Communism needs democracy like the human body needs oxygen.
Leon TrotskyRead
If you cannot convince a Fascist, acquaint his head with the pavement.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote suggests that sometimes force may be necessary when rational persuasion fails in the face of extreme ideology.
This quote by Leon Trotsky speaks to the idea that there are instances when attempts at convincing individuals with extremist beliefs may be futile. In such situations, he implies that more drastic measures might be required to address oppressive ideologies, emphasizing the importance of standing against authoritarianism and defending one's principles.
Themes
ConvinceFascistPavementForceIdeology
In practice
Example use cases
In a debate about extremism, this quote can be referenced to underline the limits of rational argumentation.
More from Leon Trotsky
All quotes βAbusive language and swearing are a legacy of slavery, humiliation, and disrespect for human dignity, oneβs own and that of other people.
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In a country where the sole employer is the State, opposition means death by slow starvation. The old principle: who does not work shall not eat, has been replaced by a new one: who does not obey shall not eat.
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Man will become immeasurably stronger, wiser, and subtler; his body will become more harmonious, his movements more rhythmic, his voice more musical. The forms of life will become dynamically dramatic. The average human type will rise to the heights of an Aristotle, a Goethe, or a Marx. And above these heights, new peaks will rise.
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The masses go into a revolution not with a prepared plan of social reconstruction, but with a sharp feeling that they cannot endure the old regime. Only the guiding layers of a class have a political program, and even this still requires the test of events and the approval of the masses.
Leon TrotskyRead
History has different yardsticks for the cruelty of the Northerners and the cruelty of the Southerners in the Civil War. A slave-owner who through cunning and violence shackles a slave in chains, and a slave who through cunning or violence breaks the chains β let not the contemptible eunuchs tell us that they are equals before a court of morality!
Leon TrotskyRead
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