--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: No. We want you to write it down—to…" description: "\"“No. We want you to write it down—to camouflage it. Only for the present, of course. Once the thing gets going we shan’t have to bother about the great..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/631/c-s-lewis-121_quote_no-we-want-you-to-write-it-down-to-camou_2060905.jpg" --- # No. We want you to write it down—to camouflage it. Only… ![“No. We want you to write it down—to camouflage it. Only for the present, of course. Once the thing gets going we shan’t have to bother about the great heart of the British public. We’ll make the great heart what we want it to be. But in the meantime, it does make a difference how things are put.” quote by C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/631/c-s-lewis-121_quote_no-we-want-you-to-write-it-down-to-camou_2060905.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/631/c-s-lewis-121_quote_no-we-want-you-to-write-it-down-to-camou_2060905.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/631/c-s-lewis-121_quote_no-we-want-you-to-write-it-down-to-camou_2060905.jpg) > ““No. We want you to write it down—to camouflage it. Only for the present, of course. Once the thing gets going we shan’t have to bother about the great heart of the British public. We’ll make the great heart what we want it to be. But in the meantime, it does make a difference how things are put.”” [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator suggests disguising true intentions to manipulate public sentiment, emphasizing the power of presentation over substance. **In simple terms:** Manipulation through presentation. Key Takeaway Beware of how ideas are framed. Themes politics media manipulation communication ethics Mood cautious critical Type political reflective When to use this quote - campaign speeches - advertising - news reporting - social media posts - public debates Key Concepts propaganda framing effect public opinion shaping Questions to Reflect On - What ethical lines are crossed when shaping narratives? - How can audiences discern genuine intent? A Different Perspective Such tactics can erode trust and authenticity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [British Public](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/british-public/) [Heart British](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart-british-3844147/) [Heart Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart-want/) [Want Write](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want-write/) [Write Camouflage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/write-camouflage-3931261/) ## Related quotes > [My mind may be American but my heart is British.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/my-mind-may-be-american-but-my-heart-is-british/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [It turns out that understanding the British public is not rocket science. 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But when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-north/what-i-don-t-understand-is-that-when-the-british-public-voted-to-name/) [Claire North](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-north/) > [The monarchy is foremost a business, and it's important to them that the British public continue to finance the excessive luxurious lifestyles of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-monarchy-is-foremost-a-business-and-it-s-important-to-them-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I love the British public and the British fans; they are true boxing fans. If you get them on your side, you can go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amir-khan/i-love-the-british-public-and-the-british-fans-they-are-true-boxing/) [Amir Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amir-khan/) > [I do feel a certain love from the British public.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-stewart/i-do-feel-a-certain-love-from-the-british-public/) [Rod Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-stewart/) ## More by C.S. Lewis > [“At the moment, then, of Man’s victory over Nature, we find the whole human race subjected to some individual men, and those individuals subjected…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/at-the-moment-then-of-man-s-victory-over-nature-we-find-the-whole/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“Isn’t it absolutely essential to keep a fierce Left and a fierce Right, both on their toes and each terrified of the other?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/isn-t-it-absolutely-essential-to-keep-a-fierce-left-and-a-fierce/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“All Hell is smaller than one pebble of your earthly world: but it is smaller than one atom of this world, the Real World.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/all-hell-is-smaller-than-one-pebble-of-your-earthly-world-but-it-is/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“the greatest service we can do to education today is to teach fewer subjects. No one has time to do more than a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/the-greatest-service-we-can-do-to-education-today-is-to-teach-fewer/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“If the Divine call does not make us better, it will make us very much worse. Of all bad men religious bad men are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/if-the-divine-call-does-not-make-us-better-it-will-make-us-very-much/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“The husband is the head of the wife just in so far as he is to her what Christ is to the Church -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/the-husband-is-the-head-of-the-wife-just-in-so-far-as-he-is-to-her/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“We use a most unfortunate idiom when we say, of a lustful man prowling the streets, that he "wants a woman". Strictly speaking, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/we-use-a-most-unfortunate-idiom-when-we-say-of-a-lustful-man-prowling/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“Después de cada fracaso, pedid perdón, levantaos del suelo y volved a intentarlo. Muy a menudo, lo que Dios nos otorga primero no es…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/despu-s-de-cada-fracaso-pedid-perd-n-levantaos-del-suelo-y-volved-a/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“Then two wonders happened at the same moment. One was that the voice was suddenly joined by other voices; more voices than you could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/then-two-wonders-happened-at-the-same-moment-one-was-that-the-voice/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“Because free will, though it makes evil possible, is also the only thing that makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/because-free-will-though-it-makes-evil-possible-is-also-the-only/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“Laugh and fear not, creatures. Now that you are no longer dumb and witless, you need not always be grave. For jokes as well…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/laugh-and-fear-not-creatures-now-that-you-are-no-longer-dumb-and/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“When two humans have lived together for many years it usually happens that each has tones of voice and expressions of face which are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/when-two-humans-have-lived-together-for-many-years-it-usually-happens/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“He sees as well as you do that courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/he-sees-as-well-as-you-do-that-courage-is-not-simply-one-of-the/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“If you do not take the distinction between good and bad very seriously, then it is easy to say that anything you find in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/if-you-do-not-take-the-distinction-between-good-and-bad-very/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“Now the whole offer which Christianity makes is this: that we can, if we let God have His way, come to share in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/now-the-whole-offer-which-christianity-makes-is-this-that-we-can-if/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) [Explore all 1,165 C.S. Lewis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) ## More Want Write quotes > [You make me want to write bad poetry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-make-me-want-to-write-bad-poetry/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I don't know what makes a guy want to write songs and sing, but if you've got a message, you want to get it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-ledoux/i-don-t-know-what-makes-a-guy-want-to-write-songs-and-sing-but-if-you/) [Chris LeDoux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-ledoux/) > [I think that if you look at all of the books that have ever been written about people working in the White House, they're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alyssa-mastromonaco/i-think-that-if-you-look-at-all-of-the-books-that-have-ever-been/) [Alyssa Mastromonaco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alyssa-mastromonaco/) > [I want to write novels. I want to write stories. 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