--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A man is not expected to love his…" description: "\"A man is not expected to love his country, lest he make an ass of himself. Yet our country, seen through the mists of smog, is curiously lovable, in so..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca3/e-b-white-1448_america_a-man-is-not-expected-to-love-his-countr_1050033.png" --- # A man is not expected to love his country, lest he make an… ![“A man is not expected to love his country, lest he make an ass of himself. Yet our country, seen through the mists of smog, is curiously lovable, in somewhat the way an individual who has got himself into an unconscionable scrape seems lovable - or at least deserving of support.” quote by E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca3/e-b-white-1448_america_a-man-is-not-expected-to-love-his-countr_1050033.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca3/e-b-white-1448_america_a-man-is-not-expected-to-love-his-countr_1050033.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca3/e-b-white-1448_america_a-man-is-not-expected-to-love-his-countr_1050033.png) > “A man is not expected to love his country, lest he make an ass of himself. Yet our country, seen through the mists of smog, is curiously lovable, in somewhat the way an individual who has got himself into an unconscionable scrape seems lovable - or at least deserving of support.” [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author critiques patriotic expectations while acknowledging a complex love for his nation, despite its flaws. **In simple terms:** Love for country can coexist with criticism. Key Takeaway Balance patriotism with critical awareness. Themes patriotism criticism identity Mood thoughtful nuanced Type civic philosophical When to use this quote - political discourse - community involvement - civic duty Key Concepts national love self‑reflection Questions to Reflect On - How do you reconcile love and critique? - What responsibilities arise from this love? A Different Perspective Blind patriotism can ignore real problems. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Mist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mist/) [Patriotism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patriotism/) [Smog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smog/) [Support](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/support/) ## Related quotes > [The definition of a dedicated individual..i got a tablet fulla verses dude I been writin since middle school](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marley-garcia/the-definition-of-a-dedicated-individual-i-got-a-tablet-fulla-verses/) [Marley Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marley-garcia/) > [While I don't face the same barriers as so many people in our country, I have seen love that transcends borders, race, and country…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cary-kennedy/while-i-don-t-face-the-same-barriers-as-so-many-people-in-our-country/) [Cary Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cary-kennedy/) > [The prosperity of a country can be seen simply in how it treats its old people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nachman-of-breslov/the-prosperity-of-a-country-can-be-seen-simply-in-how-it-treats-its/) [Nachman of Breslov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nachman-of-breslov/) > [I know plenty of people who live in the country who have never seen a badger. 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'Who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cath-crowley/i-look-across-at-the-line-of-the-city-the-nights-are-mean-in-this/) [Cath Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cath-crowley/) > [“No. Not Shang hi. Hang zoo.” Smog”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-merchant/no-not-shang-hi-hang-zoo-smog/) [Brian Merchant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-merchant/) > [Smog is affecting larger parts of China, and environmental pollution has become a major problem, which is natures red-light warning against the model of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/li-keqiang/smog-is-affecting-larger-parts-of-china-and-environmental-pollution/) [Li Keqiang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/li-keqiang/) ## More by E. B. White > [Writing is an act of faith, not a trick of grammar.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/writing-is-an-act-of-faith-not-a-trick-of-grammar/) [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) > [“To hear, in the short space of one week, a Scottish terrier booed by an audience and President Roosevelt criticized by Charles Lindbergh was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/to-hear-in-the-short-space-of-one-week-a-scottish-terrier-booed-by-an/) [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) > [The sea answers all questions, and always in the same way; for when you read in the papers the interminable discussions and the bickering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/the-sea-answers-all-questions-and-always-in-the-same-way-for-when-you/) [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) > [New York blends the gift of privacy with the excitement of participation; and better than most dense communities it succeeds in insulating the individual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/new-york-blends-the-gift-of-privacy-with-the-excitement-of/) [E. B. 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White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) > [Anyone who writes down to children is simply wasting his time. You have to write up, not down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/anyone-who-writes-down-to-children-is-simply-wasting-his-time-you/) [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) > [A writer should concern himself with whatever absorbs his fancy, stirs his heart, and unlimbers his typewriter. ... A writer has the duty to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/a-writer-should-concern-himself-with-whatever-absorbs-his-fancy-stirs/) [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) > [Every morning I awake torn between a desire to save the world and an inclination to savor it. This makes it hard to plan…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/every-morning-i-awake-torn-between-a-desire-to-save-the-world-and-an/) [E. B. 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White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) > [There's no limit to how complicated things can get, on account of one thing always leading to another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/there-s-no-limit-to-how-complicated-things-can-get-on-account-of-one/) [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) > [The critic leaves at curtain fall To find, in starting to review it, He scarcely saw the play at all For starting to review…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/the-critic-leaves-at-curtain-fall-to-find-in-starting-to-review-it-he/) [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) [Explore all 240 E. B. White quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... 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The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. 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