Freedom is but the possibility of a various and indefinite … - Wilhelm von Humboldt

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Freedom is but the possibility of a various and indefinite activity; while government, or the exercise of dominion, is a single, but yet real activity. The ardent desire for freedom, therefore, is at first only too frequently suggested by the deep-felt consciousness of its absence.

Wilhelm von Humboldt

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About Wilhelm von Humboldt

Friedrich Wilhelm Christian Karl Ferdinand Freiherr von Humboldt (22 June 1767 – 8 April 1835) was a government functionary, diplomat, philosopher, founder of Humboldt Universität in Berlin, a friend of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Friedrich Schiller, and elder brother of naturalist Alexander von Humboldt who is especially remembered as a linguist who made important contributions to the philosophy of language and to the theory and practice of education.

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Alternative Names: Friedrich Wilhelm Christian Karl Ferdinand Freiherr von Humboldt • Friedrich Wilhelm Christian Karl Ferdinand von Humboldt • Karl Wilhelm von Humboldt

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Immanuel Kant Benedictus de Spinoza Aristotle John Stuart Mill George Gurdjieff

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Governmental regulations all carry coercion to some degree, and even where they don't, they habituate man to expect teaching, guidance and help outside himself, instead of formulating his own.

Freedom is but the possibility of a various and indefinite activity; while government, or the exercise of dominion, is a single, but yet real activit… - Wilhelm von Humboldt

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