Revenge is sweeter than life itself. So think fools.
JuvenalRead
Already long ago, from when we sold our vote to no man, the People have abdicated our duties; for the People who once upon a time handed out military command, high civil office, legions — everything, now restrains itself and anxiously hopes for just two things: bread and circuses.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote criticizes how the people have surrendered their responsibilities to those in power, focusing instead on basic needs and distractions.
Juvenal's quote reflects on the apathy and disengagement of the populace from their civic duties in the face of a corrupt system. Instead of actively participating in governance and holding leaders accountable, people have resorted to seeking mere survival through basic comforts and entertainment, symbolized by 'bread and circuses,' which serves as a commentary on societal stagnation and the dangers of complacency.
Themes
ApathyPoliticsCivic DutyEntertainmentSociety
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a discussion about civic engagement during a political rally.
More from Juvenal
All quotes →Peace visits not the guilty mind.
JuvenalRead
An incurable itch for scribbling takes possession of many, and grows inveterate in their insane breasts.
JuvenalRead
Poverty is bitter, but it has no harder pang than that it makes men ridiculous.
JuvenalRead
All wish to possess knowledge, but few, comparatively speaking, are willing to pay the price.
JuvenalRead
This is his first punishment, that by the verdict of his own heart no guilty man is acquitted.
JuvenalRead
Similar quotes
Politics - I don't know why, but they seem to have a tendency to separate us, to keep us from one another, while nature is always and ever making efforts to bring us together.
Sean O'CaseyRead
Let's be clear: Voter suppression is real.
Stacey AbramsRead
Apartheid was baked hard in the mining industry because that's where it originated.
Cyril RamaphosaRead
It is not the function of government to keep the citizen from falling into error; it is the function of the citizen to keep the government from falling into error.
Robert H. JacksonRead
A politics that is not sensitive to the concerns and circumstances of people's lives, a politics that does not speak to and include people, is an intellectually arrogant politics that deserves to fail.
Paul WellstoneRead
The White House is a bully pulpit.
Theodore RooseveltRead