--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: They had started speaking of “women and…" description: "\"“They had started speaking of “women and children”—that phrase that exempts the male from sanity when it has been repeated a few times. Each felt that ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b4/e-m-forster-2-1148_children_they-had-started-speaking-of-women-and-c_2644539.jpg" --- # They had started speaking of “women and children”—that… ![“They had started speaking of “women and children”—that phrase that exempts the male from sanity when it has been repeated a few times. Each felt that all he loved best in the world was at stake, demanded revenge, and was filled with a not unpleasing glow, in which the chilly and half-known…” quote by E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b4/e-m-forster-2-1148_children_they-had-started-speaking-of-women-and-c_2644539.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b4/e-m-forster-2-1148_children_they-had-started-speaking-of-women-and-c_2644539.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b4/e-m-forster-2-1148_children_they-had-started-speaking-of-women-and-c_2644539.jpg) > ““They had started speaking of “women and children”—that phrase that exempts the male from sanity when it has been repeated a few times. Each felt that all he loved best in the world was at stake, demanded revenge, and was filled with a not unpleasing glow, in which the chilly and half-known features of Miss Quested vanished, and were replaced by all that is sweetest and warmest in private life. “But it’s the women and children,” they repeated, and the Collector knew he ought to stop them intoxicating themselves, but he hadn’t the heart.”” [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Men justify violent actions by invoking “women and children,” revealing moral conflict and suppressed humanity. **In simple terms:** Violence justified by protecting loved ones. Key Takeaway Recognize when moral rhetoric masks personal motives. Themes war morality humanity Mood thoughtful critical Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - political debate - personal relationships - social activism - conflict resolution Key Concepts ethical conflict psychology Questions to Reflect On - When have you used “protecting others” to justify actions? - How can you discern genuine concern from manipulation? A Different Perspective May generalize complex motivations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Paternalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paternalism/) [Private life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/private-life/) ## Related quotes > [“The issues Miss Quested had raised were so much more important than she was herself that people inevitably forgot her.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/the-issues-miss-quested-had-raised-were-so-much-more-important-than/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [“But in public who shall express the unseen adequately? It is private life that holds out the mirror to infinity; personal intercourse, and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/but-in-public-who-shall-express-the-unseen-adequately-it-is-private/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [Paternalism is everywhere in our lives. We have to immunise our children unless we are upset about it. In India, it is the opposite.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-duflo/paternalism-is-everywhere-in-our-lives-we-have-to-immunise-our/) [Esther Duflo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-duflo/) > [The question is whether NGOs that bring protection or aid or reparation therapies are furthering the possibility of self-determination or extending a form of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-butler/the-question-is-whether-ngos-that-bring-protection-or-aid-or/) [Judith Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-butler/) > [“Libertarian paternalism is a relatively weak, soft, and nonintrusive type of paternalism because choices are not blocked, fenced off, or significantly burdened.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-h-thaler/libertarian-paternalism-is-a-relatively-weak-soft-and-nonintrusive-2/) [Richard H. 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If people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/libertarian-paternalism-is-a-relatively-weak-soft-and-nonintrusive/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The lessons of paternalism ought to be unlearned and the better lesson taught that while people should patriotically and cheerfully support their Government its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grover-cleveland/the-lessons-of-paternalism-ought-to-be-unlearned-and-the-better/) [Grover Cleveland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grover-cleveland/) > [“Selective paternalism, for those on low incomes or for other groups needing state assistance, is perhaps even worse than general paternalism, since the minority…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-standing/selective-paternalism-for-those-on-low-incomes-or-for-other-groups/) [Guy Standing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-standing/) > [“Self-reliance and independence can transform into selfishness and license, ambition into greed and a frantic desire to succeed at any cost. 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