Quote #31

Collective unity is not the result of the brotherly love of the faithful for each other. The loyalty of the true believer is to the whole - the church, party, nation - and not to his fellow true believer. True loyalty between individuals is possible only in a loose and relatively free society.

More from Eric Hoffer

  1. The awareness of their individual blemishes and shortcomings inclines the frustrated to detect ill will and meanness in their fellow men. S…
  2. People whose lives are barren and insecure seem to show a greater willingness to obey than people who are self-sufficient and self-confiden…
  3. The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new; …
  4. It is doubtful if the oppressed ever fight for freedom. They fight for pride and power - power to oppress others. The oppressed want above …
  5. The frustrated follow a leader less because of their faith that he is leading them to a promised land than because of their immediate feeli…
  6. To believe that if we could have but this or that we would be happy is to suppress the realization that the cause of our unhappiness is in …
  7. Passionate hatred can give meaning and purpose to an empty life. Thus people haunted by the purposelessness of their lives try to find a ne…
  8. Every extreme attitude is a flight from the self.

All Eric Hoffer quotes