Political Quotes

Thomas Paine: The means must be an obliteration of knowledge; and it has never yet been discovered how to make man unknow his…

On the recordJanuary 1, 1791
The means must be an obliteration of knowledge; and it has never yet been discovered how to make man unknow his knowledge, or unthink his thoughts.
Said by
Thomas Paine

Editor's note · Context

From "Rights of Man," this passage asserts that a counter-revolution would require the impossible act of obliterating knowledge and making people unknow what they have learned.

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