"..."

The state is of the evil rather than of the good, a necessary evil, in a certain sense a useful, expedient evil, rather than a good.

The state is human egotism on a large scale and in great dimensions--so far off was Plato when he said that in order to become aware of the virtues we should study them from the state.

The state is human egotism in great dimensions, very expediently and cunningly composed so that the egotisms of individuals intersect each other correctively. To this extent the state is no doubt a safeguard against egotism by manifesting a higher egotism that copes with all the individual egotisms so that these must egotistically understand that egotistically it is the most prudent thing to live in the state.

—Søren Kierkegaard, JP IV 4238