Moses’s arrogance concerned who should rule rather than what should be done

Evidence

Mingled with the idealism, of course, was the arrogance. It was subordinate to the idealism; if the idealism was displayed in Moses’ convictions about what should be done, the arrogance emerged only in his convictions as to who was best suited to do it. — Robert A. Caro, The Power Broker, 233

Categorization

• BMF: The split between believing correct ends while reserving their execution to a self-selected elite echoes the dynamic in Zamyatin’s We, where revolutionary idealism curdles into the absolute authority of the Benefactor deciding who may act for the people’s good.
• XREF: connects to: Moses needed to display superiority more than he wanted power. — Robert A. Caro, The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the…, 1858; Moses would destroy a needed public work rather than let others build it — Robert A. Caro, The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the…, 2595; Moses treated near-equals democratically but subordinates with drill-sergeant peremptoriness. — Robert A. Caro, The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the…, 446

Broader Connections

• Moses needed to display superiority more than he wanted power. #expands (0.80) — Robert A. Caro, The Power Broker, 1858
• Moses would destroy a needed public work rather than let others build it #expands (0.75) — Robert A. Caro, The Power Broker, 2595