Norman O. Brown: Demonic Money
on Wednesday, June 22, 2022Norman O. Brown Money Quote saying the financial system is insane and evil … and comparable to religion. Norman O. Brown said:
“The money complex is the demonic, and the demonic is God’s ape; the money complex is therefore the heir to and substitute for the religious complex, an attempt to find God in things” — Norman O. Brown
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In this quote, Norman O. Brown seems to be characterizing the “money complex” or obsession with wealth as taking on quasi-religious dimensions for some people. Some key points:
- He refers to the money complex as “demonic” – implying it can become an all-consuming, controlling force like an evil spirit.
- Brown states the demonic is “God’s ape” – suggesting it mimics or substitutes for true spirituality while distorting its purpose.
- He portrays the money complex as effectively becoming a “substitute for the religious complex” for those who seek meaning, community or fulfillment through wealth.
- Brown’s quote conveys the view that an extreme fixation on money can become a new idolatry or false religion for those who try to find divine significance or salvation “in things” like riches rather than more virtuous pursuits.
Overall, Brown appears to be critiquing how an obsession with wealth accumulation may take on quasi-religious overtones for some, distorting spiritual instincts into an unhealthy quest for status, security or identity through money rather than higher principles according to this perspective on the psychological and sociological impacts of taking financial pursuits to an immoderate extreme.
Birthday: September 25, 1913 – Death: October 2, 2002