Eric Hoffer ( 10 of 253 )
In a trader-dominated society, the scribe is usually kept out of the management of affairs, but it given a more read more
In a trader-dominated society, the scribe is usually kept out of the management of affairs, but it given a more or less free hand in the cultural field. By frustrating the scribe's craving for commanding action, the trader draws upon himself the scribe's wrath and scorn.
...there is no alienation that a little power will not cure.
...there is no alienation that a little power will not cure.
The untalented are more at ease in a society that gives them valid alibis for not achieving than in one read more
The untalented are more at ease in a society that gives them valid alibis for not achieving than in one where opportunities are abundant. In an affluent society, the alienated who clamor for power are largely untalented people who cannot make use of the unprecedented opportunities for self-realization, and cannot escape the confrontation with an ineffectual self.
To ripen a person for self-sacrifice he must be stripped of his individual identity and distinctness. He must cease to read more
To ripen a person for self-sacrifice he must be stripped of his individual identity and distinctness. He must cease to be George, Hans, Ivan or Tadao- a human atom with an existence bounded by birth and death. The most drastic way to achieve this end is by complete assimilation of the individual into a collective body. The fully assimilated individual does not see himself and others as human beings. When asked who he is, his automatic response is that he is a German, a Russian, a Japanese, a Christian, a Moslem, a member of a certain tribe or family. He has no purpose, worth and destiny apart from his collective body; and as long as that body lives he cannot really die.
It is not actual suffering but a taste of better things which excites people to revolt.
It is not actual suffering but a taste of better things which excites people to revolt.
Freedom means freedom from forces and circumstances which would turn man into a thing, which would impose on man the read more
Freedom means freedom from forces and circumstances which would turn man into a thing, which would impose on man the passivity and predictability of matter. By this test, absolute power is the manifestation most inimical to human uniqueness. Absolute power wants to turn people into malleable clay.
It is the awareness of unfulfilled desires which gives a nation the feeling that it has a mission and a read more
It is the awareness of unfulfilled desires which gives a nation the feeling that it has a mission and a destiny.
Passionate hatred can give meaning and purpose to an empty life. Thus people haunted by the purposelessness of their lives read more
Passionate hatred can give meaning and purpose to an empty life. Thus people haunted by the purposelessness of their lives try to find a new content not only by dedicating themselves to a holy cause but also by nursing a fanatical grievance. A mass movement offers them unlimited opportunities for both.
The capacity for getting along with our neighbor depends to a large extent on the capacity for getting along with read more
The capacity for getting along with our neighbor depends to a large extent on the capacity for getting along with ourselves. The self-respecting individual will try to be as tolerant of his neighbor's shortcomings as he is of his own.
When people are fee to do as they please, they usually imitate each other. Originality is deliberate and forced, and read more
When people are fee to do as they please, they usually imitate each other. Originality is deliberate and forced, and partakes of the nature of a protest.
