--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In contrast to totalitarianism, democracy…" description: "\"In contrast to totalitarianism, democracy can face and live with the truth about itself.\" — Sidney Hook" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a0e/sidney-hook-19261_contrast_in-contrast-to-totalitarianism-democracy_2414358.jpg" --- # In contrast to totalitarianism, democracy can face and… ![“In contrast to totalitarianism, democracy can face and live with the truth about itself.” quote by Sidney Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a0e/sidney-hook-19261_contrast_in-contrast-to-totalitarianism-democracy_2414358.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a0e/sidney-hook-19261_contrast_in-contrast-to-totalitarianism-democracy_2414358.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a0e/sidney-hook-19261_contrast_in-contrast-to-totalitarianism-democracy_2414358.jpg) > “In contrast to totalitarianism, democracy can face and live with the truth about itself.” [Sidney Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Democracy confronts its own flaws, unlike totalitarianism which suppresses truth. **In simple terms:** Democracy faces its truth. Key Takeaway Accept and improve democratic flaws. Themes politics truth democracy totalitarianism Mood critical optimistic Type philosophical political When to use this quote - elections - public debates - media analysis Key Concepts civic responsibility critical thinking transparency Questions to Reflect On - How can societies confront uncomfortable truths? - What mechanisms ensure truth in democracy? A Different Perspective Self‑deception can hinder progress. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Contrast](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contrast/) [Contrast Totalitarianism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contrast-totalitarianism-6089753/) [Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy/) [Democracy Face](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy-face-2848836/) [Faces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faces/) [Totalitarianism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/totalitarianism/) [Totalitarianism Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/totalitarianism-democracy-6089754/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) ## Related quotes > [“It is a melancholy fact which exponents of democracy must face that, while all men may be on a level in the eyes of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-buchan/it-is-a-melancholy-fact-which-exponents-of-democracy-must-face-that/) [John Buchan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-buchan/) > [ “In this confusion we begin to see what lies behind John Paul II's startling warning about democracy "effectively mov\[ing\] towards a form of totalitarianism."… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-cardinal-pell/in-this-confusion-we-begin-to-see-what-lies-behind-john-paul-ii-s/) [George Cardinal Pell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-cardinal-pell/) > [“In 1870, came the victory of the short-service troops of Prussia over the long-service troops of France, where conscription had but recently been reintroduced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-h-liddell-hart-2/in-1870-came-the-victory-of-the-short-service-troops-of-prussia-over/) [B.H. Liddell Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-h-liddell-hart-2/) > [“Democracy in books is, for the people, by the people, democracy on street is rule of the apes in a land of sheep.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/democracy-in-books-is-for-the-people-by-the-people-democracy-on/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [ \[Socialistic\] economic planning, regulation, and intervention pave the way to totalitarianism by building a power structure that will inevitably be seized by the most… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/socialistic-economic-planning-regulation-and-intervention-pave-the/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [“Should we wrap it all up and simply say that they arrested the innocent? But we omitted saying that the very concept of guilt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/should-we-wrap-it-all-up-and-simply-say-that-they-arrested-the/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [ \[Albert Camus\] always held a profound commitment \[engagement\], a real resistance to all totalitarianism. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-camus/albert-camus-always-held-a-profound-commitment-engagement-a-real/) [Catherine Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-camus/) > [“Totalitarian politics—far from being simply antisemitic or racist or imperialist or communist—use and abuse their own ideological and political elements until the basis of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-arendt/totalitarian-politics-far-from-being-simply-antisemitic-or-racist-or/) [Hannah Arendt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-arendt/) > [“Life was terrible. It was as though they could understand, as though they could read in one another’s eyes, that the power which had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vasily-grossman/life-was-terrible-it-was-as-though-they-could-understand-as-though/) [Vasily Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vasily-grossman/) > [“The issue is whether we want to live in a free society or whether we want to live under what amounts to a form…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-issue-is-whether-we-want-to-live-in-a-free-society-or-whether-we/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [East Germany was so total in its totalitarianism that everything was banned which wasn't compulsory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/east-germany-was-so-total-in-its-totalitarianism-that-everything-was/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [Pure, hard-core liberals believe in a superior race. They think they're it. They believe they're more intelligent than the general run of mankind, better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/pure-hard-core-liberals-believe-in-a-superior-race-they-think-they-re/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“It was astonishing that the pseudo wreckers, who knew perfectly well that they weren't wreckers, believed that military men and priests were being shaken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/it-was-astonishing-that-the-pseudo-wreckers-who-knew-perfectly-well/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [I have seen the rise and fall of Nazi tyranny, the subsequent cold war and the nuclear nightmare that for fifty years haunted the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-have-seen-the-rise-and-fall-of-nazi-tyranny-the-subsequent-cold-war/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [People who live in the post-totalitarian system know only too well that the question of whether one or several political parties are in power,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-havel/people-who-live-in-the-post-totalitarian-system-know-only-too-well/) [Vaclav Havel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-havel/) ## More by Sidney Hook > [To deny me the right to err is therefore to deny me the right to believe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/to-deny-me-the-right-to-err-is-therefore-to-deny-me-the-right-to/) [Sidney Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/) > [Life has meaning for anyone who takes an interest in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/life-has-meaning-for-anyone-who-takes-an-interest-in-it/) [Sidney Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/) > [Wisdom is an affair of values, and of value judgments. It is intelligent conduct of human affairs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/wisdom-is-an-affair-of-values-and-of-value-judgments-it-is/) [Sidney Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/) > [A liberal education will impart an awareness of the amazing and precious complexity of human relationships. Since those relationships are violated more often out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/a-liberal-education-will-impart-an-awareness-of-the-amazing-and/) [Sidney Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/) > [The easiest rationalization for the refusal to seek the truth is the denial that truth exists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/the-easiest-rationalization-for-the-refusal-to-seek-the-truth-is-the/) [Sidney Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/) > [Before impugning an opponent's motives, even when they legitimately may be impugned, answer his arguments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/before-impugning-an-opponent-s-motives-even-when-they-legitimately/) [Sidney Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/) > [The difference between science and religion is that the former wishes to get rid of mysteries whereas the latter worships them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/the-difference-between-science-and-religion-is-that-the-former-wishes/) [Sidney Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/) > [Everyone recognizes a distinction between knowledge and wisdom. . . Wisdom is a kind of knowledge. It is knowledge of the nature, career, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/everyone-recognizes-a-distinction-between-knowledge-and-wisdom-wisdom/) [Sidney Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/) > [ \[A\]nti-Semitism was rife in almost all varieties of socialism. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/a-nti-semitism-was-rife-in-almost-all-varieties-of-socialism/) [Sidney Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/) > [Noam Chomsky skittles and skithers all over the political landscape to distract the reader’s attention from the plain truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/noam-chomsky-skittles-and-skithers-all-over-the-political-landscape/) [Sidney Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/) > [To serve the public interest is not the same as being a servant of public opinion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/to-serve-the-public-interest-is-not-the-same-as-being-a-servant-of/) [Sidney Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/) > [I was guilty of judging capitalism by its operations and socialism by its hopes and aspirations; capitalism by its works and socialism by its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/i-was-guilty-of-judging-capitalism-by-its-operations-and-socialism-by/) [Sidney Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/) > [Idealism, alas, does not protect one from ignorance, dogmatism, and foolishness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/idealism-alas-does-not-protect-one-from-ignorance-dogmatism-and/) [Sidney Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/) > [“Everyone who remembers their own educational experience remembers teachers, not methods and techniques.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/everyone-who-remembers-their-own-educational-experience-remembers/) [Sidney Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/) > [Everyone who remembers his own education remembers teachers, not methods and techniques. The teacher is the heart of the educational system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/everyone-who-remembers-his-own-education-remembers-teachers-not/) [Sidney Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/) [Explore all 33 Sidney Hook quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/) ## More Contrast quotes > [You don't merely give over your creativity to making a film - you give over your life! In theatre, by contrast, you live these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/you-don-t-merely-give-over-your-creativity-to-making-a-film-you-give/) [Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) > [The approach of intellect or noesis will forever be an effete and limited sort of thing by contrast with the vigor and color of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-smith/the-approach-of-intellect-or-noesis-will-forever-be-an-effete-and/) [Kenny Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-smith/) > [Which is probably the reason why I work exclusively in black and white... to highlight that contrast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-nimoy/which-is-probably-the-reason-why-i-work-exclusively-in-black-and/) [Leonard Nimoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-nimoy/) > [Emotional Literacy means being able to recognise what you are feeling, so that it doesn't interfere with thinking. It becomes another dimension to draw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susie-orbach/emotional-literacy-means-being-able-to-recognise-what-you-are-feeling/) [Susie Orbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susie-orbach/) > [I believe in the people of our state and making sure the voices of the people of our state are heard in Washington. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-cunningham/i-believe-in-the-people-of-our-state-and-making-sure-the-voices-of/) [Cal Cunningham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-cunningham/) > [I have always liked the contrast between being blonde and having dark features.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-ora/i-have-always-liked-the-contrast-between-being-blonde-and-having-dark/) [Rita Ora](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-ora/) > [One can hardly appreciate how academia has perverted its highest tasks and "ideals" without pondering long and hard the implications of Jacques Barzun's House…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-smith/one-can-hardly-appreciate-how-academia-has-perverted-its-highest/) [Kenny Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-smith/) > [There's this one song called 'Final Warning' that I'm really excited about because I love the contrast of my vocal sounding very soothing and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skylar-grey/there-s-this-one-song-called-final-warning-that-i-m-really-excited/) [Skylar Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skylar-grey/) > [Trump conducts meetings and actually tries to get something done rather than just have the meeting and rather than just announce a framework and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/trump-conducts-meetings-and-actually-tries-to-get-something-done/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [In a way, human beings have never been part of the natural order; we're not biological in the normal sense. Normal biological animals stop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/in-a-way-human-beings-have-never-been-part-of-the-natural-order-we-re/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) > [On the surface the avant garde as a whole seems united primarily in terms of what they are against: the rejection of social institutions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-d-innes/on-the-surface-the-avant-garde-as-a-whole-seems-united-primarily-in/) [C. D. Innes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-d-innes/) > [One of the most durable successes of the war on poverty was to dramatically reduce the number of elderly poor in America. That's still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sasha-abramsky/one-of-the-most-durable-successes-of-the-war-on-poverty-was-to/) [Sasha Abramsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sasha-abramsky/) > [All the classical meditation traditions, in one way or another, stress nonattachment to the self as a goal of practice. Oddly, this dimension is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-goleman/all-the-classical-meditation-traditions-in-one-way-or-another-stress/) [Daniel Goleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-goleman/) > [Our national leaders tend to try to protect the national interest as they see it. They may screw up in that, but they at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-d-kristof/our-national-leaders-tend-to-try-to-protect-the-national-interest-as/) [Nicholas D. Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-d-kristof/) > [Others have questions about how it is that God and human beings can both be speaking through the one document such that you can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-carson/others-have-questions-about-how-it-is-that-god-and-human-beings-can/) [D. A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson/) [Browse all 859 Contrast quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contrast/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In contrast to totalitarianism, democracy can face and live with the truth about itself.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sidney Hook" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/in-contrast-to-totalitarianism-democracy-can-face-and-live-with-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Contrast" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/in-contrast-to-totalitarianism-democracy-can-face-and-live-with-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a0e/sidney-hook-19261_contrast_in-contrast-to-totalitarianism-democracy_2414358.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a0e/sidney-hook-19261_contrast_in-contrast-to-totalitarianism-democracy_2414358.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a0e/sidney-hook-19261_contrast_in-contrast-to-totalitarianism-democracy_2414358.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In contrast to totalitarianism, democracy can face and live with the truth about itself.” — Sidney Hook", "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": "Sidney Hook", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-hook/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "In contrast to totalitarianism, democracy can...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/in-contrast-to-totalitarianism-democracy-can-face-and-live-with-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-hook/in-contrast-to-totalitarianism-democracy-can-face-and-live-with-the/#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 } } ] } ```