"It has become a hackneyed truth by now to say that the world is governed by ideas."
Joseph Ernest Renan was a French Orientalist and Semitic scholar, writing on Semitic languages and civilizations, historian of religion, philologist, philosopher, biblical scholar, and critic. He wrote works on the origins of early Christianity, and espoused popular political theories especially concerning nationalism, national identity, and the superiority of white people over other human races.
"Science has no enemies save those who consider truth as useless and making no difference, and those who granting to truth its priceless value profess to get at it by other roads than those of criticism and rational investigation."
Ernest Renan"I, as a man of culture, do not find any evil in myself, and I am impelled spontaneously towards what seems to me the most noble. If all others had as much culture as myself, they would all, like myself, be incapable of doing an evil act. Then it might be said with truth: you are gods and sons of the Most High."
Ernest Renan"As a rule, all heroism is due to a lack of reflection, and thus it is necessary to maintain a mass of imbeciles. If they once understand themselves the ruling men will be lost."
Ernest Renan"[L]e communisme étant contraire à la nature humaine."
Ernest Renan"All agreed in rejecting that blasphemy, that Greece was ever a province of Asia, that the Greek spirit, so free, so objective, so limpid, could contain any element of the vague and obscure spirit of the Orient."
Ernest Renan"La nature a fait une race douvriers ; cest la race chinoise, dune dextérité de main merveilleuse sans presque aucun sentiment dhonneur; gouvernez-la avec justice , en prélevant delle pour le bienfait dun tel gouvernement un ample douaire au profit de la race conquérante, elle sera satisfaite ; une race de travailleurs de la terre, cest le nègre ; soyez pour lui bon et humain, et tout sera dans lordre; -- une race de maîtres et de soldats, cest la race européenne ."
Ernest Renan