Impenetrable in their dissimulation, cruel in their vengeance, tenacious in their purposes, unscrupulous as to their methods, animated by profound and hidden hatred for the tyranny of man - it is as though there exists among them an ever-present conspiracy toward domination, a sort of alliance like that subsisting among the priests of every country.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- The speaker describes a group as deceptive and cruel, driven by hidden hatred for human authority.
- In plain terms
- They hide their true feelings and work together to control others out of hatred.
- What can you take from it?
- Hidden groups may use deception and cruelty to gain power over people.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Who benefits from believing in conspiracies?
- How do we identify hidden motives?
Another view
It generalizes a whole group without naming who they are.
More from Denis Diderot
There is no kind of harassment that a man may not inflict on a woman with impunity in civilized societies.
Permalink to quote #6 The arbitrary rule of a just and enlightened prince is always bad. His virtues are the most dangerous and the surest form of seduction: they lull a people impe…
Permalink to quote #8 Il y a un peu de testicule au fond de nos sentiments les plus sublimes et de notre tendresse la plus epuree
Permalink to quote #5
Related quotes
Ces deux moities de Dieu, le pape et l'empereur!
Victor HugoVictor Hugo quote #1 My so-called foreign friends do neither me nor the situation nor themselves any good when they try to bring me into opposition to the allegedly impossible Nati…
Hjalmar SchachtHjalmar Schacht quote #1 L'Etat, c'est moi.
Louis XIV of FranceLouis XIV of France quote #2