“The working of great administrations is mainly the result of a vast mass of routine, petty malice, self-interest, carelessness and sheer mistake. Only a residual fraction is thought.”

Martin Seymour-Smith, Guide to Modern World Literature, (London: Hodder & Stoughton, [1973] 1975), vol. 1, p. 333.
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Section 7
The True Believer (1951), Part One: The Appeal of Mass Movements
Context: There is a fundamental difference between the appeal of a mass movement and the appeal of a practical organization. The practical organization offers opportunities for self-advancement, and its appeal is mainly to self-interest. On the other hand, a mass movement, particularly in its active, revivalist phase, appeals not to those intent on bolstering and advancing a cherished self, but to those who crave to be rid of an unwanted self. A mass movement attracts and holds a following not because it can satisfy the desire for self-advancement, but because it can satisfy the passion for self-renunciation.

Source: Journey to the End of the Night

A Handbook for Young Painters

Section 68
The Passionate State Of Mind, and Other Aphorisms (1955)

Source: Perfume: The Story of a Murderer

Man and Socialism in Cuba (1965)

Source: Juliet, Naked

2.1, "The Eve of The Revolution", Essential Works of Lenin (1966)
(1917)