That which has always been accepted by everyone, everywhere, is almost certain to be false.
Paul ValeryRead
War: a massacre of people who don't know each other for the profit of people who know each other but don't massacre each other.
Interpretation
What this quote means
War benefits those who orchestrate it at the cost of innocent lives.
This quote by Paul Valery comments on the paradox of war, emphasizing how it tragically involves the slaughter of individuals who have no personal conflict with each other, all while it enriches and serves the interests of those who instigate it. Valery highlights the cruel irony that the true architects of war often remain untouched and benefit from the chaos, shedding light on the moral implications of conflict and the disconnect between the ordinary soldier and the elite who drive these decisions.
Themes
WarProfitConflictSocietyViolenceIrony
In practice
Example use cases
During a lecture on the consequences of war, one might quote Valery to emphasize the hidden beneficiaries of conflict.
More from Paul Valery
All quotes βOh, hasten not this loving act, Rapture where self and not-self meet: My life has been the awaiting you, Your footfall was my own heart's beat.
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The history of thought may be summed up in these words: it is absurd by what it seeks and great by what it finds.
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The world acquires value only through its extremes and endures only through moderation; extremists make the world great, the moderates give it stability.
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It would be impossible to "love" anyone or anything one knew completely. Love is directed towards what lies hidden in its object.
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You have certainly observed the curious fact that a given word which is perfectly clear when you hear it or use it in everyday language, and which does not give rise to any difficulty when it is engaged in the rapid movement of an ordinary sentence becomes magically embarrassing, introduces a strange resistance, frustrates any effort at definition as soon as you take it out of circulation to examine it separately and look for its meaning after taking away its instantaneous function.
Paul ValeryRead
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