The Importance of Charlie Chaplin's Speech from 'The Great Dictator'

The final speech given by Charlie Chaplin in the movie "The Great Dictator" is timeless. It's a plea to humanity and decency to remember the values that allow us to fight intolerance and violence. It shouldn't ever be forgotten.

Written and verified by the psychologist Valeria Sabater.

Last update: 16 February, 2023

Superhero movies with capes and extraordinary powers who save the world and make us smile with their easy jokes are entertaining. In fact, they help us to switch off when we’re exhausted from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. However, occasionally we should also take a look at certain movies from the past.

Indeed, it never hurts to dust off the classics occasionally. It often acts as a wonderful healing exercise. What’s more, by doing so, we can also discover some extraordinary facts. Moreover, some productions are timeless and offer messages that remain highly topical in today’s world. The Great Dictator, by Charlie Chaplin, is one such movie that everyone should watch at least once a year throughout their lives.

The speech offered by the tiny Jewish barber who, at one point, has to pose as Hynkel (Hitler), stands out as one of the most memorable moments in cinema. The words, ideas, and messages that form part of the ending of the movie must be remembered for the purpose for which they were created: as an antidote to intolerance and violence.

Chaplin’s speech in The Great Dictator, an indelible legacy

After Hitler invaded France, it seems that Charlie Chaplin felt compelled to include a particular speech at the end of his movie. It was June 24, 1940, when he recorded the four-minute sequence. He felt a firm need to speak out against fascism and seek, above all else, an emotional connection with the viewer by appealing to some extremely firm values.

At the time, the world was falling apart, but many people were still waiting expectantly for the latest movie from this great talent of comedic cinema. In reality, for Chaplin himself, the project was quite a challenge. In fact, The Great Dictator wasn’t just a movie that ridiculed, attacked, and grotesquely characterized one of the most threatening figures of the time.

As a matter of fact, it was also the first time Chaplin had been heard speaking on film. His voice, which he’d kept hidden in his previous movies, like The Tramp, finally came to light. Moreover, it was to leave an indelible message, one that was to last forever.

Waking up sleeping consciences

The cinema has more power than you might think. It transmits sensations and emotions to millions of people. It leaves imprints, ideas that we internalize, and memories that are never erased. Chaplin’s speech in The Great Dictator unified millions of people with the same feeling, that of the commitment against hatred and violence.

It should be noted that, at the time, no one trusted this movie too much and Hollywood didn’t give it the go-ahead when it first learned of the script in 1939. This was because, at that time, the German market was still important to the US and they saw the movie as a threat. It didn’t matter that the Jewish genocide had already begun. Half the world preferred to turn away.

However, given the events of 1940,  Charlie Chaplin didn’t hesitate in obtaining finance for his project and changing the ending that he’d previously planned. That last-minute change and the speech that he wrote in a hurry and with a heavy heart, had terrific results. It awakened millions of consciences.

Today, we also tend to turn away from realities that are desperate for our attention and commitment. Injustices and even great dictators survive. Moreover, virtually the same echoes of the past that we thought had been forgotten still remain. We need to wake up and remember the message of Chaplin’s movie.

More than machinery, we need humanity

Chaplin’s speech in The Great Dictator is now over eighty years old yet remains relevant today. His reference to the fact that society needs more humanity and not so much machinery invites a great deal of reflection. Indeed, technology has advanced a great deal since the 20th century and, just as it happened then, it has a positive and a destructive side.

For example, today, social media brings us closer to each other and allows us to spread information. It’s a powerful weapon, but sometimes it dehumanizes us. In fact, too often, it rises up as a channel that spreads hate, discriminates, and attacks those who are different. More than intelligence – as the barber pointed out in the movie, we need kindness and gentleness.

Let’s keep fighting for a better world

Our world has come a long way since those years when the great powers were engaged in a world war. That said, progress hasn’t necessarily made it a better place, certainly not to the extent to claim that we’ve triumphed as humanity. Sadly, we’re no longer ethical, discrimination and injustice are still in evidence, and wars continue to rage on our horizons.

Chaplin’s speech in The Great Dictator is timeless because we haven’t solved the problems of the past. We’ve simply dragged them along with us and given them other forms. We live in an increasingly polarized present in which irrationality, extremism, and even violence silently escalate, almost without us noticing.

It’s time to wake up. We must keep fighting for a better world. We must appeal to our humanity and become a committed antidote to the nonsense of hate.