--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If I knew of something that could serve…" description: "\"If I knew of something that could serve my nation but would ruin another, I would not propose it to my prince, for I am first a man and only then a Fre..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/anonymous-1_propose_if-i-knew-of-something-that-could-serve_495290.jpg" --- # If I knew of something that could serve my nation but… ![“If I knew of something that could serve my nation but would ruin another, I would not propose it to my prince, for I am first a man and only then a Frenchman... because I am necessarily a man, and only accidentally am I French.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/anonymous-1_propose_if-i-knew-of-something-that-could-serve_495290.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/anonymous-1_propose_if-i-knew-of-something-that-could-serve_495290.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/anonymous-1_propose_if-i-knew-of-something-that-could-serve_495290.jpg) > “If I knew of something that could serve my nation but would ruin another, I would not propose it to my prince, for I am first a man and only then a Frenchman... because I am necessarily a man, and only accidentally am I French.” [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker prioritizes humanity over national identity, refusing to harm others even for his country. **In simple terms:** Man first, nation second. Key Takeaway Put humanity before patriotism. Themes ethics nationalism humanity Mood reflective serious Type philosophical ethical When to use this quote - diplomacy - policy making - conflict resolution - personal decisions Key Concepts moral philosophy political theory Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance personal ethics with loyalty to a group? - When is it acceptable to prioritize national goals? A Different Perspective May overlook practical national interests. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [The Frenchman works until he can play. The American works until he can’t play; and then thanks the devil, his master, that he is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-frenchman-works-until-he-can-play-the-american-works-until-he-can/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A woman might as well propose: her husband will claim she did.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-woman-might-as-well-propose-her-husband-will-claim-she-did/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Hey you know which is the best day to propose a girl ¦.???¦. Its APRIL 1ST ¦. If she accepts its your luck and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/hey-you-know-which-is-the-best-day-to-propose-a-girl-its-april-1st-if/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My son, by all means desist from kicking the venerable and enlightened Vizier: for as a costly jewel retains its value even if hidden…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/my-son-by-all-means-desist-from-kicking-the-venerable-and-enlightened/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Faced with today's problems and disappointments , many people will try to escape from their responsibility. Escape in selfishness, escape in sexual pleasure, escape…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/faced-with-today-s-problems-and-disappointments-many-people-will-try/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [God Himself does not propose to judge a man until he is dead. So why should you?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-himself-does-not-propose-to-judge-a-man-until-he-is-dead-so-why/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Today is a leap year and women are supposed to pluck up some courage and propose to their man! Guys will be avoiding their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/today-is-a-leap-year-and-women-are-supposed-to-pluck-up-some-courage/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When I propose to my future wife, I'm going to put a ring in a Pokeball, get down on one knee, and say 'I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-i-propose-to-my-future-wife-i-m-going-to-put-a-ring-in-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Out of every hundred new ideas ninety-nine or more will probably be inferior to the traditional responses which they propose to replace. No one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/out-of-every-hundred-new-ideas-ninety-nine-or-more-will-probably-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It is complete nihilism to propose laying down arms in a world where atom bombs are around. It is very simple: there is no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-complete-nihilism-to-propose-laying-down-arms-in-a-world-where/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you propose to speak, always ask yourself; Is it true, is it necessary, is it kind?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-propose-to-speak-always-ask-yourself-is-it-true-is-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only thing I would change about you is your last name...to mine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-thing-i-would-change-about-you-is-your-last-name-to-mine/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Just as I shall select my ship when I am about to go on a voyage, or my house when I propose to take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/just-as-i-shall-select-my-ship-when-i-am-about-to-go-on-a-voyage-or/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I am unusual for a Frenchman - I have absolutely nothing against the United States.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-hazanavicius/i-am-unusual-for-a-frenchman-i-have-absolutely-nothing-against-the/) [Michel Hazanavicius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-hazanavicius/) > [Every day I think about where I come from and I am still proud to be who I am: first, a Kabyle from La…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zinedine-zidane/every-day-i-think-about-where-i-come-from-and-i-am-still-proud-to-be/) [Zinedine Zidane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zinedine-zidane/) ## More by Anonymous > [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Propose quotes > [You can’t propose that something be a universal space and at the same time keep control of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-berners-lee/you-can-t-propose-that-something-be-a-universal-space-and-at-the-same/) [Tim Berners-Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-berners-lee/) > [The combination of such characters, some, as the sacral ones, altogether peculiar among Reptiles, others borrowed, as it were, from groups now distinct from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-owen/the-combination-of-such-characters-some-as-the-sacral-ones-altogether/) [Richard Owen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-owen/) > [“The truth is, no man has ever wanted me enough to propose.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-probst/the-truth-is-no-man-has-ever-wanted-me-enough-to-propose/) [Jennifer Probst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-probst/) > [Poetry, when it takes sides, when it proposes solutions, isn't any smarter than anybody else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hass/poetry-when-it-takes-sides-when-it-proposes-solutions-isn-t-any/) [Robert Hass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hass/) > [We are about to part," said Neville. "Here are the boxes; here are the cabs. There is Percival in his billycock hat. He will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/we-are-about-to-part-said-neville-here-are-the-boxes-here-are-the/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [My parents are divorced, and that was the last thing I wanted for myself. I waited until I was 36 to propose, and I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-duhamel/my-parents-are-divorced-and-that-was-the-last-thing-i-wanted-for/) [Josh Duhamel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-duhamel/) > [“Men who want to get married propose. You don’t need to read the signs. They propose and that’s the sign.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-kinsella/men-who-want-to-get-married-propose-you-don-t-need-to-read-the-signs/) [Sophie Kinsella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-kinsella/) > [I know that a lot of girls nowadays are proposing to guys but I think I'll be old fashioned. I'll wait until I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanessa-lachey/i-know-that-a-lot-of-girls-nowadays-are-proposing-to-guys-but-i-think/) [Vanessa Lachey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanessa-lachey/) > [ Conditions in the \[movie\] industry somehow propose the paradox: "We brought you here for your individuality but while you're here we insist that you… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/conditions-in-the-movie-industry-somehow-propose-the-paradox-we/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) > [I propose a Constitutional Amendment providing that, if any public official, elected or appointed, at any level of government, is caught lying to any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-neil-smith/i-propose-a-constitutional-amendment-providing-that-if-any-public/) [L. Neil Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-neil-smith/) > [If you want to propose marriage to your girlfriend and you live in England and she is in Sicily, do the decent thing and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-herzog/if-you-want-to-propose-marriage-to-your-girlfriend-and-you-live-in/) [Werner Herzog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-herzog/) > [ \[Books\] will visit you at your convenience, whether you are lonesome or not, on rainy days or fair. They propose themselves as either transient… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifton-fadiman/books-will-visit-you-at-your-convenience-whether-you-are-lonesome-or/) [Clifton Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifton-fadiman/) > [The three great ends which a statesman ought to propose to himself in the government of a nation, are 1. Security to possessors; 2.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-taylor-coleridge/the-three-great-ends-which-a-statesman-ought-to-propose-to-himself-in/) [Samuel Taylor Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-taylor-coleridge/) > [The best day to propose to a girl is on April Fools Day. If she says yes, then good. But, if she says no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/green-monk/the-best-day-to-propose-to-a-girl-is-on-april-fools-day-if-she-says/) [Green Monk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/green-monk/) > [ There is progress in the sense that the Prime Minister \[Shinzō Abe\] has proposed, outlined, as it were, directions for movement toward a peace… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/there-is-progress-in-the-sense-that-the-prime-minister-shinz-abe-has/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) Browse all 483 Propose quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If I knew of something that could serve my nation but would ruin another, I would not propose it to my prince, for I am first a man and only then a Frenchman... because I am necessarily a man, and only accidentally am I French.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anonymous" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-i-knew-of-something-that-could-serve-my-nation-but-would-ruin/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Propose" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-i-knew-of-something-that-could-serve-my-nation-but-would-ruin/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/anonymous-1_propose_if-i-knew-of-something-that-could-serve_495290.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/anonymous-1_propose_if-i-knew-of-something-that-could-serve_495290.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/anonymous-1_propose_if-i-knew-of-something-that-could-serve_495290.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If I knew of something that could serve my nation but would ruin another, I would not propose it to my…” — Anonymous", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Anonymous", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If I knew of something that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-i-knew-of-something-that-could-serve-my-nation-but-would-ruin/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-i-knew-of-something-that-could-serve-my-nation-but-would-ruin/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```