What is "might makes right"

prov. The stronger and more powerful rule others, control the situation, or determine right and wrong.

Might makes right is an aphorism with several potential meanings (in order of increasing complexity):

• In English, the phrase is most often used in negative assessments of expressions of power.
• The second related idea associated with the phrase connotes that a society's view of right and wrong is determined, like its perspective on history, by those currently in power.
• The term can be used in the descriptive, rather than prescriptive way, in the same sense that people say that "History is written by the victors". Because every person labels what they think is good for theirself as right, only those who are able to defeat their enemies are the ones who can push their idea of what is right into fruition.
• In terms of morality, those who are the strongest will rule others and have the power to determine right and wrong. By this definition, the phrase manifests itself in a normative sense. This meaning is often used to define a proscriptive moral code for society to follow, as well as while discussing social Darwinism and Weberian themes of the authority of the state (e.g. Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft).

Might makes right may refer to:

• Might makes right, an aphorism used in negative assessments of expressions of power
• "Might Makes Right", a song by Camper Van Beethoven from their album New Roman Times
• Might Is Right, a book by Ragnar Redbeard
• The Law of the Jungle