--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Formerly, a nation that broke the peace…" description: "\"Formerly, a nation that broke the peace, did not trouble to try and prove to the world that it was done solely from higher motives. ... Now war has a b..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/743/ellen-key-6012_balance_formerly-a-nation-that-broke-the-peace-d_305853.png" --- # Formerly, a nation that broke the peace, did not trouble… ![“Formerly, a nation that broke the peace, did not trouble to try and prove to the world that it was done solely from higher motives. ... Now war has a bad conscience. Now every nation assures us that it is bleeding for a human cause, the fate of which hangs in the balance of its victory ... No…” quote by Ellen Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/743/ellen-key-6012_balance_formerly-a-nation-that-broke-the-peace-d_305853.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/743/ellen-key-6012_balance_formerly-a-nation-that-broke-the-peace-d_305853.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/743/ellen-key-6012_balance_formerly-a-nation-that-broke-the-peace-d_305853.png) > “Formerly, a nation that broke the peace, did not trouble to try and prove to the world that it was done solely from higher motives. ... Now war has a bad conscience. Now every nation assures us that it is bleeding for a human cause, the fate of which hangs in the balance of its victory ... No nation dares to admit the guilt of blood before the world.” [Ellen Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-key/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote critiques how nations mask aggressive actions as noble causes, avoiding admission of guilt and using moral rhetoric to justify war. **In simple terms:** Nations hide true motives behind moral language. Key Takeaway Question motives, demand accountability. Themes politics war ethics nationalism propaganda Mood cynical critical reflective Type analytical political philosophical When to use this quote - International diplomacy - media analysis - human rights advocacy - peace negotiations Key Concepts Moral hypocrisy just war theory public perception Questions to Reflect On - How do we differentiate genuine humanitarian intervention from self‑serving rhetoric? - What mechanisms can enforce transparent accountability for nations? A Different Perspective It may oversimplify complex geopolitical motives. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Balance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/balance/) [Conscience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscience/) [Fate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fate/) [Guilt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guilt/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Motive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/motive/) [Nations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nations/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [Victory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/victory/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [War of the worlds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war-of-the-worlds/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [“ABOUT YOU Write some details about yourself NAME PRONUNCIATION How do you pronounce your name? OTHER NAMES LovesCheyenne Options Other · Shown at top…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masashi-kishimoto/about-you-write-some-details-about-yourself-name-pronunciation-how-do/) [Masashi Kishimoto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masashi-kishimoto/) > [“We're both of the same breed, after all … motives for war are of no concern. Religion, ideology, resources, land, grudges, love, or just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-re-both-of-the-same-breed-after-all-motives-for-war-are-of-no/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“But I guess I can't, or my subconscious can't, even imagine a warless world. The best it can do is substitute one kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/but-i-guess-i-can-t-or-my-subconscious-can-t-even-imagine-a-warless/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [I feel that it is our moral obligation to stand and to be courageous with these families, and particularly Cindy, that have become the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-sharpton/i-feel-that-it-is-our-moral-obligation-to-stand-and-to-be-courageous/) [Al Sharpton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-sharpton/) > [Agitation is the marshalling of the conscience of a nation to mold its laws.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-peel/agitation-is-the-marshalling-of-the-conscience-of-a-nation-to-mold/) [Robert Peel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-peel/) > [The separation of church and state is a source of strength, but the conscience of our nation does not call for separation between men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lyndon-b-johnson/the-separation-of-church-and-state-is-a-source-of-strength-but-the/) [Lyndon B. Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lyndon-b-johnson/) > [The conscience of this nation is the Constitution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-o-douglas/the-conscience-of-this-nation-is-the-constitution/) [William O. Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-o-douglas/) > [Only a handful of men and women leave an imprint on the conscience of a nation and on the history that they helped shape.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/only-a-handful-of-men-and-women-leave-an-imprint-on-the-conscience-of/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [This is not about what party you're part of. This is about right and wrong, ... the conscience of this nation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-sharpton/this-is-not-about-what-party-you-re-part-of-this-is-about-right-and/) [Al Sharpton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-sharpton/) > [Government is merely an attempt to express the conscience of everybody, the average conscience of the nation, in the rules that everybody is commanded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woodrow-wilson/government-is-merely-an-attempt-to-express-the-conscience-of/) [Woodrow Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woodrow-wilson/) > [The nation demands a movement which has written upon its banner the internal and external national freedom that it will act as if it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-von-papen/the-nation-demands-a-movement-which-has-written-upon-its-banner-the/) [Franz von Papen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-von-papen/) > [It's complicated, being an American, Having the money and the bad conscience, both at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-simpson/it-s-complicated-being-an-american-having-the-money-and-the-bad/) [Louis Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-simpson/) > [In the West, people don't have any real problems. It's all based on bad conscience, a very Christian notion. I don't have any bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/in-the-west-people-don-t-have-any-real-problems-it-s-all-based-on-bad/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [“The philosopher has to be the bad conscience of his age.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/the-philosopher-has-to-be-the-bad-conscience-of-his-age/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [The worst thing that can happen to a good teacher is to get a bad conscience about her profession because she feels herself hopeless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/the-worst-thing-that-can-happen-to-a-good-teacher-is-to-get-a-bad/) [William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/) ## More by Ellen Key > [The art of natural education consists in ignoring the faults of children nine times out of ten, in avoiding immediate interference, which is usually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-key/the-art-of-natural-education-consists-in-ignoring-the-faults-of/) [Ellen Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-key/) > [The present practice is to impress one's own discoveries, opinions and principles on the child by constantly directing his actions. The last thing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-key/the-present-practice-is-to-impress-one-s-own-discoveries-opinions-and/) [Ellen Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-key/) > [All philanthropy ... is only a savory fumigation burning at the mouth of a sewer. This incense offering makes the air more endurable to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-key/all-philanthropy-is-only-a-savory-fumigation-burning-at-the-mouth-of/) [Ellen Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-key/) > [Great love, like great genius, can never be a duty: both are life's gracious gifts to its elect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-key/great-love-like-great-genius-can-never-be-a-duty-both-are-life-s/) [Ellen Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-key/) > [War can be prevented only by broad-minded statesmanship - a statesmanship that understands how to enlist people's interests in a leading cause.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-key/war-can-be-prevented-only-by-broad-minded-statesmanship-a/) [Ellen Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-key/) > [When it comes to the application to life of existing laws and morals, woman, because of her willing receptiveness, her elasticity and adaptability combined…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-key/when-it-comes-to-the-application-to-life-of-existing-laws-and-morals/) [Ellen Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-key/) > [The married woman as family provider beside the man, often also in place of the man, but always however subservient to the man's dominion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-key/the-married-woman-as-family-provider-beside-the-man-often-also-in/) [Ellen Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-key/) > [Socialism and the woman movement are two mighty streams which drag along with them great parts of the firm formations which they touch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-key/socialism-and-the-woman-movement-are-two-mighty-streams-which-drag/) [Ellen Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-key/) > [When, in any ethical department, unity is attained between outer demands and inner desires, between nature and conscience, between the needs of society and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-key/when-in-any-ethical-department-unity-is-attained-between-outer/) [Ellen Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-key/) > [One day we were brought into the world, knowing love only as being what we had for our toys, family, and friends. Then, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-key/one-day-we-were-brought-into-the-world-knowing-love-only-as-being/) [Ellen Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-key/) > [The genius of happiness is still so rare. To possess it means to approach life with the humility of a beggar, but to treat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-key/the-genius-of-happiness-is-still-so-rare-to-possess-it-means-to/) [Ellen Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-key/) > [The home was a closed sphere touched only at its edge by the world's evolution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-key/the-home-was-a-closed-sphere-touched-only-at-its-edge-by-the-world-s/) [Ellen Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-key/) > [Children must be impressed with the fact that the greatest heroes are those who fight to help others, not those who fight for power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-key/children-must-be-impressed-with-the-fact-that-the-greatest-heroes-are/) [Ellen Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-key/) > [Social motherliness has made women's struggle for liberty the loveliest synthesis of egoism and altruism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-key/social-motherliness-has-made-women-s-struggle-for-liberty-the/) [Ellen Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-key/) > [Christianity is sustained by the knowledge that the object of man's life on earth is his development as an eternal being. Therefore, none of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-key/christianity-is-sustained-by-the-knowledge-that-the-object-of-man-s/) [Ellen Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-key/) [Explore all 100 Ellen Key quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-key/) ## More Balance quotes > [Balance suggests a perfect equilibrium. There is no such thing. That is a false expectation… There are going to be priorities and dimensions of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-morrison/balance-suggests-a-perfect-equilibrium-there-is-no-such-thing-that-is/) [Denise Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-morrison/) > [The bones of my architecture are very much related to the structure, to the physical fact of how a building can stand up; it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santiago-calatrava/the-bones-of-my-architecture-are-very-much-related-to-the-structure/) [Santiago Calatrava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santiago-calatrava/) > [I can still function when I don't have that balance I crave. I had a tendency to be precious about acting, thinking of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-regan/i-can-still-function-when-i-don-t-have-that-balance-i-crave-i-had-a/) [Laura Regan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-regan/) > [she got a reputation for an easy smile and a sharp tongue, and using one to balance the other, she seemed friendly but distant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-allison/she-got-a-reputation-for-an-easy-smile-and-a-sharp-tongue-and-using/) [Dorothy Allison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-allison/) > [Life's unfairness is not irrevocable; we can help balance the scales for others, if not always for ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-h-humphrey/life-s-unfairness-is-not-irrevocable-we-can-help-balance-the-scales/) [Hubert H. Humphrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-h-humphrey/) > [“We don't need to strive towards balance, we rather need to work on the obstacles that are preventing the natural flow of balance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-alebraheem/we-don-t-need-to-strive-towards-balance-we-rather-need-to-work-on-the/) [A.A. Alebraheem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-alebraheem/) > [I think that kind of balance comes with the process of growing together as a band, the Little Dragon. We love to write, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yukimi-nagano/i-think-that-kind-of-balance-comes-with-the-process-of-growing/) [Yukimi Nagano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yukimi-nagano/) > [Balance is the ability to be happy in the midst of the most chaotic or even boring or transient circumstance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/balance-is-the-ability-to-be-happy-in-the-midst-of-the-most-chaotic/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [At times of recession, running a budget deficit is highly desirable. Once the economy begins to recover, you have to balance the budget. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-soros/at-times-of-recession-running-a-budget-deficit-is-highly-desirable/) [George Soros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-soros/) > [It's my intention to make something stand outside the realm of album art, but it also feels comfortable to me to be in it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dyer-baizley/it-s-my-intention-to-make-something-stand-outside-the-realm-of-album/) [John Dyer Baizley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dyer-baizley/) > [Once you've gotten your money in balance, you know how much you have to spend on things that are just fun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/once-you-ve-gotten-your-money-in-balance-you-know-how-much-you-have/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [I never understood how much running changes your life. I'm now obsessed. 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Five hundred miles an hour.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yanni/when-it-comes-down-to-music-i-have-no-balance-i-am-100-percent-it-is/) [Yanni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yanni/) [Browse all 5,166 Balance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/balance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Formerly, a nation that broke the peace, did not trouble to try and prove to the world that it was done solely from higher motives. ... Now war has a bad conscience. Now every nation assures us that it is bleeding for a human cause, the fate of which hangs in the balance of its victory ... 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