"Actual aristocracy cannot be abolished by any law: all the law can do is decree how it is to be imparted and who is to acquire it"

This quote by Georg C. Lichtenberg suggests that true upper class, or nobility, can not be eliminated by any law. Rather, laws can just determine how it is to be imparted and who is to obtain it. This indicates that the power of aristocracy is not something that can be eliminated, however rather something that is given and can be controlled by the law. This recommends that the law can be used to determine who is qualified to receive the opportunities of upper class, and how they are to be imparted. This could be done through a system of inheritance, or through a system of meritocracy. Eventually, this quote suggests that the law can be used to control the power of aristocracy, however it can not be abolished.