If Might made Right, life were a wild-beasts' cage; If Right made Might, this were the golden age; But now, until we win the long campaign, Right must gain Might to conquer and to reign.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Might must align with right to create a just society.
- In plain terms
- Justice needs power to succeed in the world.
- What can you take from it?
- Work to ensure power serves justice, not just force.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How can right gain might?
- Is force ever justified for good?
Another view
Power often resists moral constraints.
More from Henry van Dyke
What is Friendship? Something deep That the heart can spend and keep: Wealth that greatens while we give, Praise that heartens us to live.
Permalink to quote #12 God said, 'I am tired of kings,'- But that was a long while ago! And meantime man said, 'No,- I like their looks in their robes and rings.' So he crowned a few…
Permalink to quote #14 Honour the brave who sleep Where the lost 'Titanic' lies, The men who knew what a man must do When he looks Death in the eyes. 'Women and children first,'- Ah,…
Permalink to quote #11
Related quotes
But now, instead of discussion and argument, brute force rises up to the rescue of discomfited error, and crushes truth and right into the dust. 'Might makes r…
Adin BallouAdin Ballou quote #1 Aggression unopposed becomes a contagious disease.
Jimmy CarterJimmy Carter quote #2 'Oh, judge, your damn laws: the good people don't need them and the bad people don't follow them, so what good are they?'
Ammon HennesseyAmmon Hennessey quote #3