--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There has never been nationhood without…" description: "\"There has never been nationhood without falsehood.\" — Felipe Fernandez-Armesto" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee9/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto-31120_falsehood_there-has-never-been-nationhood-without_2763672.png" --- # There has never been nationhood without falsehood. ![“There has never been nationhood without falsehood.” quote by Felipe Fernandez-Armesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee9/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto-31120_falsehood_there-has-never-been-nationhood-without_2763672.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee9/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto-31120_falsehood_there-has-never-been-nationhood-without_2763672.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee9/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto-31120_falsehood_there-has-never-been-nationhood-without_2763672.png) > “There has never been nationhood without falsehood.” [Felipe Fernandez-Armesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Nationhood cannot exist without some falsehoods. **In simple terms:** Nations rely on myths. Key Takeaway Recognize the myths that hold societies together. Themes nationalism truth politics Mood critical thoughtful Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - political discourse - education - media analysis Key Concepts mythmaking social contracts Questions to Reflect On - What myths sustain your community? - When do myths become harmful? A Different Perspective Falsehoods can erode trust when exposed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Falsehood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/falsehood/) [Myth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/myth/) [Nationalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nationalism/) [Nationhood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nationhood/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) ## Related quotes > [We will no longer be led only by that half of the population whose socialization, through toys, games, values and expectations, sanctions violence as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilma-scott-heide/we-will-no-longer-be-led-only-by-that-half-of-the-population-whose/) [Wilma Scott Heide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilma-scott-heide/) > [“If you look at it closely, every individual is a separate entity, state and culture. 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Today, however, wars are incited above all using religion as an excuse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shimon-peres/in-the-past-most-wars-were-motivated-by-the-idea-of-nationhood-today/) [Shimon Peres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shimon-peres/) > [I was born to two people who helped me imbibe feelings of nationhood in my heart and love for the country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sushmita-sen/i-was-born-to-two-people-who-helped-me-imbibe-feelings-of-nationhood/) [Sushmita Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sushmita-sen/) > [No one has a monopoly on our unending story of nationhood; no one has the manual for our nationhood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-tamihere/no-one-has-a-monopoly-on-our-unending-story-of-nationhood-no-one-has/) John Tamihere > [“All nationhood is to some extent the artificial, the product of historical accident, the convenience of tyrants and the disengagement of colonists.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/all-nationhood-is-to-some-extent-the-artificial-the-product-of/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [The achievement of nationhood is a product not only of time and circumstance but usually of war and suffering as well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-pfaff/the-achievement-of-nationhood-is-a-product-not-only-of-time-and/) [William Pfaff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-pfaff/) > [Within the next hundred years...nationhood as we know it will be obsolete; all states will recognize a single, global authority... National sovereignty wasn't such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/strobe-talbott/within-the-next-hundred-years-nationhood-as-we-know-it-will-be/) [Strobe Talbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/strobe-talbott/) > [The U.S. has always understood itself to be united around political principles and not around culture, whereas the nations of Europe have a much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-nussbaum/the-u-s-has-always-understood-itself-to-be-united-around-political/) [Martha Nussbaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-nussbaum/) > [Here is one optimists reason for believing unity will prevail ... within the next hundred years ... nationhood as we know it will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/strobe-talbott/here-is-one-optimists-reason-for-believing-unity-will-prevail-within/) [Strobe Talbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/strobe-talbott/) > [“I know you don't think that any tongue I speak is mine; it must be rented. I am always denial, or pretense. A child…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasmine-ann-cooray/i-know-you-don-t-think-that-any-tongue-i-speak-is-mine-it-must-be/) Jasmine Ann Cooray > [The Iraqis have become invested in their nationhood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-biden/the-iraqis-have-become-invested-in-their-nationhood/) [Joe Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-biden/) > [Human rights is the soul of our foreign policy, because human rights is the very soul of our sense of nationhood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-carter/human-rights-is-the-soul-of-our-foreign-policy-because-human-rights/) [Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-carter/) ## More by Felipe Fernandez-Armesto > [“His addiction to millenarianism, his confidence in visions, his prophetic stridency, his hatred of art, and his mistrust of secular scholarship align him with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/his-addiction-to-millenarianism-his-confidence-in-visions-his/) [Felipe Fernández-Armesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/) > [“When the United States wants cheap labor, Mexicans respond. When the employment market north of the border is glutted, the barbed wire gets taut,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/when-the-united-states-wants-cheap-labor-mexicans-respond-when-the/) [Felipe Fernández-Armesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/) > [“Unless US citizens acknowledge and understand their country's imperial past, they will not be able to understand its present or future. Much of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/unless-us-citizens-acknowledge-and-understand-their-country-s/) [Felipe Fernández-Armesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/) > [“to become a great saint, it is no bad first step to be a big sinner.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/to-become-a-great-saint-it-is-no-bad-first-step-to-be-a-big-sinner/) [Felipe Fernández-Armesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/) > [“Chinese naval activity, for instance, was aborted after Zheng He’s last voyage, probably as a result of”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/chinese-naval-activity-for-instance-was-aborted-after-zheng-he-s-last/) [Felipe Fernández-Armesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/) > [“Their ships were steeds, and they rode the waves like jennets.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/their-ships-were-steeds-and-they-rode-the-waves-like-jennets/) [Felipe Fernández-Armesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/) > [“Capitalism seems to have failed and is now stigmatized as greed. A reaction against individual excess is driving the world back to collective values.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/capitalism-seems-to-have-failed-and-is-now-stigmatized-as-greed-a/) [Felipe Fernández-Armesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/) > [“Only three routes of upward mobility were available to socially ambitious upstarts such as Columbus: war, the Church, and the sea. Columbus probably contemplated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/only-three-routes-of-upward-mobility-were-available-to-socially/) [Felipe Fernández-Armesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/) > [“in their supposed innocence of and opposition to empire, have become the mythic progenitors of the United States—almost as improbably as Solomon was of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/in-their-supposed-innocence-of-and-opposition-to-empire-have-become/) [Felipe Fernández-Armesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/) > [“Like poor immigrants throughout the ages, Jews there adjusted to the jobs no one else would do.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/like-poor-immigrants-throughout-the-ages-jews-there-adjusted-to-the/) [Felipe Fernández-Armesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/) > [As populations crowd toward the ocean's edge and the sea encroaches menacingly toward the land, John R. Gillis looks at the history of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/as-populations-crowd-toward-the-ocean-s-edge-and-the-sea-encroaches/) [Felipe Fernandez-Armesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/) > [“All definitions of civilization along to a conjugation which goes: "I am civilized, you belong to a culture, he is a barbarian.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/all-definitions-of-civilization-along-to-a-conjugation-which-goes-i/) [Felipe Fernández-Armesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/) > [“To understand what was in Ivan’s mind, one has to think back to what the world was like before Machiavelli. The modern calculus of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/to-understand-what-was-in-ivan-s-mind-one-has-to-think-back-to-what/) [Felipe Fernández-Armesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/) > [“An age of expansion really did begin, but the phenomenon was of an expanding world, not, as some historians say, of European expansion. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/an-age-of-expansion-really-did-begin-but-the-phenomenon-was-of-an/) [Felipe Fernández-Armesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/) > [“Yet despite these advantages, England’s empire remained unlaunched until the seventeenth century. The problem is a dog-in-the-night”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/yet-despite-these-advantages-england-s-empire-remained-unlaunched/) [Felipe Fernández-Armesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/) [Explore all 16 Felipe Fernandez-Armesto quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-fern-ndez-armesto/) ## More Falsehood quotes > [We find few historians who have been diligent enough in their search for truth; it is their common method to take on trust what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/we-find-few-historians-who-have-been-diligent-enough-in-their-search/) [John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/) > [falsehood is not more unjustifiable than unsafe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fanny-burney/falsehood-is-not-more-unjustifiable-than-unsafe/) [Fanny Burney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fanny-burney/) > [THE ART OF PEACE is not easy. It is a fight to the finish, the slaying of evil desires and all falsehood within. On…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morihei-ueshiba/the-art-of-peace-is-not-easy-it-is-a-fight-to-the-finish-the-slaying/) [Morihei Ueshiba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morihei-ueshiba/) > [ A mind conscious of right laughs at the falsehoods of rumour. \[Lat., Conscia mens recti famae mendacia risit.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/a-mind-conscious-of-right-laughs-at-the-falsehoods-of-rumour-lat/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [“Falsehood of a good man is better than truth of a bad one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raheel-farooq/falsehood-of-a-good-man-is-better-than-truth-of-a-bad-one/) [Raheel Farooq](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raheel-farooq/) > [So true is it that all transactions of preeminent importance are wrapt in doubt and obscurity; while some hold for certain facts the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/so-true-is-it-that-all-transactions-of-preeminent-importance-are/) [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) > [Strange times are these in which we live when old and young are taught in falsehood's school, and the one man that dares to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/strange-times-are-these-in-which-we-live-when-old-and-young-are/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [It is a dangerous and fateful presumption, besides the absurd temerity that it implies, to disdain what we do not comprehend. For after you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-a-dangerous-and-fateful-presumption-besides-the-absurd-temerity/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Tangible language, which often tells more falsehoods than truths.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/tangible-language-which-often-tells-more-falsehoods-than-truths/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [Whether statistics be an art or a science... or a scientific art, we concern ourselves little. It is the basis of social and political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolphe-quetelet/whether-statistics-be-an-art-or-a-science-or-a-scientific-art-we/) [Adolphe Quetelet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolphe-quetelet/) > [Falsehood, like the dry-rot, flourishes the more in proportion as air and light are excluded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-whately/falsehood-like-the-dry-rot-flourishes-the-more-in-proportion-as-air/) [Richard Whately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-whately/) > [“God is not as a man.” He thus shows that all men are indeed guilty of falsehood, inasmuch as they change from one thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-church-fathers/god-is-not-as-a-man-he-thus-shows-that-all-men-are-indeed-guilty-of/) The Church Fathers > [People who do not know the Bible well have been gulled into thinking it is a good guide to morality. 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