--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As every good marxist already knows, the…" description: "\"“As every good marxist already knows, the ideological shift toward a terminally optimistic humanism was vital to the rise of bourgeoisie, and the decli..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d30/terre-thaemlitz-52115_aristocracy_as-every-good-marxist-already-knows-the_2607067.jpg" --- # As every good marxist already knows, the ideological shift… ![“As every good marxist already knows, the ideological shift toward a terminally optimistic humanism was vital to the rise of bourgeoisie, and the decline of aristocracy.” quote by Terre Thaemlitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d30/terre-thaemlitz-52115_aristocracy_as-every-good-marxist-already-knows-the_2607067.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d30/terre-thaemlitz-52115_aristocracy_as-every-good-marxist-already-knows-the_2607067.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d30/terre-thaemlitz-52115_aristocracy_as-every-good-marxist-already-knows-the_2607067.jpg) > ““As every good marxist already knows, the ideological shift toward a terminally optimistic humanism was vital to the rise of bourgeoisie, and the decline of aristocracy.”” [Terre Thaemlitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terre-thaemlitz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote argues that a hopeful humanism helped the bourgeoisie rise while aristocracy fell. **In simple terms:** Optimistic humanism boosted capitalism, undermined aristocracy. Key Takeaway Recognize how ideological shifts reshape power structures. Themes politics ideology history class social change Mood analytical critical thought‑provoking Type philosophical political When to use this quote - academic analysis - political strategy - social movements - education - media critique Key Concepts Marxism humanism bourgeoisie aristocracy cultural shift Questions to Reflect On - How do cultural narratives influence class dynamics? - Can optimism coexist with critical analysis of power? A Different Perspective It oversimplifies complex historical causes to a single ideological factor. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Aristocracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aristocracy/) [Bourgeoisie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bourgeoisie/) [Critical thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/critical-thinking/) [Humanism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humanism/) [Humanism Vital](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humanism-vital-1995732/) [Ideological Shift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideological-shift-1995734/) [Infantilization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/infantilization-91082/) [Marxist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marxist/) [Marxist Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marxist-knows-1995731/) [Nuisance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nuisance/) [Optimistic Humanism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimistic-humanism-1995733/) [Pessimism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pessimism/) [Positive thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/positive-thinking/) ## Related quotes > [“Infantilism, the main characteristic of today's "developed societies", animalizes man by humanizing animals, enslaves man by "liberating" nature and stupefies man by intellectualizing machines.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jakub-bo-ydar-wi-niewski/infantilism-the-main-characteristic-of-today-s-developed-societies/) [Jakub Bożydar Wiśniewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jakub-bo-ydar-wi-niewski/) > [What has happened in the last generation is that Tijuana has become a new Third World capital - much to the chagrin of Mexico…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/what-has-happened-in-the-last-generation-is-that-tijuana-has-become-a/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [“I cannot do even one sit-up / Sit-ups are so bourgeoisie.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-malkmus/i-cannot-do-even-one-sit-up-sit-ups-are-so-bourgeoisie/) [Stephen Malkmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-malkmus/) > [A system of licensing and registration is the perfect device to deny gun ownership to the bourgeoisie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/a-system-of-licensing-and-registration-is-the-perfect-device-to-deny/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [“The bourgeoisie, wherever it has got the upper hand, has put an end to all feudal, patriarchal, idyllic relations. 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It's more like the international plutocracy eliminating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hendrik-hertzberg/i-can-t-agree-that-what-we-re-seeing-is-a-matter-of-the-american/) [Hendrik Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hendrik-hertzberg/) > [The need of a constantly expanding market for its products chases the bourgeoisie over the entire surface of the globe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-marx/the-need-of-a-constantly-expanding-market-for-its-products-chases-the/) [Karl Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-marx/) > [It is a very good thing, and a significant one too, to exterminate the bourgeoisie and capitalism in China.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/it-is-a-very-good-thing-and-a-significant-one-too-to-exterminate-the/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [I'm more of a warrior than you'll ever be. I believe in the class war. I believe in the battle of the sexes. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irvine-welsh/i-m-more-of-a-warrior-than-you-ll-ever-be-i-believe-in-the-class-war/) [Irvine Welsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irvine-welsh/) > [“Arnold Harberger, Milton Friedman & Co. Inc., your modest proposal of partial equilibrium for the general good is not without its own internal contradictions.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andr-gunder-frank/arnold-harberger-milton-friedman-co-inc-your-modest-proposal-of/) [André Gunder Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andr-gunder-frank/) > [Common sense, in so far as it exists, is all for the bourgeoisie. Nonsense is the privilege of the aristocracy. The worries of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-jean-nathan/common-sense-in-so-far-as-it-exists-is-all-for-the-bourgeoisie/) [George Jean Nathan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-jean-nathan/) > [“What imperialists actually wanted was expansion of political power without the foundation of the body politic. Imperialist expansion had been touched off by a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-arendt/what-imperialists-actually-wanted-was-expansion-of-political-power/) [Hannah Arendt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-arendt/) > [The burgeoisie, by the rapid improvement of all instruments of production, by the immensely facilitated means of communication, draws all nations into civilization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-marx/the-burgeoisie-by-the-rapid-improvement-of-all-instruments-of/) [Karl Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-marx/) > [Dictatorship is rule based directly upon force and unrestricted by any laws. The revolutionary dictatorship of the proletariat is rule won and maintained by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/dictatorship-is-rule-based-directly-upon-force-and-unrestricted-by/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) ## More by Terre Thaemlitz > [Laws never protect anyone, despite claiming to be all about protecting the public. Each legal restriction only strengthens the power of mafia and crime…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terre-thaemlitz/laws-never-protect-anyone-despite-claiming-to-be-all-about-protecting/) [Terre Thaemlitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terre-thaemlitz/) > [Within legal enforcement of "morality," there is no sense of how to morally, ethically, or fairly help people live safer lives. It's all about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terre-thaemlitz/within-legal-enforcement-of-morality-there-is-no-sense-of-how-to/) [Terre Thaemlitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terre-thaemlitz/) > [The Olympics are too powerful. I hate sports - they generate so much nationalism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, racism, economic exploitation, displacement of communities to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terre-thaemlitz/the-olympics-are-too-powerful-i-hate-sports-they-generate-so-much/) [Terre Thaemlitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terre-thaemlitz/) > [Negativland through rose colored glasses. If 'mice are from Mars,' Greek Buck is from Venus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terre-thaemlitz/negativland-through-rose-colored-glasses-if-mice-are-from-mars-greek/) [Terre Thaemlitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terre-thaemlitz/) > [Living under capitalism, I like learning to feel comfortable with activity that does not result in success — since non-success is the norm. 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The jokes about death for the sake of the motherland…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/motherland-is-our-property-and-we-have-right-to-handle-our-properties/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [There is... an artificial aristocracy founded on wealth and birth, without either virtue or talents... 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Do you really want to eat with someone's gloomy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-jane-howard/why-do-these-big-old-country-houses-always-have-family-portraits-in/) [Elizabeth Jane Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-jane-howard/) > [“I believe in aristocracy, though—if that is the right word, and if a democrat may use it. Not an aristocracy of power … but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-n-aron/i-believe-in-aristocracy-though-if-that-is-the-right-word-and-if-a-2/) [Elaine N. Aron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-n-aron/) > [Books are the treasured wealth of the world and the fit inheritance of generations and nations. Books, the oldest and the best, stand naturally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/books-are-the-treasured-wealth-of-the-world-and-the-fit-inheritance/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [We stand a better chance with aristocracy, whether hereditary or elective, than with monarchy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-stiles/we-stand-a-better-chance-with-aristocracy-whether-hereditary-or/) [Ezra Stiles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-stiles/) > [ The law for religious freedom... \[has\]put down the aristocracy of the clergy and restored to the citizen the freedom of the mind. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/the-law-for-religious-freedom-has-put-down-the-aristocracy-of-the/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Common sense, in so far as it exists, is all for the bourgeoisie. Nonsense is the privilege of the aristocracy. The worries of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-jean-nathan/common-sense-in-so-far-as-it-exists-is-all-for-the-bourgeoisie/) [George Jean Nathan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-jean-nathan/) [Browse all 426 Aristocracy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aristocracy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“As every good marxist already knows, the ideological shift toward a terminally optimistic humanism was vital to the rise of bourgeoisie, and the decline of aristocracy.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Terre Thaemlitz" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terre-thaemlitz/as-every-good-marxist-already-knows-the-ideological-shift-toward-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Aristocracy" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terre-thaemlitz/as-every-good-marxist-already-knows-the-ideological-shift-toward-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d30/terre-thaemlitz-52115_aristocracy_as-every-good-marxist-already-knows-the_2607067.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d30/terre-thaemlitz-52115_aristocracy_as-every-good-marxist-already-knows-the_2607067.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d30/terre-thaemlitz-52115_aristocracy_as-every-good-marxist-already-knows-the_2607067.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“As every good marxist already knows, the ideological shift toward a terminally optimistic humanism was vital…” — Terre Thaemlitz", "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": "Terre Thaemlitz", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terre-thaemlitz/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“As every good marxist already knows,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terre-thaemlitz/as-every-good-marxist-already-knows-the-ideological-shift-toward-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terre-thaemlitz/as-every-good-marxist-already-knows-the-ideological-shift-toward-a/#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 } } ] } ```