There is nothing more corrupting, nothing more destructive of the noblest and finest feelings of our nature, than the exercise of unlimited power.
William Henry HarrisonRead
We admit of no government by divine right, believing that so far as power is concerned the Beneficent Creator has made no distinction amongst men; that all are upon an equality, and that the only legitimate right to govern is an express grant of power from the governed.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the idea that no one has a divine right to rule over others and that legitimate government comes from the consent of the governed.
William Henry Harrison's quote asserts the fundamental belief in equality among all people, rejecting the notion that rulers are chosen by divine will. It underscores the democratic principle that those in power derive their authority from the consent and approval of the people they govern, highlighting the importance of equality and accountability in governance.
Themes
GovernmentEqualityConsentPowerDemocracy
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a speech about the importance of democratic values.
More from William Henry Harrison
All quotes →The only legitimate right to govern is an express grant of power from the governed.
William Henry HarrisonRead
Similar quotes
A life that is, like any other, unlike any other.
Neil GaimanRead
Grounded in the natural philosophy of the Middle Ages, alchemy formed a bridge: on the one hand into the past, to Gnosticism, and on the other into the future, to the modern psychology of the unconscious.
Carl JungRead
The individual always realizes only one of the possibilities in his development, which could always have taken a different turning whenever he had to make an important decision.
Wilhelm DiltheyRead
Deep is the well of truth and long does it take to know what has fallen into its depths.
Friedrich NietzscheRead
I think doctors care very deeply about their patients, but when they organize into the AMA, their responsibility is to the welfare of doctors, and quite often, these lobbying groups are the only ones that are heard in the state capitols and in the capitol of our country.
Jimmy CarterRead
Thoughts and feelings are suspended in a vacuum unless they instigate and feed the selected actions, and it is the characters actions which reveal the character in the play.
Uta HagenRead