"Only the freedom of mind can prevent the state from becoming totalitarian and from issuing totalitarian demands"
- Friedrich Durrenmatt
About this Quote
This quote by Friedrich Durrenmatt speaks with the value of freedom of thought and expression in preventing oppressive federal governments from taking control. He is recommending that if individuals are allowed to believe and reveal themselves easily, then they will have the ability to resist the overbearing demands of a totalitarian state. Without this flexibility, individuals are more likely to be swayed by the state's needs and become subservient to its power. This quote is a pointer that freedom of thought is important for a healthy democracy which it ought to be safeguarded at all costs. It is also a warning that if we do not safeguard our liberty of thought, then we run the risk of permitting overbearing federal governments to take control and enforce their will on us.
"We are all different. Yet we are all God's children. We are all united behind this country and the common cause of freedom, justice, fairness, and equality. That is what unites us"
"The end of law is not to abolish or restrain, but to preserve and enlarge freedom. For in all the states of created beings capable of law, where there is no law, there is no freedom"
"Without culture, and the relative freedom it implies, society, even when perfect, is but a jungle. This is why any authentic creation is a gift to the future"
