The Crowd · Chapter
The Changeable Opinions of Crowds explained
This chapter examines the extreme mobility of crowd opinions in the absence of fixed general beliefs.
What happens
This chapter examines the extreme mobility of crowd opinions in the absence of fixed general beliefs. It identifies three causes for the increasing volatility of modern opinions: the weakening of traditional beliefs, the rising power of crowds, and the influence of the newspaper press. The chapter argues that governments and the press now follow rather than direct public opinion, and that the instability of crowd opinions leads to a general indifference toward all but immediate interests, while also preventing any single opinion from becoming tyrannical.
Free preview opens on this chapter — companions, themes, and character notes appear beside the text.
Narrative arc
Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Rising action.
- Setup
- Escalation
- Breaking point
The emotional and psychological peak occurs when the excerpt reveals the catastrophic failure of elite advisor…
Full beat labels and climax notes unlock in the reader.
Follow the arc while readingThemes in this chapter
- Role of the Press
The chapter argues that the press no longer directs opinion but merely reflects the changing views of crowds, becoming a supplier of information rather than a shaper of ideas.
- Irrationality and Credulity
Crowds are described as uninfluenced by reason and guided only by sentiment, leading to highly changeable and ephemeral opinions.
- Social Change and Revolution
The chapter discusses how the weakening of general beliefs and the rise of crowd power contribute to rapid social and political changes.
Characters to notice
- Crowds
Discussed as the primary subject of the chapter, whose opinions are increasingly changeable and indifferent.
- Napoleon
Mentioned as an example of a leader whom former revolutionaries later served humbly.
- Robespierre
Referenced as a name that once evoked religious devotion among republicans.
- Caesar
Cited as a name that republicans would formerly accompany with invective.
- Tiberius
Used as an example of a capricious master, alongside Heliogabalus.
- Unknown Narrator
The narrator who analyzes the changeable opinions of crowds and the role of the press.
Key passages
“The opinion of crowds tends, then, more and more to become the supreme guiding principle in politics.”
Crowd opinion increasingly dominates political decision-making.
Highlights the shift of political power to the masses.
“Nothing is more mobile and changeable than the thought of crowds, and nothing more frequent than to see them execrate today what they applauded yesterday.”
Crowd thinking is extremely volatile, often reversing its approval overnight.
Emphasizes the instability of crowd opinions.
“The press... has renounced all endeavour to enforce an idea or a doctrine. Become a mere agency for the supply of information...”
The press no longer tries to promote specific ideas; it simply provides news.
Describes the transformation of the press into a passive reflector of public opinion.
