An uneven metal balance holds several weights on one pan and a single weight on the other above a granite base.

Original artwork, not a still

Nineteen Eighty-Four (aka 1984)

George Orwell

Inequality was the price of civilization.

Behind the line

What it means

Our interpretation.

Inequality is described as what civilization costs, as if it were a bill. Framed as a price, unfairness becomes a fee society supposedly has to pay for progress. It's a bleak view from the book, not a settled fact.

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