# IV: Limitations of the Variability of the Beliefs and Opinions of Crowds explained — The Crowd

> Chapter companion for The Crowd by Gustave Le Bon.

## What happens

This chapter distinguishes between two classes of crowd beliefs: great permanent beliefs that endure for centuries and shape civilizations, and transitory, changeable opinions that arise and disappear rapidly. It argues that while general beliefs are difficult to uproot and form the framework of civilization, the weakening of such beliefs, the increasing power of crowds, and the rise of the newspaper press have led to greater volatility in public opinion. Governments and the press now follow rather than direct opinion, and crowds are increasingly guided by sentiment rather than reason.

## Themes in this chapter

### Power of Beliefs and Ideas

Explores how great permanent beliefs shape civilizations and are difficult to uproot, while transitory opinions are superficial and changeable.

### Role of the Press

Discusses how the newspaper press has become a reflection of crowd opinion rather than a director, contributing to the volatility of public opinion.

### Social Change and Revolution

Examines how revolutions mark the end of a belief and the transformation of civilization, with nations in anarchy until a new general belief is accepted.

## Character check-ins

### Crowds

Crowds are the central subject, their beliefs divided into permanent and transitory categories; their opinions are increasingly changeable due to the weakening of general beliefs and the influence of the press.

### Unknown Narrator

The narrator analyzes the variability of crowd beliefs, contrasting fixed general beliefs with ephemeral opinions, and comments on the powerlessness of governments and the press.

### Napoleon

Mentioned as an example of how prominent figures of the Convention later became his humble servants, illustrating the rapid shifts in crowd opinion.

### Louis XVIII

Referenced in the context of former revolutionaries carrying candles in religious processions under his reign, showing the changeability of crowd beliefs.

## Key lines

> The weakening of general beliefs clears the ground for a crop of haphazard opinions without a past or a future.

When widely held beliefs lose their power, random and short-lived opinions emerge that have no lasting foundation.

_Illustrates the cause of increased variability in crowd opinions._

> The opinion of crowds tends, then, more and more to become the supreme guiding principle in politics.

Public opinion increasingly dictates political decisions, overriding traditional authority.

_Highlights the shift in power from governments to crowds._

> Become a mere agency for the supply of information, the press has renounced all endeavour to enforce an idea or a doctrine.

The press now only reports facts and follows public opinion, abandoning any attempt to promote specific ideas or beliefs.

_Describes the diminished role of the press in shaping opinion._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_crowd_se/chapters/iv-limitations-of-the-variability-of-the-beliefs-and-opinions-of-crowds
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_crowd_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_crowd_se/chapters