--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Democracy is just a filler for textbooks!…" description: "\"Democracy is just a filler for textbooks! Do you actually believe that public opinion influences the government?\" — Voltaire" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bda/voltaire-173_believe_democracy-is-just-a-filler-for-textbooks_2722310.png" --- # Democracy is just a filler for textbooks! Do you actually… ![“Democracy is just a filler for textbooks! Do you actually believe that public opinion influences the government?” quote by Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bda/voltaire-173_believe_democracy-is-just-a-filler-for-textbooks_2722310.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bda/voltaire-173_believe_democracy-is-just-a-filler-for-textbooks_2722310.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bda/voltaire-173_believe_democracy-is-just-a-filler-for-textbooks_2722310.png) > “Democracy is just a filler for textbooks! Do you actually believe that public opinion influences the government?” [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Democracy is often superficial; questioning its real impact on governance. **In simple terms:** Democracy may be a façade. Key Takeaway Critically evaluate political systems. Themes politics skepticism democracy Mood critical inquisitive Type philosophical political When to use this quote - elections - policy debates Key Concepts civic engagement public opinion Questions to Reflect On - What truly influences government? - How can citizens be more effective? A Different Perspective Democracy can still empower citizens. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Influence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/influence/) [Opinion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opinion/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Public opinion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/public-opinion/) ## Related quotes > [It is not at all clear how much the media influences public opinion and how much public opinion influences the media.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-jackson/it-is-not-at-all-clear-how-much-the-media-influences-public-opinion/) [Bruce Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-jackson/) > [The similarity is that concentration of capital influences virtually everything that goes on. It influences the way the media functions, it very powerfully influences…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-similarity-is-that-concentration-of-capital-influences-virtually/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The United States influences government and life everywhere else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maharishi-mahesh-yogi/the-united-states-influences-government-and-life-everywhere-else/) [Maharishi Mahesh Yogi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maharishi-mahesh-yogi/) > [Democracy is not just a question of having a vote. It consists of strengthening each citizen's possibility and capacity to participate in the deliberations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-henrique-cardoso/democracy-is-not-just-a-question-of-having-a-vote-it-consists-of/) [Fernando Henrique Cardoso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-henrique-cardoso/) > [“The real reason for democracy is just the reverse. Mankind is so fallen that no man can be trusted with unchecked power over his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/the-real-reason-for-democracy-is-just-the-reverse-mankind-is-so-2/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [We are fighting to keep Israel a democracy - not just in terms of its electoral system but also in terms of its values.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tzipi-livni/we-are-fighting-to-keep-israel-a-democracy-not-just-in-terms-of-its/) [Tzipi Livni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tzipi-livni/) > [In our egalitarian democracy we have just about empowered a branch of the government, the FHA, to specify the size and shape of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-blake/in-our-egalitarian-democracy-we-have-just-about-empowered-a-branch-of/) Peter Blake > [That romantic notion of a band being a total democracy is just like lying to yourself in the mirror.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cedric-bixler-zavala/that-romantic-notion-of-a-band-being-a-total-democracy-is-just-like/) [Cedric Bixler-Zavala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cedric-bixler-zavala/) > [Democracy is not just freedom to criticize the government or head of state, or to hold parliamentary elections. True democracy obtains only when the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nawal-el-saadawi/democracy-is-not-just-freedom-to-criticize-the-government-or-head-of/) [Nawal El Saadawi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nawal-el-saadawi/) > [“The real reason for democracy is just the reverse. Mankind is so fallen that no man can be trusted with unchecked power over his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/the-real-reason-for-democracy-is-just-the-reverse-mankind-is-so/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [Democracy is not just constitutional and legislative rules; it is a culture and practice and adhering by the law and respecting international human rights…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hamad-bin-isa-al-khalifa/democracy-is-not-just-constitutional-and-legislative-rules-it-is-a/) [Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hamad-bin-isa-al-khalifa/) > [What I would say is that in its first iteration, Extinction Rebellion is really about democracy, by calling in for these new democratic forms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-bradbrook/what-i-would-say-is-that-in-its-first-iteration-extinction-rebellion/) [Gail Bradbrook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-bradbrook/) > [Democracy is just a word when the people are starving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immortal-technique/democracy-is-just-a-word-when-the-people-are-starving/) [Immortal Technique](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immortal-technique/) > [The degree to which campaigns have become dominated by marketing is breaking the spirit of democracy, and we're all just so sick of it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-weinberger/the-degree-to-which-campaigns-have-become-dominated-by-marketing-is/) [David Weinberger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-weinberger/) > [Democracy is just a word. You have to give it meaning. The US is not a democracy. Most Americans do not vote. We haven't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramsey-clark/democracy-is-just-a-word-you-have-to-give-it-meaning-the-us-is-not-a/) [Ramsey Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramsey-clark/) ## More by Voltaire > [In every province, the chief occupations, in order of importance, are lovemaking, malicious gossip, and talking nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/in-every-province-the-chief-occupations-in-order-of-importance-are/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Fanaticism, to which men are so much inclined, has always served not only to render them more brutalized but more wicked.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/fanaticism-to-which-men-are-so-much-inclined-has-always-served-not/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [History is the study of the world's crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/history-is-the-study-of-the-world-s-crime/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [We’re neither pure, nor wise, nor good; we do the best we know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/we-re-neither-pure-nor-wise-nor-good-we-do-the-best-we-know/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [It is with books as with men: a very small number play a great part, the rest are lost in the multitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/it-is-with-books-as-with-men-a-very-small-number-play-a-great-part/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Meslier was the most singular phenomenon ever seen among all the meteors fatal to the Christian religion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/meslier-was-the-most-singular-phenomenon-ever-seen-among-all-the/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Every sensible man, every honorable man, must hold the Christian sect in horror." "Christianity is the most ridiculous, the most absurd and bloody religion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/every-sensible-man-every-honorable-man-must-hold-the-christian-sect/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Being unable to make people more reasonable, I preferred to be happy away from them](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/being-unable-to-make-people-more-reasonable-i-preferred-to-be-happy/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [When his highness sends a ship to Egypt, does he trouble his head whether the mice on board are at their ease or not?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/when-his-highness-sends-a-ship-to-egypt-does-he-trouble-his-head/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Madness is to think of too many things in succession too fast, or of one thing too exclusively.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/madness-is-to-think-of-too-many-things-in-succession-too-fast-or-of/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [God gave us the gift of life; it is up to us to give ourselves the gift of living well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/god-gave-us-the-gift-of-life-it-is-up-to-us-to-give-ourselves-the/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [It is not inequality which is the real misfortune, it is dependence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/it-is-not-inequality-which-is-the-real-misfortune-it-is-dependence/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Providence has given us hope and sleep as a compensation for the many cares of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/providence-has-given-us-hope-and-sleep-as-a-compensation-for-the-many/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Men use thought only to justify their wrong doings, and employ speech only to conceal their thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/men-use-thought-only-to-justify-their-wrong-doings-and-employ-speech/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Work spares us from three evils: boredom, vice, and need](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/work-spares-us-from-three-evils-boredom-vice-and-need/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) [Explore all 934 Voltaire quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) ## More Believe quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. It makes a mockery of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-robison/some-people-still-believe-you-should-just-fall-in-line-with-what-s/) [Emily Robison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-robison/) > [The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-propaganda-on-its-own-cannot-force-its-way/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Resist discouragement by speaking His Word over your future. Keep standing. Keep hoping; keep believing because He is working behind the scenes. He's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/resist-discouragement-by-speaking-his-word-over-your-future-keep/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [I can't believe that I'm sitting in meetings with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Annette Bening. I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [There is no such word as item girl in the dictionary. People have created this word and I don't believe that I am an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shefali-zariwala/there-is-no-such-word-as-item-girl-in-the-dictionary-people-have/) [Shefali Zariwala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shefali-zariwala/) > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I don't really like too much credit. I know nobody's going to believe this, but I'd rather be able to score goals and nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-wright-phillips/i-don-t-really-like-too-much-credit-i-know-nobody-s-going-to-believe/) [Bradley Wright-Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-wright-phillips/) > [“What I have a problem with is not so much religion or god, but faith. When you say you believe something in your heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/what-i-have-a-problem-with-is-not-so-much-religion-or-god-but-faith/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [Bush reiterated his stand to conservatives opposing his decision on stem cell research. He said today he believes life begins at conception and ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/bush-reiterated-his-stand-to-conservatives-opposing-his-decision-on/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [Never underestimate the power of the human mind to believe what it wants to believe, no matter the conflicting evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-herbert/never-underestimate-the-power-of-the-human-mind-to-believe-what-it/) [Brian Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-herbert/) > [To believe in love, to be ready to give up anything for it, to be willing to risk your life for it, is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/to-believe-in-love-to-be-ready-to-give-up-anything-for-it-to-be/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) > [That's why I don't generally talk about endorsements because I don't believe we have to tell people who to vote for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-iii/that-s-why-i-don-t-generally-talk-about-endorsements-because-i-don-t/) [Martin Luther King III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-iii/) > [Mankind have been slow to believe that order reigns in the universe-that the world is a cosmos and a chaos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/mankind-have-been-slow-to-believe-that-order-reigns-in-the-universe/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [We instantly believe everything we think. Isn't that insane? It's good for us to explore the depravity of our minds, so we know we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krishna-das/we-instantly-believe-everything-we-think-isn-t-that-insane-it-s-good/) [Krishna Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krishna-das/) Browse all 47,704 Believe quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Democracy is just a filler for textbooks! Do you actually believe that public opinion influences the government?", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Voltaire" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/democracy-is-just-a-filler-for-textbooks-do-you-actually-believe-that/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Believe" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/democracy-is-just-a-filler-for-textbooks-do-you-actually-believe-that/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bda/voltaire-173_believe_democracy-is-just-a-filler-for-textbooks_2722310.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bda/voltaire-173_believe_democracy-is-just-a-filler-for-textbooks_2722310.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bda/voltaire-173_believe_democracy-is-just-a-filler-for-textbooks_2722310.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Democracy is just a filler for textbooks! Do you actually believe that public opinion influences the…” — Voltaire", "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": "Voltaire", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Democracy is just a filler for...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/democracy-is-just-a-filler-for-textbooks-do-you-actually-believe-that/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/democracy-is-just-a-filler-for-textbooks-do-you-actually-believe-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 } } ] } ```