Gilbert K. Chesterton Quotes About Democracy

• Democracy is reproached with saying that the majority is always right. But progress says that the minority is always right.

  Gilbert K. Chesterton

  Democracy, Progress, Majority

• You can never have a revolution in order to establish a democracy. You must have a democracy in order to have a revolution.

  Gilbert K. Chesterton

  Freedom, Democracies Have, Order

  "Tremendous Trifles" by Gilbert K. Chesterton, Ch. 12, (p. 63), 1955.

• The Declaration of Independence dogmatically bases all rights on the fact that God created all men equal; and it is right; for if they were not created equal, they were certainly evolved unequal. There is no basis for democracy except in a dogma about the divine origin of man.

  Gilbert K. Chesterton

  Men, Rights, Independence

• The sceptic ultimately undermines democracy (1) because he can see no significance in death and such things of a literal equality; (2) because he introduces different first principles, making debate impossible: and debate is the life of democracy; (3) because the fading of the images of sacred persons leaves a man too prone to be a respecter of earthly persons; (4) because there will be more, not less, respect for human rights if they can be treated as divine rights.

  Gilbert K. Chesterton

  Men, Rights, Divine Right

• Tradition is only democracy extended through time; it may be defined as an extension of the franchise. Tradition means giving votes to the most obscure of all classes, our ancestors. It is the democracy of the dead. Tradition refuses to submit to the small and arrogant oligarchy of those who are merely walking about. All democrats object to men being disqualified by accident of birth; tradition objects to their being disqualified by accident of death. Democracy tells us not to neglect a good man's opinion, even if he is our father.

  Gilbert K. Chesterton

  Father, Mean, Men

  'Orthodoxy' (1908) ch. 4

• Democracy means government by the uneducated, while aristocracy means government by the badly educated.

  Gilbert K. Chesterton

  Mean, Government, Political

  New York Times 1 Feb. 1931, pt. 5, p. 1

• Democracy is like blowing your nose. You may not do it well, but it's something you ought to do yourself.

  Gilbert K. Chesterton

  Democracy, Noses, May

• All real democracy is an attempt like that of a jolly hostess to bring the shy people out.

  Gilbert K. Chesterton

  Real, People, Democracy

• Americans are a very backward people, with all the real virtues of a backward people; the patriarchal simplicity and human dignity of a democracy, and a respect for labor uncorrupted by cynicism.

  Gilbert K. Chesterton

  Respect, Real, People

• The unconscious democracy of America is a very fine thing. It is a true and deep and instinctive assumption of the equality of citizens, which even voting and elections have not destroyed.

  Gilbert K. Chesterton

  America, Voting, Democracy

• Tradition means giving votes to the most obscure of all classes, our ancestors. It is the democracy of the dead. Tradition refuses to submit to that arrogant oligarchy who merely happen to be walking around.

  Gilbert K. Chesterton

  Mean, Class, Giving

  Orthodoxy ch. 4 (1908)

• For the mass of men the idea of artistic creation can only be expressed by an idea unpopular in present discussions - the idea of property... Property is merely the art of the democracy... One would think, to hear people talk, that the Rothschilds and the Rockefellers were on the side of property. But obviously they are the enemies of property; because they are enemies of their own limitations.

  Gilbert K. Chesterton

  Art, Men, Thinking

• If there is one fact we really can prove, from the history that we really do know, it is that despotism can be a development, often a late development and very often indeed the end of societies that have been highly democratic. A despotism may almost be defined as a tired democracy. As fatigue falls on a community, the citizens are less inclined for that eternal vigilance which has truly been called the price of liberty; and they prefer to arm only one single sentinel to watch the city while they sleep.

  Gilbert K. Chesterton

  Fall, Tired, Sleep

  "The Everlasting Man". Book by G. K. Chesterton, 1925.

• (Tradition) is the democracy of the dead.

  Gilbert K. Chesterton

  Democracy, Tradition

• At the bottom of all the tributes paid to democracy is the little man, walking into the little booth, with a little pencil, making a little cross on a little bit of paper. . . .

  Gilbert K. Chesterton

  Men, Democracy, Paper

• I like the Americans for a great many reasons. I like them because even the modern thing called industrialism has not entirely destroyed in them the very ancient thing called democracy. I like them because they have a respect for work which really curbs the human tendency to snobbishness.

  Gilbert K. Chesterton

  America, Democracy, Ancient

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