# LXXXIII explained — Poetry

> Chapter companion for Poetry by Ambrose Bierce.

## What happens

The chapter reflects on the nature of submission to majority rule, acknowledging that compliance is born of necessity rather than genuine respect.

## Themes in this chapter

### Political Satire

The chapter critiques the forced deference to majority rule, highlighting the gap between compelled submission and authentic respect.

## Key lines

> We submit to the majority because we have to. But we are not compelled to call our attitude of subjection a posture of respect.

We obey the majority out of necessity, not because we genuinely admire or honor them.

_The narrator distinguishes between forced compliance and voluntary reverence._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_se/chapters/lxxxiii
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_se/chapters