Great corrupted quotes
Some poetic and powerful language, desecrated by various forms of repetition—either in perverse interpretation or just banal and commonplace usage.
“The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants” — Thomas Jefferson
Despoiled by the Oklahoma city bomber, who was executed wearing a t-shirt with these words.
“When you look into the abyss, the abyss also looks into you” — Friedrich Nietsche
Despoiled by hackneyed overuse, such as in the film The Abyss.
“Religion is the opium of the people” — Karl Marx
This wonderful quote is injured in multiple ways:
- It is often misquoted as “Religion is the opiate of the masses”, which distinctly implies a condescension not present in Marx’s original prose
- It is a partial quote that misrepresents Marx’s meaning—the full (and quite stirring quote) is:
“Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people. The abolition of religion as the illusory happiness of the people is the demand for their real happiness.”
- Much different from saying people are in a stupor caused by a false prophet. He then goes on to say,
“the criticism of religion … has plucked the imaginary flowers from the chain, not so that man will wear the chain without any fantasy or consolation but so that he will shake off the chain and cull the living flower”
- …meaning that religion is the comfort of a world in shackle, it is the best one can do while personal and spiritual freedom are denied to men.
It’s worth remembering these quotes in their original context.
