Justice, not expedience, must be the guiding light. The orator must fix his eye on the polestar of justice, and plough straight thither. The moment he glances toward expediency, he falls from his high estate.
John Peter AltgeldRead
The doctrine that might makes right has covered the earth with misery. While it crushes the weak, it also destroys the strong. Every deceit, every cruelty, every wrong, reaches back sooner or later and crushes its author. Justice is moral health, bringing happiness, wrong is moral disease, bringing mortal death.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The belief that power justifies actions leads to suffering for both the strong and weak, while justice promotes well-being.
This quote by John Peter Altgeld conveys the idea that the principle of might makes right results in widespread affliction, impacting everyone involved. It suggests that although the powerful may seem to benefit from oppression, they also suffer consequences, as injustice ultimately leads to moral decay and personal ruin. Justice is portrayed as a source of true happiness and health, whereas wrongdoing leads to destruction.
Themes
MightRightJusticeMoralHealthHappinessWrongSuffering
In practice
Example use cases
Using this quote in a speech about social justice to highlight the consequences of oppression.
More from John Peter Altgeld
All quotes →You ask whether a woman should be paid the same wages as man when she does the same work? To this, there can be but one answer. If she does the same quantity and quality of work under the same conditions as a man, simple justice requires that she should be paid the same. wages. To deny her this is to deny her justice.
John Peter AltgeldRead
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