--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If a man knows precisely what he can do…" description: "\"If a man knows precisely what he can do to you or what epithet he can hurl against you in order to make you lose your temper, your equilibrium, then he..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9d/howard-thurman-11976_epithet_if-a-man-knows-precisely-what-he-can-do_2712112.jpg" --- # If a man knows precisely what he can do to you or what… ![“If a man knows precisely what he can do to you or what epithet he can hurl against you in order to make you lose your temper, your equilibrium, then he can always keep you under subjection.” quote by Howard Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9d/howard-thurman-11976_epithet_if-a-man-knows-precisely-what-he-can-do_2712112.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9d/howard-thurman-11976_epithet_if-a-man-knows-precisely-what-he-can-do_2712112.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9d/howard-thurman-11976_epithet_if-a-man-knows-precisely-what-he-can-do_2712112.jpg) > “If a man knows precisely what he can do to you or what epithet he can hurl against you in order to make you lose your temper, your equilibrium, then he can always keep you under subjection.” [Howard Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-thurman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Understanding an opponent’s triggers lets them control your emotions and keep you subjugated **In simple terms:** Knowing what provokes you lets others dominate you Key Takeaway Guard your emotional triggers and practice calm responses Themes control emotional intelligence power dynamics Mood cautious determined Type philosophical practical When to use this quote - conflict resolution training - mindfulness practice - assertiveness workshops - leadership coaching Key Concepts psychology of anger self‑regulation social influence Questions to Reflect On - What triggers do you notice in yourself? - How can you maintain equilibrium under provocation? A Different Perspective People may still manipulate you despite your awareness ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Epithet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/epithet/) [Equilibrium](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/equilibrium/) [Knows Precisely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows-precisely-1955560/) [Lose Temper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lose-temper/) [Man Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-knows/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order/) [Subjection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/subjection/) [Temper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/temper/) [Temper Equilibrium](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/temper-equilibrium-2816176/) ## Related quotes > [For a person to become deeply involved in any activity it is essential that he knows precisely what tasks he must accomplish, moment by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi/for-a-person-to-become-deeply-involved-in-any-activity-it-is/) [Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi/) > [A cat is witty, he has nerve, he knows how to do precisely the right thing at the right moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-poincare/a-cat-is-witty-he-has-nerve-he-knows-how-to-do-precisely-the-right/) [Henri Poincare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-poincare/) > [The use of 'conspiracy theory' as a derogatory - as an epithet almost - is something the propagandists have perfected over the decades, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-sanders/the-use-of-conspiracy-theory-as-a-derogatory-as-an-epithet-almost-is/) [Chris Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-sanders/) > [“Fuck a zombie!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlaine-harris/fuck-a-zombie/) [Charlaine Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlaine-harris/) > [The typical atheist rebels against God as a teenager rebels against his parents. When his own desires or standards are not fulfilled in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/criss-jami/the-typical-atheist-rebels-against-god-as-a-teenager-rebels-against/) [Criss Jami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/criss-jami/) > [Ardent, intelligent, sweet, sensitive, cultivated, erudite. These are the adjectives of praise in an androgynous world. Those who consider them epithets of shame or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/ardent-intelligent-sweet-sensitive-cultivated-erudite-these-are-the/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) > [Blasphemy is an epithet bestowed by superstition upon common sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/blasphemy-is-an-epithet-bestowed-by-superstition-upon-common-sense/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [For God's sake (I never was more serious) don't make me ridiculous any more by terming me gentle-hearted in print.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/for-god-s-sake-i-never-was-more-serious-don-t-make-me-ridiculous-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [ For other great mathematicians or philosophers, he \[Gauss\] used the epithets magnus, or clarus, or clarissimus; for Newton alone he kept the prefix summus. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-other-great-mathematicians-or-philosophers-he-gauss-used-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [What praise is implied in the simple epithet useful! What reproach in the contrary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/what-praise-is-implied-in-the-simple-epithet-useful-what-reproach-in/) [David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/) > [Fascist is not just an epithet. Fascist is a proper noun that means a specific thing. It's a real thing. It's not always referring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-maddow/fascist-is-not-just-an-epithet-fascist-is-a-proper-noun-that-means-a/) [Rachel Maddow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-maddow/) > [In my opinion, using different kinds of epithets and adjectives in connection with the word democracy is a sign of mere hypocrisy, to put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garry-kasparov/in-my-opinion-using-different-kinds-of-epithets-and-adjectives-in/) [Garry Kasparov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garry-kasparov/) > [Men's thoughts and opinions are in a great degree vassals of him who invents a new phrase or re-applies an old epithet. The thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/men-s-thoughts-and-opinions-are-in-a-great-degree-vassals-of-him-who/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [Ah fair Zenocrate, divine Zenocrate, Fair is too foul an epithet for thee.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-marlowe/ah-fair-zenocrate-divine-zenocrate-fair-is-too-foul-an-epithet-for/) [Christopher Marlowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-marlowe/) > [In art, all who have done something other than their predecessors have merited the epithet of revolutionary; and it is they alone who are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gauguin/in-art-all-who-have-done-something-other-than-their-predecessors-have/) [Paul Gauguin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gauguin/) ## More by Howard Thurman > [ “...\[A\] strange necessity has been laid upon me to devote my life to the central concern that transcends the walls that divide and would… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-thurman/a-strange-necessity-has-been-laid-upon-me-to-devote-my-life-to-the/) [Howard Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-thurman/) > [Don't ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive and go do it. Because what the world needs is more people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-thurman/don-t-ask-what-the-world-needs-ask-what-makes-you-come-alive-and-go/) [Howard Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-thurman/) > [When the song of the angels is stilled, When the star in the sky is gone, When the kings and princes are home, When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-thurman/when-the-song-of-the-angels-is-stilled-when-the-star-in-the-sky-is/) [Howard Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-thurman/) > [I will light candles this Christmas, Candles of joy, despite all sadness, Candles of hope where despair keeps watch. Candles of courage where fear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-thurman/i-will-light-candles-this-christmas-candles-of-joy-despite-all/) [Howard Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-thurman/) > [There are two questions that we have to ask ourselves. 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For days on end a person may drift along without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-thurman/it-s-a-wondrous-thing-that-a-decision-to-act-releases-energy-in-the/) [Howard Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-thurman/) > [Dont ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-thurman/dont-ask-yourself-what-the-world-needs-ask-yourself-what-makes-you/) [Howard Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-thurman/) > [The years, the months, the days, and the hours have flown by my open window. Here and there an incident, a towering moment, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-thurman/the-years-the-months-the-days-and-the-hours-have-flown-by-my-open/) [Howard Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-thurman/) > [At the core of life is a hard purposefulness, a determination to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-thurman/at-the-core-of-life-is-a-hard-purposefulness-a-determination-to-live/) [Howard Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-thurman/) > [I say that creeds, dogmas, and theologies are inventions of the mind. It is the nature of the mind to make sense out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-thurman/i-say-that-creeds-dogmas-and-theologies-are-inventions-of-the-mind-it/) [Howard Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-thurman/) > [There were long stretches where each of us was engaged in a private world of rapidly shifting vignettes. Always I was overwhelmed by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-thurman/there-were-long-stretches-where-each-of-us-was-engaged-in-a-private/) [Howard Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-thurman/) > [The movement of the Spirit of God in the hearts of men and women often calls them to act against the spirit of their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-thurman/the-movement-of-the-spirit-of-god-in-the-hearts-of-men-and-women/) [Howard Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-thurman/) > [It cannot be denied that too often the weight of the Christian movement has been on the side of the strong and the powerful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-thurman/it-cannot-be-denied-that-too-often-the-weight-of-the-christian/) [Howard Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-thurman/) [Explore all 57 Howard Thurman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-thurman/) ## More Epithet quotes > [In art, all who have done something other than their predecessors have merited the epithet of revolutionary; and it is they alone who are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gauguin/in-art-all-who-have-done-something-other-than-their-predecessors-have/) [Paul Gauguin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gauguin/) > [Ah fair Zenocrate, divine Zenocrate, Fair is too foul an epithet for thee.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-marlowe/ah-fair-zenocrate-divine-zenocrate-fair-is-too-foul-an-epithet-for/) [Christopher Marlowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-marlowe/) > [Men's thoughts and opinions are in a great degree vassals of him who invents a new phrase or re-applies an old epithet. The thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/men-s-thoughts-and-opinions-are-in-a-great-degree-vassals-of-him-who/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [In my opinion, using different kinds of epithets and adjectives in connection with the word democracy is a sign of mere hypocrisy, to put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garry-kasparov/in-my-opinion-using-different-kinds-of-epithets-and-adjectives-in/) [Garry Kasparov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garry-kasparov/) > [Fascist is not just an epithet. Fascist is a proper noun that means a specific thing. It's a real thing. It's not always referring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-maddow/fascist-is-not-just-an-epithet-fascist-is-a-proper-noun-that-means-a/) [Rachel Maddow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-maddow/) > [What praise is implied in the simple epithet useful! What reproach in the contrary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/what-praise-is-implied-in-the-simple-epithet-useful-what-reproach-in/) [David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/) > [ For other great mathematicians or philosophers, he \[Gauss\] used the epithets magnus, or clarus, or clarissimus; for Newton alone he kept the prefix summus. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-other-great-mathematicians-or-philosophers-he-gauss-used-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [For God's sake (I never was more serious) don't make me ridiculous any more by terming me gentle-hearted in print.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/for-god-s-sake-i-never-was-more-serious-don-t-make-me-ridiculous-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [Blasphemy is an epithet bestowed by superstition upon common sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/blasphemy-is-an-epithet-bestowed-by-superstition-upon-common-sense/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Ardent, intelligent, sweet, sensitive, cultivated, erudite. These are the adjectives of praise in an androgynous world. Those who consider them epithets of shame or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/ardent-intelligent-sweet-sensitive-cultivated-erudite-these-are-the/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) > [The typical atheist rebels against God as a teenager rebels against his parents. When his own desires or standards are not fulfilled in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/criss-jami/the-typical-atheist-rebels-against-god-as-a-teenager-rebels-against/) [Criss Jami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/criss-jami/) > [“Fuck a zombie!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlaine-harris/fuck-a-zombie/) [Charlaine Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlaine-harris/) > [The use of 'conspiracy theory' as a derogatory - as an epithet almost - is something the propagandists have perfected over the decades, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-sanders/the-use-of-conspiracy-theory-as-a-derogatory-as-an-epithet-almost-is/) [Chris Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-sanders/) > [“Some guy hit my fender the other day, and I said unto him, 'Be fruitful, and multiply'. 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I wish to persuade women to endeavor to acquire strength,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-wollstonecraft/i-earnestly-wish-to-point-out-in-what-true-dignity-and-human/) [Mary Wollstonecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-wollstonecraft/) [Browse all 66 Epithet quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/epithet/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If a man knows precisely what he can do to you or what epithet he can hurl against you in order to make you lose your temper, your equilibrium, then he can always keep you under subjection.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Howard Thurman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-thurman/if-a-man-knows-precisely-what-he-can-do-to-you-or-what-epithet-he-can/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Epithet" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-thurman/if-a-man-knows-precisely-what-he-can-do-to-you-or-what-epithet-he-can/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9d/howard-thurman-11976_epithet_if-a-man-knows-precisely-what-he-can-do_2712112.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9d/howard-thurman-11976_epithet_if-a-man-knows-precisely-what-he-can-do_2712112.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9d/howard-thurman-11976_epithet_if-a-man-knows-precisely-what-he-can-do_2712112.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If a man knows precisely what he can do to you or what epithet he can hurl against you in order to make you…” — Howard Thurman", "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": "Howard Thurman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-thurman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If a man knows precisely what...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-thurman/if-a-man-knows-precisely-what-he-can-do-to-you-or-what-epithet-he-can/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-thurman/if-a-man-knows-precisely-what-he-can-do-to-you-or-what-epithet-he-can/#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 } } ] } ```