What hurts me the most, personally, is that I still promoted him to field marshal. I wanted to give him this final satisfaction... a man like that besmirches the heroism of so many others at the last moment. He could have freed himself from all sorrow and ascended into eternity and national immortality, but he prefers to go to Moscow.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- The speaker regrets promoting a leader who surrendered, believing he could have died heroically instead.
- In plain terms
- I regret promoting him because he surrendered instead of dying gloriously.
- What can you take from it?
- Heroic death is valued over survival in some codes.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Is death better than surrender?
- How do you judge leadership?
Another view
It values martyrdom over preserving life.
More from Friedrich Paulus
I have no intention of shooting myself for that Bohemian corporal.
Permalink to quote #5 A very clever man though perhaps not a very strong character.
Permalink to quote #7 Everything you say, Reichenau, is totally unmilitaristic.
Permalink to quote #4
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