Quotessence
Home / Quotes / Quote by Elias Canetti

Quote by Elias Canetti

“If gazelles had a religion and the lion was their god they could, in order to appease his appetite, voluntarily surrender one of their number to him. This is exactly what happens among men: religious sacrifice springs from a state of crowd fear. It serves to halt the pursuit and, for a while, stil the hunger of the hostile power.”

Quote by Elias Canetti

Book:Crowds and Power
Create image

Work

Crowds and Power

Browse quotes and source details for this work. more

Author

Elias Canetti

Elias Canetti, born on July 25, 1905 and died on August 14, 1994, was a renowned novelist from Bulgaria. His works are known for their unique narrative style and profound insights into human nature. more

You May Also Like

“The Provider Several crows were lined up along the ridge of a quite ordinary house. 'These ridge poles are a good idea,' said a young one. 'Who dreamed it up?' 'This place of rest is a fortuitous gift from the moon,' said a raven who was mixing with the hoi polloi today. 'The moon is a relative of the roc, a distant cousin of mine. Believe me,' he said, stretching his wings out to their full advantage and pushing the crows at the end off balance, so several leaped into the wind and cried, 'caw' . . . 'it depends on your original stock. I've got a piece of the roc.' The moon rose spectral and drained, a gossamer imprint of her nighttime self, a reminder of crystal fracture, the load of swinging primitive stones, the ancient hairy arms with slingshots. A sudden explosion and the sky was defined with flapping and cawing. 'What was that?' cried the young one who was addicted to awe. 'Who knows?' replied the raven. 'Often the moon demands a sacrifice. As a close relative, it is now my duty to go and eat the meat. For it is said, nothing is wasted; nothing is without purpose.' And the raven rose and flew toward the hunters.”

PoetrySacrificeMoonDescriptionCrowsIn The Next GalaxyRuth StoneAnthropomorphismParableProse Poem
Book:In the Next Galaxy
Create image

“By 1854, when the search was called off, almost every corner of the Canadian archipelago below the 77th parallel had been traversed, drawn, and recorded on large maps carefully tipped into the papers. So fragile now they hardly bear touching, they are still in their spare precision beautiful and moving, the tangible result of the toes and fingers lost to frostbite, the starvation and profound exhaustion and sometimes the death of me dragging heavy sledges over rough ice or through deep snow, skirting the edge of human endurance.”

SacrificePolar Exploration
Book:The Man Who Ate His Boots: The Tragic History of the Search for the Northwest Passage
Create image

“Intellectuals and celebrities may cry, peace, peace – harmony, harmony – progress, progress, but no peace, progress and harmony can manifest outside the pages of books, unless the individual stands tall with the head held high and utters with utmost grace and glory to others - give me your agony and I will give you my life.”

ProgressSacrificeHarmonyHumanitarianService Of HumanityHumanitarianismHelping PeoplePeace On EarthServing HumanitySacrifice For Others
Book:Every Generation Needs Caretakers: The Gospel of Patriotism
Create image