Political Quotes

Edmund Burke: They reduce men to loose counters, merely for the sake of simple telling, and not to figures, whose power is to arise…

On the recordJanuary 1, 1790
They reduce men to loose counters, merely for the sake of simple telling, and not to figures, whose power is to arise from their place in the table.
Said by
Edmund Burke

Editor's note · Context

Burke criticizes the French revolutionaries for treating individuals as mere abstract units rather than recognizing their inherent social roles and interconnectedness.

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