--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When there is state there can be no…" description: "\"When there is state there can be no freedom, but when there is freedom there will be no state.\" — Vladimir Lenin" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cfc/vladimir-lenin-1306_freedom_when-there-is-state-there-can-be-no-free_240578.jpg" --- # When there is state there can be no freedom, but when… ![“When there is state there can be no freedom, but when there is freedom there will be no state.” quote by Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cfc/vladimir-lenin-1306_freedom_when-there-is-state-there-can-be-no-free_240578.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cfc/vladimir-lenin-1306_freedom_when-there-is-state-there-can-be-no-free_240578.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cfc/vladimir-lenin-1306_freedom_when-there-is-state-there-can-be-no-free_240578.jpg) > “When there is state there can be no freedom, but when there is freedom there will be no state.” [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Freedom and state are mutually exclusive; a true state eliminates the need for freedom. **In simple terms:** State and freedom cannot coexist; a state removes freedom. Key Takeaway Recognize the tension between authority and liberty. Themes politics philosophy freedom Mood critical analytical Type political philosophical When to use this quote - government policy - civil rights activism - legal reform Key Concepts anarchism state theory Questions to Reflect On - Is any form of state compatible with liberty? - What alternatives preserve both security and freedom? A Different Perspective The claim overlooks that some structures can protect freedoms. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Freedom Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom-freedom-233461/) [Freedom State](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom-state-976749/) [State](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/state/) [State Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/state-freedom-1296924/) [Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/will/) ## Related quotes > [The state can't give you freedom, and the state can't take it away. You're born with it, like your eyes, like your ears. 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As a result,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-baldwin/in-our-desire-to-have-government-become-our-benefactor-and-sustainer/) [Chuck Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-baldwin/) > [“The state is a voluntary association of individuals designed to serve their individual interests. The state is not a faceless villain. 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It is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-edward-griffin/proper-role-of-the-state-i-believe-that-the-proper-role-of-the-state/) [G. Edward Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-edward-griffin/) > [“The state can easily destroy religion, but religion cannot do the same with the state. Therefore, defend and secure the freedom of your state…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mwanandeke-kindembo/the-state-can-easily-destroy-religion-but-religion-cannot-do-the-same/) [Mwanandeke Kindembo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mwanandeke-kindembo/) > [I think that freedom is sometimes a state of mind. Sometimes, mind you, but not always.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aung-san-suu-kyi/i-think-that-freedom-is-sometimes-a-state-of-mind-sometimes-mind-you/) [Aung San Suu Kyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aung-san-suu-kyi/) ## More by Vladimir Lenin > [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/) > [Honesty in politics is the result of strength; hypocrisy is the result of weakness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/honesty-in-politics-is-the-result-of-strength-hypocrisy-is-the-result/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [Our power does not know liberty or justice. It is established on the destruction of the individual will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/our-power-does-not-know-liberty-or-justice-it-is-established-on-the/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [For the complete extinction of the state, complete Communism is necessary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/for-the-complete-extinction-of-the-state-complete-communism-is/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [The reflection of nature in man's thought must be understood not lifelessly but in the eternal process of movement, the arising of contradictions and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/the-reflection-of-nature-in-man-s-thought-must-be-understood-not/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [Our program necessarily includes the propaganda of atheism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/our-program-necessarily-includes-the-propaganda-of-atheism/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [The best way to destroy the capitalist system is to debauch the currency.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/the-best-way-to-destroy-the-capitalist-system-is-to-debauch-the/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [“Private property based on the labour of the small proprietor, free competition, democracy, i.e., all the catchwords with which the capitalists and their press…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/private-property-based-on-the-labour-of-the-small-proprietor-free/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [Can a nation be free if it oppresses other nations? It cannot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/can-a-nation-be-free-if-it-oppresses-other-nations-it-cannot/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [International unity of the workers is more important than the national.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/international-unity-of-the-workers-is-more-important-than-the-national/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [I don't care what becomes of Russia. To hell with it. All this is only the road to a World Revolution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/i-don-t-care-what-becomes-of-russia-to-hell-with-it-all-this-is-only/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [I must say that the tasks of the youth in general, and of the Young Communist Leagues and all other organisations in particular, might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/i-must-say-that-the-tasks-of-the-youth-in-general-and-of-the-young/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [People always have been the foolish victims of deception and self-deception in politics, and they always will be, until they have learned to seek…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/people-always-have-been-the-foolish-victims-of-deception-and-self/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [One would like to stroke and caress human beings, but one dares not do so, because they bite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/one-would-like-to-stroke-and-caress-human-beings-but-one-dares-not-do/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [As an ultimate objective, "peace" simply means communist world control.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/as-an-ultimate-objective-peace-simply-means-communist-world-control/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) [Explore all 258 Vladimir Lenin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) ## More Freedom quotes > [One is a painter because one wants so-called freedom; one doesn't want to go to the office every morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/one-is-a-painter-because-one-wants-so-called-freedom-one-doesn-t-want/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. 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