Free election of masters does not abolish the masters or the slaves.
Herbert MarcuseRead
Obscenity is a moral concept in the verbal arsenal of the establishment, which abuses the term by applying it, not to expressions of its own morality but to those of another.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Obscenity is often defined by those in power to suppress dissenting views, applying the term selectively against others while ignoring their own standards.
Herbert Marcuse's quote delves into the concept of obscenity as a tool used by the social and political establishment to maintain control. It suggests that obscenity is subjective and is often weaponized against those who challenge established norms, highlighting the hypocrisy in how moral judgments are applied. By exposing the selective use of moral concepts, Marcuse encourages critical thinking about the criteria used to label dissenting opinions and behaviors as obscene.
Themes
ObscenityMoralityEstablishmentHypocrisyDissent
In practice
Example use cases
In discussions about censorship in art and literature, this quote can be used to highlight the biases of those in power.
More from Herbert Marcuse
All quotes →Contemporary industrial society is now characterised more than ever by "the need for stupefying work where it is no longer a real necessity."
Herbert MarcuseRead
The existing liberties and the existing gratifications are tied to the requirements of repression: they themselves become instruments of repression.
Herbert MarcuseRead
Art cannot change the world, but it can contribute to changing the consciousness and drives of the men and women who could change the world.
Herbert MarcuseRead
By virtue of the way it has organized its technological base, contemporary industrial society tends to be totalitarian. For "totalitarian" is not only a terroristic political coordination of society, but also a non-terroristic economic-technical coordination which operates through the manipulation of needs by vested interests.
Herbert MarcuseRead
However, if "free choice" means more than a small selection between pre-established necessities, and if the inclinations and impulses used in work are other than those preshaped by a repressive reality principle, then satisfaction in daily work is only a rare privilege.
Herbert MarcuseRead
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