The guerrilla band is not to be considered inferior to the army against which it fights simply because it is inferior in fire power.
It is a revolution that came to power with its own army and on the ruins of the army of oppression.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on a transformative movement that overthrew an oppressive regime through strength and determination.
Che Guevaraβs quote emphasizes the idea of revolutionary change, highlighting how a movement can rise to power by dismantling an existing oppressive force. It speaks to the tumultuous yet powerful nature of revolutions, where the downfall of an unjust system often leads to the emergence of a new order, driven by the will and efforts of those who seek change. The mention of 'its own army' signifies that the revolution is a collective effort, demonstrating solidarity among those fighting for freedom.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used during a speech about historical revolutions.
More from Che Guevara
All quotes βEvery day People straighten up the hair, why not the heart?
The final hour of colonialism has struck, and millions of inhabitants of Africa, Asia and Latin America rise to meet a new life and demand their unrestricted right to self-determination.
We must carry the war into every corner the enemy happens to carry it, to his home, to his centers of entertainment: a total war. It is necessary to prevent him from having a moment of peace, a quiet moment outside his barracks or even inside; we must attack him wherever he may be, make him feel like a cornered beast wherever he may move. Then his moral fiber shall begin to decline, but we shall notice how the signs of decadence begin to disappear.
This is not a story of heroic feats, or merely the narrative of a cynic; at least I do not mean it to be. It is a glimpse of two lives running parallel for a time, with similar hopes and convergent dreams.
The desire to sacrifice an entire lifetime to the noblest of ideals serves no purpose if one works alone.
Similar quotes
The trends that are shaping the twenty-first-century world embody both promise and peril. Globalization, for example, has lifted hundreds of millions of people out of poverty while contributing to social fragmentation and a massive increase in inequality, not to mention serious environmental damage.
I dream of Poland becoming a modern society that is defined not by the crippling nature of history, but by our individual achievements, a sense of our own self-worth and ideas for the future.
Nothing grows old-fashioned so fast as modernity.
Perhaps the best definition of progress would be the continuing efforts of men and women to narrow the gap between the convenience of the powers that be and the unwritten charter.
In a few hundred years, when the history of our time will be written from a long-term perspective, it is likely that the most important event historians will see is not technology, not the Internet, not e-commerce. It is an unprecedented change in the human condition. For the first time - literally - substantial and rapidly growing numbers of people have choices. For the first time, they will have to manage themselves. And society is totally unprepared for it.
What I am very, very moved and struck by is that so many people in the world are often living a life that they hadn't planned for themselves. And they wake up one day and say, 'Hang on. Who am I? Is this really me? Is this what I really wanted?' And also, 'Can I change it? Have I got the courage to change it?'