In the middle ages, peasants didn't yearn for democracy.

They didn't even realize it was possible.

They thought that feudalism was the only thing that could exist.

It took the Enlightenment for people to realize there was another way.

The system you are swimming in, its fundamental constraints and structure, set your horizon for what you can even imagine.

This idea comes from Tim O'Reilly's book WTF? What's the Future and Why It's Up to Us.