Herbert Marcuse's quote about Free Voting

Herbert Marcuse's quote about Free Election

“Free election of masters does not abolish the masters or the slaves.”

—Herbert Marcuse

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Know Source and Context of this Quote :

Herbert Marcuse's quote about free voting is: "The free election of masters does not abolish the master or slave." This quote by Herbert Marcuse is taken from his famous and influential book, One Dimension Man, published in 1964.

In this book, he shows that modern industrial societies, even when built within a democratic framework, are inherently repressive. He discusses the nature of freedom under this repressive system throughout the larger scope of his book. This quote is part of it.

In what context is the quote said:

Marcuse's argument is that even if an election is held under a repressive regime, it cannot reveal the 'true meaning of freedom'. He spends an entire paragraph of his book trying to explain this idea in detail.

Here, Marcuse argues, this freedom often becomes an instrument of domination under a repressive system. The essence of human freedom, he argues, is not to choose from what is before you. Rather, the true meaning of freedom is to have the opportunity to choose what I will and what else can be chosen.

According to Marcuse, the free choice of masters does not negate the role of masters or slaves. Similarly, having the opportunity to choose from a variety of goods and services is not equivalent to true freedom if these options support social control and perpetuate social inequality through toil and fear. He also argues that individuals who spontaneously reproduce imposed needs do not actually reflect their own will, but rather demonstrate the effectiveness of these social controls (social inequality).

The real meaning of the quote:

In fact, through this quote, Herbert Marcuse makes several key points:

1) He describes the ability to vote or choose goods as an illusion of freedom within an oppressive structure.

2) He argues that this ‘free’ choice ultimately perpetuates the existing power structure’s inequality between those who dominate and those who are subjugated.

3) He suggests that even individual desires are influenced by society to support the system, resulting in ‘voluntary servitude’.

On repressive freedom, from One Dimensional Man:

"Under the rule of a repressive whole, liberty can be made into a powerful instrument of domination. Free election of masters does not abolish the masters or the slaves. Free choice among a wide variety of goods and services does not signify freedom if these goods and services sustain social controls over a life of toil and fear -- that is, if they sustain alienation. And the spontaneous reproduction of superimposed needs by the individual does not establish autonomy; it only testifies to the efficacy of the controls.”

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