--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The people who write that kind of stuff…" description: "\"“The people who write that kind of stuff never fight; possibly they believe that to write it is a substitute for fighting. It is the same in all wars; ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42e/george-orwell-57_propaganda_the-people-who-write-that-kind-of-stuff_2387407.jpg" --- # The people who write that kind of stuff never fight… ![“The people who write that kind of stuff never fight; possibly they believe that to write it is a substitute for fighting. It is the same in all wars; the soldiers do the fighting, the journalists do the shouting, and no true patriot ever gets near a front-line trench, except on the briefest of…” quote by George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42e/george-orwell-57_propaganda_the-people-who-write-that-kind-of-stuff_2387407.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42e/george-orwell-57_propaganda_the-people-who-write-that-kind-of-stuff_2387407.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42e/george-orwell-57_propaganda_the-people-who-write-that-kind-of-stuff_2387407.jpg) > ““The people who write that kind of stuff never fight; possibly they believe that to write it is a substitute for fighting. It is the same in all wars; the soldiers do the fighting, the journalists do the shouting, and no true patriot ever gets near a front-line trench, except on the briefest of propaganda-tours.”” [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writers often replace direct action with propaganda, avoiding real engagement in conflict. **In simple terms:** Writing can substitute for fighting. Key Takeaway Beware of passive advocacy. Themes media propaganda war activism ethics Mood critical skeptical Type political ethical When to use this quote - news analysis - activist training - public debates - media literacy - peace activism Key Concepts Journalism political discourse public opinion moral responsibility Questions to Reflect On - Does writing ever replace taking a stand? - How can we ensure voices translate into action? A Different Perspective Propaganda may mask true involvement in conflict. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fighting Journalists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fighting-journalists-5933979/) [Fighting Wars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fighting-wars-268422/) [People Write](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-write/) [Propaganda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/propaganda/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [Wars Soldiers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wars-soldiers-623648/) ## Related quotes > [It is the same in all wars; the soldiers do the fighting, the journalists do the shouting, and no true patriot ever gets near…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/it-is-the-same-in-all-wars-the-soldiers-do-the-fighting-the/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“In battle, in a war, a soldier sees only a tiny fragment of what is available to be seen. The soldier is not a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-brien/in-battle-in-a-war-a-soldier-sees-only-a-tiny-fragment-of-what-is/) [Tim O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-brien/) > [Most bayonets throughout history have probably not been used because soldiers just can't do it, something holds them back... the same goes for shooting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rutger-bregman/most-bayonets-throughout-history-have-probably-not-been-used-because/) [Rutger Bregman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rutger-bregman/) > [Indeed, the Roman laws allowed no person to be carried to the wars but he that was in the soldiers' roll.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sidney/indeed-the-roman-laws-allowed-no-person-to-be-carried-to-the-wars-but/) [Philip Sidney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sidney/) > [It is sort of interesting that in our society this days we are very quick to apply the term 'war' to places where thare…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-schneier/it-is-sort-of-interesting-that-in-our-society-this-days-we-are-very/) [Bruce Schneier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-schneier/) > [“If people cannot write well, they cannot think well, and if they cannot think well, others will do their thinking for them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/if-people-cannot-write-well-they-cannot-think-well-and-if-they-cannot/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Deliberation is a good thing when it comes to fighting wars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rahm-emanuel/deliberation-is-a-good-thing-when-it-comes-to-fighting-wars/) [Rahm Emanuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rahm-emanuel/) > [the American public has been delicately insulated from the actuality of our ongoing wars. 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That's why men are so good at fighting wars; they learned Escape and Evade at home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-howard/honey-the-only-experts-in-pms-are-men-that-s-why-men-are-so-good-at/) [Linda Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-howard/) > [Wars aren't stopped by fighting wars, any more than you can fight fire with fire. You fight fire with water. You fight violence with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colman-mccarthy/wars-aren-t-stopped-by-fighting-wars-any-more-than-you-can-fight-fire/) [Colman McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colman-mccarthy/) ## More by George Orwell > [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/) > [It was given out that the animals there practised cannibalism, tortured one another with red-hot horseshoes, and had their females in common. This was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/it-was-given-out-that-the-animals-there-practised-cannibalism/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“The actual writing would be easy. All he had to do was to transfer to paper the interminable restless monologue that had been running…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/the-actual-writing-would-be-easy-all-he-had-to-do-was-to-transfer-to/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [He felt as though he were wandering in the forests of the sea bottom, lost in a monstrous world where he himself was the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/he-felt-as-though-he-were-wandering-in-the-forests-of-the-sea-bottom/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“if you took 1 Corinthians, chapter thirteen, and in every verse wrote 'money' instead of 'charity', the chapter had ten times as much meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/if-you-took-1-corinthians-chapter-thirteen-and-in-every-verse-wrote/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Happiness can exist only in acceptance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/happiness-can-exist-only-in-acceptance/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [And if all others accepted the lie which the Party imposed—if all records told the same tale—then the lie passed into history and became…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/and-if-all-others-accepted-the-lie-which-the-party-imposed-if-all/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“Whitman himself "accepted" a great deal that his contemporaries found unmentionable. For he is not only writing of the prairie, he also wanders through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/whitman-himself-accepted-a-great-deal-that-his-contemporaries-found/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“But I tell you, Winston, that reality is not external. Reality exists in the human mind, and nowhere else. Whatever the Party holds to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/but-i-tell-you-winston-that-reality-is-not-external-reality-exists-in/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“And the people under the sky were also very much the same...everywhere, all over the world, hundreds or thousands of millions of people just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/and-the-people-under-the-sky-were-also-very-much-the-same-everywhere/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Don’t you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought? In the end we shall make thoughtcrime literally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/don-t-you-see-that-the-whole-aim-of-newspeak-is-to-narrow-the-range/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Windmill or no windmill, he said, life would go on as it had always gone on--that is, badly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/windmill-or-no-windmill-he-said-life-would-go-on-as-it-had-always/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“Man is the only creature that consumes without producing. He does not give milk, he does not lay eggs, he is too weak to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/man-is-the-only-creature-that-consumes-without-producing-he-does-not/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [And the bigger the fall, the bigger the joke. It would be better fun to throw a custard pie at a bishop than at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/and-the-bigger-the-fall-the-bigger-the-joke-it-would-be-better-fun-to/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“Any writer or journalist who wants to retain his integrity finds himself thwarted by the general drift of society rather than by active persecution.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/any-writer-or-journalist-who-wants-to-retain-his-integrity-finds/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) [Explore all 1,657 George Orwell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) ## More Propaganda quotes > [The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-propaganda-on-its-own-cannot-force-its-way/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [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/) > [Today it is the skeptics who are the social conformists, though because of powerful intellectual propaganda they continue to enjoy thinking of themselves as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dallas-willard/today-it-is-the-skeptics-who-are-the-social-conformists-though/) [Dallas Willard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dallas-willard/) > [If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. The lie can be maintained only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-goebbels/if-you-tell-a-lie-big-enough-and-keep-repeating-it-people-will/) [Joseph Goebbels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-goebbels/) > [It’s a shameful moment for U.S. media when it insists on being subservient to the grotesque propaganda agencies of a violent, aggressive state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/it-s-a-shameful-moment-for-u-s-media-when-it-insists-on-being/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Propaganda begins when dialogue ends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/propaganda-begins-when-dialogue-ends/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [“Slander does to a soul what cancer does to a cell.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/criss-jami/slander-does-to-a-soul-what-cancer-does-to-a-cell/) [Criss Jami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/criss-jami/) > [When a few people control the bulk of money, they can not only influence elections by money power - which enables various forms of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prashant-bhushan/when-a-few-people-control-the-bulk-of-money-they-can-not-only/) [Prashant Bhushan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prashant-bhushan/) > [The most effective method of propaganda directed at the enemy forces is to release captured soldiers and give the wounded medical treatment... Whenever soldiers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/the-most-effective-method-of-propaganda-directed-at-the-enemy-forces/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [The plain fact is that education is itself a form of propaganda - a deliberate scheme to outfit the pupil, not with the capacity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-plain-fact-is-that-education-is-itself-a-form-of-propaganda-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“We must each of us do our home work. 'My people are destroyed,' said Hosea, 'for lack of knowledge.' We must be wise as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-taft-benson/we-must-each-of-us-do-our-home-work-my-people-are-destroyed-said/) [Ezra Taft Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-taft-benson/) > [If writing with a goal - whether it be evangelistic, apologetic, or didactic - implies propaganda, then all recorded history is propaganda. . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-copan/if-writing-with-a-goal-whether-it-be-evangelistic-apologetic-or/) [Paul Copan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-copan/) > [I am particularly horrified by the use of propaganda and the manipulation of the truth and the revision of history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-am-particularly-horrified-by-the-use-of-propaganda-and-the/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [I don't think art is propaganda; it should be something that liberates the soul, provokes the imagination and encourages people to go further. 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