than those who know how to make proper use of their victories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/those-who-know-how-to-win-are-much-more-numerous-than-those-who-know/) [Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) > [How highly should we honor the Macedonians, who for the greater part of their lives never cease from fighting with the barbarians for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/how-highly-should-we-honor-the-macedonians-who-for-the-greater-part/) [Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) > [For peace, with justice and honor, is the fairest and most profitable of possessions, but with disgrace and shameful cowardice, it is the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/for-peace-with-justice-and-honor-is-the-fairest-and-most-profitable/) [Polybius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) [Explore all 28 Polybius quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/) ## More Agitation quotes > [The party in Alobar’s head, which agitation and anxiety were throwing, now was crashed by a notion: existence can be rearranged.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/the-party-in-alobar-s-head-which-agitation-and-anxiety-were-throwing/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [Indifference is harder to fight than hostility, and there is nothing that kills an agitation like having everybody admit that it is fundamentally right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/crystal-eastman/indifference-is-harder-to-fight-than-hostility-and-there-is-nothing/) [Crystal Eastman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/crystal-eastman/) > [...the Government must not think that they can stop this agitation. It will go on...We are here not because we are law-breakers; we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmeline-pankhurst/the-government-must-not-think-that-they-can-stop-this-agitation-it/) [Emmeline Pankhurst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmeline-pankhurst/) > [This position is untenable, and there can be no pause in the agitation for full political power and responsibility until these are granted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-kelley/this-position-is-untenable-and-there-can-be-no-pause-in-the-agitation/) [Florence Kelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-kelley/) > [“It is unworthy of great spirits to spread abroad the agitation they feel”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/it-is-unworthy-of-great-spirits-to-spread-abroad-the-agitation-they/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“If lies comfort, and truth disturbs - self is being agitated as a result of prideful living.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-f-hodge/if-lies-comfort-and-truth-disturbs-self-is-being-agitated-as-a-result/) [T.F. Hodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-f-hodge/) > [We too are called to withdraw at certain intervals into deeper silence and aloneness with God, together as a community as well as personally;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-teresa/we-too-are-called-to-withdraw-at-certain-intervals-into-deeper/) [Mother Teresa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mother-teresa/) > [The wisest among my race understand that agitations of social equality is the extremist folly, and that progress in the enjoyment of all privileges…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/the-wisest-among-my-race-understand-that-agitations-of-social/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [“Mirabeau: “If you have been told to clear us from this hall, you must ask for orders to use force. We shall leave our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/mirabeau-if-you-have-been-told-to-clear-us-from-this-hall-you-must/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [Agitation is that part of our intellectual life where vitality results; there ideas are born, breed and bring forth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-edward-woodberry/agitation-is-that-part-of-our-intellectual-life-where-vitality/) [George Edward Woodberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-edward-woodberry/) > [It is not proper to project our feelings onto things or to attribute our own sensations and passions to them. Can it also be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/it-is-not-proper-to-project-our-feelings-onto-things-or-to-attribute/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Agitation is all about poetry, governance is all about prose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jairam-ramesh/agitation-is-all-about-poetry-governance-is-all-about-prose/) [Jairam Ramesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jairam-ramesh/) > [Wherever capitalism appears, in pursuit of its mission of exploitation, there will Socialism, fertilized by misery, watered by tears, and vitalized by agitation be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/wherever-capitalism-appears-in-pursuit-of-its-mission-of-exploitation/) [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) > [Patience takes courage. It is not an ideal state of calm. In fact, when we practice patience we will see our agitation far more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/patience-takes-courage-it-is-not-an-ideal-state-of-calm-in-fact-when/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [Every day I observe more and more the folly of judging of others by ourselves; and I have so much trouble with myself, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/every-day-i-observe-more-and-more-the-folly-of-judging-of-others-by/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) [Browse all 173 Agitation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agitation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The mob is easily led and may be moved by the smallest force, so that its agitations have a wonderful resemblance to those of the sea.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Polybius" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/the-mob-is-easily-led-and-may-be-moved-by-the-smallest-force-so-that/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Agitation" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/the-mob-is-easily-led-and-may-be-moved-by-the-smallest-force-so-that/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39d/polybius-21895_agitation_the-mob-is-easily-led-and-may-be-moved-b_2158359.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39d/polybius-21895_agitation_the-mob-is-easily-led-and-may-be-moved-b_2158359.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39d/polybius-21895_agitation_the-mob-is-easily-led-and-may-be-moved-b_2158359.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The mob is easily led and may be moved by the smallest force, so that its agitations have a wonderful…” — Polybius", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Polybius", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polybius/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The mob is easily led and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/the-mob-is-easily-led-and-may-be-moved-by-the-smallest-force-so-that/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polybius/the-mob-is-easily-led-and-may-be-moved-by-the-smallest-force-so-that/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```