The mission of the press is to spread culture while destroying the attention span.
Karl KrausRead
Democracy divides people into workers and loafers. It makes no provision for those who have no time to work.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote critiques democracy by highlighting its tendency to categorize individuals solely based on their productivity.
In this quote, Karl Kraus addresses a significant issue within democratic systems: the oversimplification of individuals into categories of productivity, labeling some as 'workers' and others as 'loafers.' He emphasizes that this binary classification does not account for those who may not have the time or opportunity to engage in work, thereby revealing a flaw in the assumption that productivity is the sole measure of a person's worth or contribution to society.
Themes
DemocracyProductivitySocietyWorkersTimeValue
In practice
Example use cases
During a debate on the nature of democracy, one could use this quote to illustrate its limitations in recognizing diverse contributions to society.
More from Karl Kraus
All quotes →War: first, one hopes to win; then one expects the enemy to lose; then, one is satisfied that he too is suffering; in the end, one is surprised that everyone has lost.
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Stupidity is an elemental force for which no earthquake is a match.
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Experiences are savings which a miser puts aside. Wisdom is an inheritance which a wastrel cannot exhaust.
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Sexuality poorly repressed unsettles some families; well repressed, it unsettles the whole world.
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My unconscious knows more about the consciousness of the psychologist than his consciousness knows about my unconscious.
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