Quote by George Orwell, 1984

Power is not a means; it is an end....Do you begin to see, then, what kind of world we are creating? It is the exact opposite of the stupid hedonistic Utopias that the old reformers imagined. A world of fear and treachery and torment, a world of trampling and being trampled upon, a world which will grow not less but more merciless as it refines itself....The old civilizations claimed that they were founded on love or justice. Ours is founded upon hatred. In our world there will be no emotions except fear, rage, triumph, and self-abasement. Everything else we shall destroy - everything.... No one dares trust a wife or a child or a friend any longer. But in the future there will be no wives and no friends....We shall abolish the orgasm. Our neurologists are at work upon it now. There will be no loyalty, except loyalty towards the Party. There will be no love, except the love of Big Brother. There will be no laughter, except the laugh of triumph over a defeated enemy. There will be no art, no literature, no science.... There will be no curiosity, no enjoyment of the process of life. All competing pleasures will be destroyed. But always - do not forget this, Winston - always there will be the intoxication of power, constantly increasing and constantly growing subtler. Always, at every moment, there will be the thrill of victory, the sensation of trampling on an enemy who is helpless....If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face - forever.

Summary

This quote, taken from George Orwell's novel 1984, provides a chilling and dystopian view of a world where power is an end in itself. It describes a society devoid of love, trust, joy, and intellectual pursuit, replaced only by fear, hatred, and the intoxication of power. Orwell emphasizes the destructiveness and dehumanizing effects of a totalitarian regime, where the Party's supremacy erodes all personal connections and individual freedoms. The image of a boot stamping on a human face forever serves as a haunting warning of the consequences of unchecked power and its potential to drive humanity towards a bleak and oppressive future.