Literary notes about Plutocracy (AI summary)
The term "plutocracy" in literature is often wielded as a multifaceted symbol of wealth’s influence over society and politics, inviting critiques of both modernity and tradition. In Nietzsche's work, for example, the plutocracy is portrayed not only as an evolving power structure—with shifts that even intersect with ethnic identities as seen in [1]—but also as a calculated force capable of recruiting influential supporters, as noted in [2]. He further alludes to its fluctuating strength and emerging solidarity in [3], while also depicting a stark contrast between time-honored aristocracy and a bloated, contemporary representation of wealth in [4]. Moreover, Nietzsche stakes his ideological stance by betting on plutocracy's ultimate power [5] and frames its conflict with the proletariat as a kind of civil war [6]. This critique is expanded upon by Bernard Shaw, who underscores the dependency of established elites on the will of the masses [7], and by Chesterton, who labels modern plutocratic affectations as uniquely contemporary [8].
- On the Continent, the day is saved by the fact that the plutocracy tends to become more and more Jewish.
— from The Antichrist by Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche - The plutocracy can recruit measurably more respectable janissaries, if only because it can make self-interest less obviously costly to amour propre .
— from The Antichrist by Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche - Perhaps it has already passed its apogee; the plutocracy, chastened, shows signs of a new solidarity; the wheel continues to swing ’round.
— from The Antichrist by Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche - Again, there was a whipsnake, and a toad, bloated as the aristocracy of old time, and puffed up as the plutocracy of to-day.
— from He by Andrew Lang and Walter Herries Pollock - In the present case my money is laid upon the plutocracy.
— from The Antichrist by Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche - But this combat between proletariat and plutocracy is, after all, itself a civil war.
— from The Antichrist by Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche - Aristocracy and plutocracy still furnish the figureheads of politics; but they are now dependent on the votes of the promiscuously bred masses.
— from Man and Superman: A Comedy and a Philosophy by Bernard Shaw - This, like all the affectations of our present plutocracy, is an entirely modern thing.
— from What's Wrong with the World by G. K. Chesterton
