--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I joined the militia I had promised…" description: "\"When I joined the militia I had promised myself to kill one Fascist - after all, if each of us killed one they would soon be extinct.\" — George Orwell" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/09a/george-orwell-57_fascists_when-i-joined-the-militia-i-had-promised_1681834.jpg" --- # When I joined the militia I had promised myself to kill… ![“When I joined the militia I had promised myself to kill one Fascist - after all, if each of us killed one they would soon be extinct.” quote by George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/09a/george-orwell-57_fascists_when-i-joined-the-militia-i-had-promised_1681834.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/09a/george-orwell-57_fascists_when-i-joined-the-militia-i-had-promised_1681834.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/09a/george-orwell-57_fascists_when-i-joined-the-militia-i-had-promised_1681834.jpg) > “When I joined the militia I had promised myself to kill one Fascist - after all, if each of us killed one they would soon be extinct.” [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. The speaker vows personal violence against fascism, believing collective small acts could eradicate it. **In simple terms:** Kill one fascist to end fascism. Key Takeaway Target oppressive individuals. Themes politics violence resistance Mood defiant grim Type political controversial When to use this quote - war - political activism - personal vendettas Key Concepts fascism collective action morality Questions to Reflect On - Is individual violence effective against systemic oppression? - What alternatives exist to combat fascism? A Different Perspective Such a plan ignores legal and ethical consequences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fascists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fascists/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Militia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/militia/) [Revolutionary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revolutionary/) ## Related quotes > [“I saw them in the dark, the girls, the women yet to be found. I counted their faces, gave them names and said the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-oyeyemi/i-saw-them-in-the-dark-the-girls-the-women-yet-to-be-found-i-counted/) [Helen Oyeyemi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-oyeyemi/) > [I did indeed say you could have lovers. But I never promised that I would not kill them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeline-hunter/i-did-indeed-say-you-could-have-lovers-but-i-never-promised-that-i/) [Madeline Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeline-hunter/) > [“In theory at any rate each militia was a democracy and not a hierarchy . It was understood that orders had to be obeyed,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-theory-at-any-rate-each-militia-was-a-democracy-and-not-a/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [During the first two months of the war it was the Anarchists more than anyone else who had saved the situation, and much later…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/during-the-first-two-months-of-the-war-it-was-the-anarchists-more/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“The shells the Fascists were firing at this period were wretchedly bad. Although they were 150 mm they only made a crater about six…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/the-shells-the-fascists-were-firing-at-this-period-were-wretchedly/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“All the best matadors were Fascists.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/all-the-best-matadors-were-fascists/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Pacifism is objectively pro-fascist. This is elementary common sense. If you hamper the war effort of one side, you automatically help out that of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/pacifism-is-objectively-pro-fascist-this-is-elementary-common-sense/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Pacifism is objectively pro-Fascist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/pacifism-is-objectively-pro-fascist/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“For some reason, all the best matadors were Fascists.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/for-some-reason-all-the-best-matadors-were-fascists/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“It appeared that even in Barcelona there were hardly any bullfights nowadays; for some reason all the best matadors were Fascists.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/it-appeared-that-even-in-barcelona-there-were-hardly-any-bullfights/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [On a ruinous wall I came upon a poster dating from the previous year and announcing that ‘six handsome bulls’ would be killed in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/on-a-ruinous-wall-i-came-upon-a-poster-dating-from-the-previous-year/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [For an unarmed man may be attacked with greater confidence than an armed man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/for-an-unarmed-man-may-be-attacked-with-greater-confidence-than-an/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [What country can preserve its liberties if its rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/what-country-can-preserve-its-liberties-if-its-rulers-are-not-warned/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [As civil rulers, not having their duty to the people duly before them, may attempt to tyrannize,... The people are confirmed by the next…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tench-coxe/as-civil-rulers-not-having-their-duty-to-the-people-duly-before-them/) [Tench Coxe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tench-coxe/) > [Laws that forbid the carrying of arms . . . disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/laws-that-forbid-the-carrying-of-arms-disarm-only-those-who-are/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) ## 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 Fascists quotes > [In the innermost recesses of humanism, as its very soul, there rages a frantic prisoner who, as a Fascist, turns the world into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-the-innermost-recesses-of-humanism-as-its-very-soul-there-rages-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We must recognize the fact that many Nazis, Marxists and Fascists believe passionately in their fundamental rightness, and allow nothing to hinder them from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-day/we-must-recognize-the-fact-that-many-nazis-marxists-and-fascists/) [Dorothy Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-day/) > [It's impossible for a creative artist to be either a Puritan or a Fascist, because both are a negation of the creative urge. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liam-o-flaherty/it-s-impossible-for-a-creative-artist-to-be-either-a-puritan-or-a/) [Liam O'Flaherty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liam-o-flaherty/) > [Fascists divide in two categories: the fascists and the anti-fascists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ennio-flaiano/fascists-divide-in-two-categories-the-fascists-and-the-anti-fascists/) Ennio Flaiano > [Los Estados Unidos has turned into a banana republic, a fascist banana republic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-celente/los-estados-unidos-has-turned-into-a-banana-republic-a-fascist-banana/) [Gerald Celente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-celente/) > [You want to prove that Milton Friedman is a fascist? It's easy. Quote him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-laffer/you-want-to-prove-that-milton-friedman-is-a-fascist-it-s-easy-quote/) [Arthur Laffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-laffer/) > [When the fascists are through with the Muslims and Christians, they will turn on the others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prashant-bhushan/when-the-fascists-are-through-with-the-muslims-and-christians-they/) [Prashant Bhushan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prashant-bhushan/) > [Gays, lesbians, straights, feminists, fascist pigs, communists, Hare Krishnas - none of them bother me. I don't care what banner they raise. But what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/gays-lesbians-straights-feminists-fascist-pigs-communists-hare/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [The only 'anti-fascist' song that makes any sense to me is the Beatles' 'Love Is All You Need', because, quite simply, it's true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penny-rimbaud/the-only-anti-fascist-song-that-makes-any-sense-to-me-is-the-beatles/) Penny Rimbaud > [God save the Queen and a fascist regime … a flabby toothless fascism, to be sure. Never go too far in any direction, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-s-burroughs/god-save-the-queen-and-a-fascist-regime-a-flabby-toothless-fascism-to/) [William S. Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-s-burroughs/) > [Coming of age in the 1960s, I heard the word 'fascist' all the time. College presidents were fascists; Vietnam War supporters were fascists. Policemen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-oshinsky/coming-of-age-in-the-1960s-i-heard-the-word-fascist-all-the-time/) [David Oshinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-oshinsky/) > [The American people are sick and tired of being afraid to speak their minds lest they be politically smeared as 'Communists' or 'Fascists' by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-chase-smith/the-american-people-are-sick-and-tired-of-being-afraid-to-speak-their/) [Margaret Chase Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-chase-smith/) > [Liberalism is fundamentally an ideology of liberation that has throughout history risen in protest against the totalitarian and anti-human movements of various kinds, such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-i-hagen/liberalism-is-fundamentally-an-ideology-of-liberation-that-has/) [Carl I. Hagen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-i-hagen/) > [Donald Trump is a racist. Donald Trump in fact is making fascist appeals. That's why many self-respecting Republicans are not supporting Donald Trump for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-o-malley/donald-trump-is-a-racist-donald-trump-in-fact-is-making-fascist/) [Martin O'Malley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-o-malley/) > [A true fascist is anyone who wants to take away my air conditioning or force me to ride a bike.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-harsanyi/a-true-fascist-is-anyone-who-wants-to-take-away-my-air-conditioning/) [David Harsanyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-harsanyi/) [Browse all 346 Fascists quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fascists/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When I joined the militia I had promised myself to kill one Fascist - after all, if each of us killed one they would soon be extinct.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "George Orwell" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/when-i-joined-the-militia-i-had-promised-myself-to-kill-one-fascist/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Fascists" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/when-i-joined-the-militia-i-had-promised-myself-to-kill-one-fascist/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/09a/george-orwell-57_fascists_when-i-joined-the-militia-i-had-promised_1681834.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/09a/george-orwell-57_fascists_when-i-joined-the-militia-i-had-promised_1681834.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/09a/george-orwell-57_fascists_when-i-joined-the-militia-i-had-promised_1681834.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When I joined the militia I had promised myself to kill one Fascist - after all, if each of us killed one…” — George Orwell", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "George Orwell", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When I joined the militia I...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/when-i-joined-the-militia-i-had-promised-myself-to-kill-one-fascist/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/when-i-joined-the-militia-i-had-promised-myself-to-kill-one-fascist/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```