Indeed: Who says anarchy, says negation of government; Who says negation of government, says affirmation of the people; Who says affirmation of the people, says individual liberty; Who says individual liberty, says sovereignty of each; Who says sovereignty of each, says equality; Who says equality, says solidarity or fraternity; Who says fraternity, says social order; By contrast: Who says government, says negation of the people; Who says negation of the people, says affirmation of political authority; Who says affirmation of political authority, says individual dependency; Who says individual dependency, says class supremacy; Who says class supremacy, says inequality; Who says inequality, says antagonism; Who says antagonism, says civil war; From which it follows that who says government, says civil war.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Bellegarrigue outlines a chain of reasoning linking anarchy to social order and government to civil war, concluding that government inevitably leads to civil war.
- In plain terms
- He argues that government leads to civil war through a series of oppositions.
- What can you take from it?
- Government can create conditions that foster conflict.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Is government always a cause of civil war?
- What alternatives could break the chain?
Another view
The logical chain is a simplification and ignores many mediating factors.
More from Anselme Bellegarrigue
There are no tyrants, there are only slaves.
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