You ask what I am for and what I am against in Spain. I would give my right hand of course to prevent the agony; I would not give a flick of my little finger to help either side win.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Jeffers refuses to take sides in the Spanish Civil War, prioritizing the prevention of suffering over victory.
- In plain terms
- He would stop the fighting but not help anyone win.
- What can you take from it?
- Stop suffering even if it means not supporting a side.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- When is staying neutral the right choice?
- Do you support the cause or the peace?
Another view
Neutrality can look like inaction or cowardice to others.
More from Robinson Jeffers
There is no reason for amazement: surely one always knew that cultures decay, and life's end is death.
Permalink to quote #12 Reason will not decide at last; the sword will decide. The sword: an obsolete instrument of bronze or steel, formerly used to kill men, but here In the sense o…
Permalink to quote #14 Know that however ugly the parts appear the whole remains beautiful. A severed hand Is an ugly thing and man dissevered from the earth and stars and his histor…
Permalink to quote #11
Related quotes
'I renounce war for its consequences, for the lies it lives on and propagates, for the undying hatred it arouses, for the dictatorships it puts in place of dem…
Harry Emerson FosdickHarry Emerson Fosdick quote #1 War is pillage versus resistance and if illusions of magnitude could be transmuted into ideals of magnanimity, peace might be realized.
Marianne MooreMarianne Moore quote #1 I realized that more and more I was saying, 'It seems to me that we have come to the time war ought to be given up. It no longer makes sense to kill 20 million…
Linus PaulingLinus Pauling quote #3