--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We, to some degree, are like what we are…" description: "\"We, to some degree, are like what we are because we inherited certain things from the Greeks and the Romans. One of them that's so striking is the whol..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/efb/donald-kagan-39149_certain_we-to-some-degree-are-like-what-we-are-b_2964233.png" --- # We, to some degree, are like what we are because we… ![“We, to some degree, are like what we are because we inherited certain things from the Greeks and the Romans. One of them that's so striking is the whole area of politics.” quote by Donald Kagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/efb/donald-kagan-39149_certain_we-to-some-degree-are-like-what-we-are-b_2964233.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/efb/donald-kagan-39149_certain_we-to-some-degree-are-like-what-we-are-b_2964233.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/efb/donald-kagan-39149_certain_we-to-some-degree-are-like-what-we-are-b_2964233.png) > “We, to some degree, are like what we are because we inherited certain things from the Greeks and the Romans. One of them that's so striking is the whole area of politics.” [Donald Kagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-kagan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Western political thought is inherited from Greek and Roman traditions, shaping modern politics. **In simple terms:** Ancient ideas shape modern politics. Key Takeaway Study history to understand politics. Themes politics history culture inheritance philosophy Mood analytical educational Type historical philosophical When to use this quote - political analysis - education - policy making Key Concepts classical influence political theory Questions to Reflect On - How do ancient ideas affect current policy? - What lessons can we learn from Roman governance? A Different Perspective Modern contexts differ from ancient ones. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Certain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certain/) [Degrees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/degrees/) [Greek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greek/) [Inherited](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inherited/) [Inherited Certain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inherited-certain-4529517/) [Like Inherited](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-inherited-4195891/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Romans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/romans/) [Things Greeks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-greeks-3377317/) [Whole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whole/) ## Related quotes > [Who's, like, inherited a lot of money that has gone on to do things in our lives?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anderson-cooper/who-s-like-inherited-a-lot-of-money-that-has-gone-on-to-do-things-in/) [Anderson Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anderson-cooper/) > [I don't like inherited wealth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-gubay/i-don-t-like-inherited-wealth/) [Albert Gubay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-gubay/) > [American culture is kind of a universal culture, I guess. It's things Greeks grew up with, common references you can use. It's very interesting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yorgos-lanthimos/american-culture-is-kind-of-a-universal-culture-i-guess-it-s-things/) [Yorgos Lanthimos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yorgos-lanthimos/) > [The Greeks adored their gods by the simple compliment of kissing their hands; and the Romans were treated as atheists if they would not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-disraeli/the-greeks-adored-their-gods-by-the-simple-compliment-of-kissing/) [Benjamin Disraeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-disraeli/) > [Greek is the embodiment of the fluent speech that runs or soars, the speech of a people which could not help giving winged feet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/havelock-ellis/greek-is-the-embodiment-of-the-fluent-speech-that-runs-or-soars-the/) [Havelock Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/havelock-ellis/) > [To later Romans Ennius was the personification of the spirit of early Rome; by them he was called "The Father of Roman Poetry." We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quintus-ennius/to-later-romans-ennius-was-the-personification-of-the-spirit-of-early/) [Quintus Ennius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quintus-ennius/) > [You will find the Americans much like the Greeks found the Romans: great, big, vulgar, bustling people more vigorous than we are and also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-macmillan/you-will-find-the-americans-much-like-the-greeks-found-the-romans/) [Harold Macmillan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-macmillan/) > [I inherited my 1960s copy of 'French Provincial Cooking' by Elizabeth David from my mother Gabrielle, who in turn inherited it from her mother…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-khoo/i-inherited-my-1960s-copy-of-french-provincial-cooking-by-elizabeth/) [Rachel Khoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-khoo/) > [Chemo days make me tired, though it's hard to say that's because of the chemo when you have kids who have inherited their dad's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-pausch/chemo-days-make-me-tired-though-it-s-hard-to-say-that-s-because-of/) [Randy Pausch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-pausch/) > [Character isn't inherited. One builds it daily by how one thinks and acts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-gahagan-douglas/character-isn-t-inherited-one-builds-it-daily-by-how-one-thinks-and/) [Helen Gahagan Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-gahagan-douglas/) > [I have inherited my father's sense of humour about myself. It's a lot more pleasant to make fun of yourself than when someone else…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-sondheim/i-have-inherited-my-father-s-sense-of-humour-about-myself-it-s-a-lot/) [Stephen Sondheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-sondheim/) > [If there's one thing I could attribute my strength to, I would say it's the gift of laughter, which I inherited from my mother's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-machado/if-there-s-one-thing-i-could-attribute-my-strength-to-i-would-say-it/) [China Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-machado/) > [The mainstream sort of presentation of the civil rights movement was not something that I directly inherited.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/the-mainstream-sort-of-presentation-of-the-civil-rights-movement-was/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [Although self-control is inheritable and does run in families and has a genetic component, it's more like height than anything else. Height is one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terrie-moffitt/although-self-control-is-inheritable-and-does-run-in-families-and-has/) [Terrie Moffitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terrie-moffitt/) > [The last thing I wanted in life was to be measured by what I had inherited, as opposed to what I had done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-getty/the-last-thing-i-wanted-in-life-was-to-be-measured-by-what-i-had/) [Mark Getty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-getty/) ## More by Donald Kagan > [ In Our Underachieving Colleges, \[Derek\] Bok acts as both diagnostician and healer, wielding social-science statistics and professional studies to trace the etiology of today's… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-kagan/in-our-underachieving-colleges-derek-bok-acts-as-both-diagnostician/) [Donald Kagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-kagan/) > [I can see that you are a true historian because you really always ought to ask that question about anybody at a different place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-kagan/i-can-see-that-you-are-a-true-historian-because-you-really-always/) [Donald Kagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-kagan/) > [Without history we are the prisoners of the accident of where and when we were born.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-kagan/without-history-we-are-the-prisoners-of-the-accident-of-where-and/) [Donald Kagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-kagan/) > [All comparisons between America's current place in the world and anything legitimately called an empire in the past reveal ignorance and confusion about any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-kagan/all-comparisons-between-america-s-current-place-in-the-world-and/) [Donald Kagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-kagan/) > [War has been more common than peace, and extended periods of peace have been rare in a world divided into multiple states](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-kagan/war-has-been-more-common-than-peace-and-extended-periods-of-peace/) [Donald Kagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-kagan/) > [Throughout the human experience people have read history because they felt that it was a pleasure and that it was in some way instructive.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-kagan/throughout-the-human-experience-people-have-read-history-because-they/) [Donald Kagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-kagan/) > [ I can see that you \[Bruce Cole\] are a true historian because you really always ought to ask that question about anybody at a… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-kagan/i-can-see-that-you-bruce-cole-are-a-true-historian-because-you-really/) [Donald Kagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-kagan/) > [History had its own way of explaining things. The way historians explain things is by telling a story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-kagan/history-had-its-own-way-of-explaining-things-the-way-historians/) [Donald Kagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-kagan/) > [From the time I was a little boy I found myself reading history when I had a choice. I read a lot of things,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-kagan/from-the-time-i-was-a-little-boy-i-found-myself-reading-history-when/) [Donald Kagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-kagan/) > [You have to liberate yourself first from the prejudices of the world in which you live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-kagan/you-have-to-liberate-yourself-first-from-the-prejudices-of-the-world/) [Donald Kagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-kagan/) [Explore all 11 Donald Kagan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-kagan/) ## More Certain quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [One can put some trust in the gratitude of a sovereign, and also in that of his family; under certain conditions, one can even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-von-bismarck/one-can-put-some-trust-in-the-gratitude-of-a-sovereign-and-also-in/) [Otto von Bismarck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-von-bismarck/) > [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. It must be either new in itself or invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/for-successful-education-there-must-always-be-a-certain-freshness-in/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [People don't always realize that a record is forever. It'll always be there under your name. You've got to be certain that it's right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-iero/people-don-t-always-realize-that-a-record-is-forever-it-ll-always-be/) [Frank Iero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-iero/) > [Faith gives you a certain structure and meaning to your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riffat-hassan/faith-gives-you-a-certain-structure-and-meaning-to-your-life/) [Riffat Hassan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/riffat-hassan/) > [I started out dancing on a reality TV show, but always with the intention of making my way over to film. I transitioned into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-hough/i-started-out-dancing-on-a-reality-tv-show-but-always-with-the/) [Julianne Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-hough/) > [One of the deepest and strangest of all human moods is the mood which will suddenly strike us perhaps in a garden at night,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-of-the-deepest-and-strangest-of-all-human-moods-is-the-mood-which/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A dialogue is very important. It is a form of communication in which question and answer continue till a question is left without an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/a-dialogue-is-very-important-it-is-a-form-of-communication-in-which/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [I mean those people who are interested in good government will certainly contribute in order to make certain there's some counter-balance to those whose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-breyer/i-mean-those-people-who-are-interested-in-good-government-will/) [Stephen Breyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-breyer/) > [Why do we love certain homes, and why do they seem to love us? It is the warmth of our individual hearts reflected in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-h-robsjohn-gibbings/why-do-we-love-certain-homes-and-why-do-they-seem-to-love-us-it-is/) [T. H. Robsjohn-Gibbings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-h-robsjohn-gibbings/) > [Human life consists of doing certain things ... to take part in the life of the community; to be able to talk about subjects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/human-life-consists-of-doing-certain-things-to-take-part-in-the-life/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [We've all seen talented young players who get to a certain level but there comes a point where that talent will only take you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-gatland/we-ve-all-seen-talented-young-players-who-get-to-a-certain-level-but/) [Warren Gatland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-gatland/) > [The concept of humanity is an especially useful ideological instrument of imperialist expansion, and in its ethical-humanitarian form it is a specific vehicle of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-schmitt/the-concept-of-humanity-is-an-especially-useful-ideological/) [Carl Schmitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-schmitt/) > [I think that at a certain age, say fifteen or sixteen, poetry is like masturbation. But later in life good poets burn their early…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/i-think-that-at-a-certain-age-say-fifteen-or-sixteen-poetry-is-like/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [If a person does not listen to the demands of their own spiritual and heart life and insists on a certain program, you're going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/if-a-person-does-not-listen-to-the-demands-of-their-own-spiritual-and/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) [Browse all 13,673 Certain quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certain/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We, to some degree, are like what we are because we inherited certain things from the Greeks and the Romans. One of them that's so striking is the whole area of politics.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Donald Kagan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-kagan/we-to-some-degree-are-like-what-we-are-because-we-inherited-certain/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Certain" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-kagan/we-to-some-degree-are-like-what-we-are-because-we-inherited-certain/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/efb/donald-kagan-39149_certain_we-to-some-degree-are-like-what-we-are-b_2964233.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/efb/donald-kagan-39149_certain_we-to-some-degree-are-like-what-we-are-b_2964233.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/efb/donald-kagan-39149_certain_we-to-some-degree-are-like-what-we-are-b_2964233.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We, to some degree, are like what we are because we inherited certain things from the Greeks and the Romans…” — Donald Kagan", "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": "Donald Kagan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-kagan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We, to some degree, are like...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-kagan/we-to-some-degree-are-like-what-we-are-because-we-inherited-certain/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-kagan/we-to-some-degree-are-like-what-we-are-because-we-inherited-certain/#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 } } ] } ```