--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Start your killers young, before their…" description: "\"“Start your killers young, before their consciences are grown. Start them young and they will be lethal.”\" — Bernard Cornwell" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75d/bernard-cornwell-1849_quote_start-your-killers-young-before-their-co_1082076.jpg" --- # Start your killers young, before their consciences are… ![“Start your killers young, before their consciences are grown. Start them young and they will be lethal.” quote by Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75d/bernard-cornwell-1849_quote_start-your-killers-young-before-their-co_1082076.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75d/bernard-cornwell-1849_quote_start-your-killers-young-before-their-co_1082076.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75d/bernard-cornwell-1849_quote_start-your-killers-young-before-their-co_1082076.jpg) > ““Start your killers young, before their consciences are grown. Start them young and they will be lethal.”” [Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The statement warns that indoctrinating youths early makes them effective and dangerous later. **In simple terms:** Early training creates deadly adults. Key Takeaway Consider the long‑term impact of early influences. Themes education morality violence development psychology Mood somber thoughtful Type cautionary philosophical When to use this quote - schools - military academies - recruitment - youth programs Key Concepts social conditioning ethical responsibility military training Questions to Reflect On - How does early moral guidance affect later behavior? - What safeguards can prevent harmful indoctrination? A Different Perspective The quote is fictional and may exaggerate for dramatic effect. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Killers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/killers/) [Killers Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/killers-young-2751937/) [Start Killers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/start-killers-2751938/) [Start Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/start-young-452323/) [Young Consciences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-consciences-2751939/) ## Related quotes > [When you start learning how to give when you're young, when you get older it is second nature. Just like stealing. Start young and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mechai-viravaidya/when-you-start-learning-how-to-give-when-you-re-young-when-you-get/) [Mechai Viravaidya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mechai-viravaidya/) > [I'm Latin - we start young, honey!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoe-saldana/i-m-latin-we-start-young-honey/) [Zoe Saldana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoe-saldana/) > [ I think it's almost better to start \[acting\] at a later age because you have more stuff to drawm from - more life experience.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-duhamel/i-think-it-s-almost-better-to-start-acting-at-a-later-age-because-you/) [Josh Duhamel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-duhamel/) > [Travel is so important in its capacity to expand the mind. It's exciting to start as young as possible - you get to see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-dormer/travel-is-so-important-in-its-capacity-to-expand-the-mind-it-s/) [Natalie Dormer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-dormer/) > [Start young. Throw your arms around ladies knees. As you get older it will get more interesting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shepherd-mead/start-young-throw-your-arms-around-ladies-knees-as-you-get-older-it/) [Shepherd Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shepherd-mead/) > [“Para ser inteligente, hay que empezar desde chica. To be intelligent, one must start young.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-luisa-bombal/para-ser-inteligente-hay-que-empezar-desde-chica-to-be-intelligent/) [Maria Luisa Bombal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-luisa-bombal/) > [Most entertainers start at a young age saying, 'I don't want to be normal. I don't want a regular job.'... I think that's something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sinbad/most-entertainers-start-at-a-young-age-saying-i-don-t-want-to-be/) [Sinbad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sinbad/) > [Old age is like everything else. To make a success of it, you've got to start young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/old-age-is-like-everything-else-to-make-a-success-of-it-you-ve-got-to/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [Start with the young, work with them until they are adults, and they will demand real food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimbal-musk/start-with-the-young-work-with-them-until-they-are-adults-and-they/) [Kimbal Musk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimbal-musk/) > [I suppose when you start out as a young player, you want to find your feet and get an understanding for the group that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kane-williamson/i-suppose-when-you-start-out-as-a-young-player-you-want-to-find-your/) [Kane Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kane-williamson/) > [That's usually how they start, the young ones. Meaningless waffle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-stroud/that-s-usually-how-they-start-the-young-ones-meaningless-waffle/) [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) > [When you start very young and you start to work, you're going to fail. That's how you learn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-tans/when-you-start-very-young-and-you-start-to-work-you-re-going-to-fail/) [Gillian Tans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-tans/) > [You start at a young age, going on auditions, and you think you did a good job and expect to get that role, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-b-jordan/you-start-at-a-young-age-going-on-auditions-and-you-think-you-did-a/) [Michael B. Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-b-jordan/) > [It is a great thing to be at your age... You are at a very specific time of age ... an age where you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-louboutin/it-is-a-great-thing-to-be-at-your-age-you-are-at-a-very-specific-time/) [Christian Louboutin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-louboutin/) > [“Ericsson says that it takes approximately ten thousand hours of Deliberate Practice to gain true expertise, so it helps to start young.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/ericsson-says-that-it-takes-approximately-ten-thousand-hours-of/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) ## More by Bernard Cornwell > [“They laughed, but I was melancholy. The remnants of Rome always make me sad, simply because they are proof that we slide inexorably towards…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-cornwell/they-laughed-but-i-was-melancholy-the-remnants-of-rome-always-make-me/) [Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) > [“Some mothers soften their sons, but Osbert was motherless and I had raised him hard because a man must be hard. The world is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-cornwell/some-mothers-soften-their-sons-but-osbert-was-motherless-and-i-had/) [Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) > [“Enemies come soon enough in a mans life,' he told me, 'you don't need to seek them out”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-cornwell/enemies-come-soon-enough-in-a-mans-life-he-told-me-you-don-t-need-to/) [Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) > [“Wyrd bi ful aræd.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-cornwell/wyrd-bi-ful-ar-d/) [Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) > [“‎"He sang the song of the sword, keening as he fed his blade, and Rollo, standing thigh-deep in the creek, ax swinging in murderous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-cornwell/he-sang-the-song-of-the-sword-keening-as-he-fed-his-blade-and-rollo/) [Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) > [“A battle in the shield wall. It's smelling your enemy's breath while he tries to disembowel you with an axe, it's blood and shit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-cornwell/a-battle-in-the-shield-wall-it-s-smelling-your-enemy-s-breath-while/) [Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) > [I'll happily mentor anyone who wants mentoring, and most of that goes on by internet rather than face to face.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-cornwell/i-ll-happily-mentor-anyone-who-wants-mentoring-and-most-of-that-goes/) [Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) > [“Nor did he care about his childhood, for certainly I never heard him speak of it. I once questioned him about his early days…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-cornwell/nor-did-he-care-about-his-childhood-for-certainly-i-never-heard-him/) [Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) > [“Calix meus inebrians.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-cornwell/calix-meus-inebrians/) [Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) > [“And we screamed. We screamed our war cry, our shout of slaughter, our joy of being men in battle who are driven by terror.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-cornwell/and-we-screamed-we-screamed-our-war-cry-our-shout-of-slaughter-our/) [Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) > [It's fun. I sit down every day and tell stories. Some folk would kill to get that chance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-cornwell/it-s-fun-i-sit-down-every-day-and-tell-stories-some-folk-would-kill/) [Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) > [“You will tell him that Uhtred of Bebbanburg is in a mood to kill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-cornwell/you-will-tell-him-that-uhtred-of-bebbanburg-is-in-a-mood-to-kill/) [Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) > [“Priests come to my home beside the northern sea where they find an old man, and they tell me I am just a few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-cornwell/priests-come-to-my-home-beside-the-northern-sea-where-they-find-an/) [Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) > [“An English man-at-arms had his helmet split open and his skull with it, so that he rode wavering from the fight, blood pouring down…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-cornwell/an-english-man-at-arms-had-his-helmet-split-open-and-his-skull-with/) [Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) > [“Instinct is everything.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-cornwell/instinct-is-everything/) [Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) [Explore all 171 Bernard Cornwell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) ## More Killers quotes > [I love making movies, and being in any that I can be in. I'd like to be in those giant movies, as the fifth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-burr/i-love-making-movies-and-being-in-any-that-i-can-be-in-i-d-like-to-be/) [Bill Burr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-burr/) > [Fear is a killer, when it comes to the creative process.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-baldwin/fear-is-a-killer-when-it-comes-to-the-creative-process/) [Adam Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-baldwin/) > [The 50,000 Korean mercenaries we had in Vietnam were professional killers and just massacred people outright. And the American army did plenty of that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-50-000-korean-mercenaries-we-had-in-vietnam-were-professional/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [That's why I had to leave Hair on Broadway, because I did it for about a year, and one night I was doing the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-mcguire/that-s-why-i-had-to-leave-hair-on-broadway-because-i-did-it-for-about/) [Barry McGuire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mcguire/) > [Perhaps I'm being too optimistic, but I think this country is finally ready for a black serial killer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/perhaps-i-m-being-too-optimistic-but-i-think-this-country-is-finally/) [Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/) > [Get off me,” Harry spat, throwing Pettigrew’s hands off him in disgust. “I’m not doing this for you. I’m doing it because — I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/get-off-me-harry-spat-throwing-pettigrew-s-hands-off-him-in-disgust-i/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A good compilation tape, like breaking up, is hard to do and takes ages longer than it might seem. You've got to kick off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/a-good-compilation-tape-like-breaking-up-is-hard-to-do-and-takes-ages/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [Any time a writer thinks he has all the answers to how someone should talk or react or end a scene, it's a spontaneity-killer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-campbell/any-time-a-writer-thinks-he-has-all-the-answers-to-how-someone-should/) [Bruce Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-campbell/) > [The hardest skill to acquire in this sport is the one where you compete all out, give it all you have, and you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-reese/the-hardest-skill-to-acquire-in-this-sport-is-the-one-where-you/) [Eddie Reese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-reese/) > [Greg Jackson is a sport killer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-white/greg-jackson-is-a-sport-killer/) [Dana White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-white/) > [Killers in America work seven days a week.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-clash/killers-in-america-work-seven-days-a-week/) [The Clash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-clash/) > [The people I have no feeling for are professional killers. But I count that man no worse than a governor who won't commute a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-lee-bailey/the-people-i-have-no-feeling-for-are-professional-killers-but-i-count/) [F. Lee Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-lee-bailey/) > [A colonial war is a very dirty kind of war. You're not fighting armed forces. You're fighting mostly unarmed people. And to fight that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/a-colonial-war-is-a-very-dirty-kind-of-war-you-re-not-fighting-armed/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Suddenly all those careful preparations disintegrated as predators far more dangerous than the walking dead proved what all wise killers already knew: that nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-maberry/suddenly-all-those-careful-preparations-disintegrated-as-predators/) [Jonathan Maberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-maberry/) > [The trainee knew he should leave, but he was unable to look away. He'd never seen anything snap out so fast or strike so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-ward/the-trainee-knew-he-should-leave-but-he-was-unable-to-look-away-he-d/) [J.R. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-ward/) [Browse all 832 Killers quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/killers/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Start your killers young, before their consciences are grown. 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