--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I do not propose to our British ladies…" description: "\"I do not propose to our British ladies, that they should turn Amazons in the service of their sovereign, nor so much as let their nails grow for the de..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0bc/joseph-addison-377_animated_i-do-not-propose-to-our-british-ladies-t_2016685.png" --- # I do not propose to our British ladies, that they should… ![“I do not propose to our British ladies, that they should turn Amazons in the service of their sovereign, nor so much as let their nails grow for the defence of their country. The men will take the work of the field off their hands, and show the world, that English valour cannot be matched when it…” quote by Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0bc/joseph-addison-377_animated_i-do-not-propose-to-our-british-ladies-t_2016685.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0bc/joseph-addison-377_animated_i-do-not-propose-to-our-british-ladies-t_2016685.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0bc/joseph-addison-377_animated_i-do-not-propose-to-our-british-ladies-t_2016685.png) > “I do not propose to our British ladies, that they should turn Amazons in the service of their sovereign, nor so much as let their nails grow for the defence of their country. The men will take the work of the field off their hands, and show the world, that English valour cannot be matched when it is animated by English beauty.” [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Addison suggests that women should not be forced into military roles; instead, men should protect the nation, allowing women to embody beauty and inspire valor. **In simple terms:** Women should inspire, not fight. Key Takeaway Let men protect, women inspire. Themes gender roles patriotism beauty war societal expectations Mood proud reflective critical Type historical social commentary When to use this quote - military recruitment - public speeches - cultural debates - media representation Key Concepts masculinity feminine influence national identity Questions to Reflect On - Should women be excluded from defense roles? - How does beauty influence perceptions of bravery? A Different Perspective Assumes women lack agency in defense; modern views see women as capable combatants. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animated/) [Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) [British](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/british/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Defence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defence/) [English Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/english-beauty-3629926/) [English Valour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/english-valour-3629925/) [Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fields/) [Grows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grows/) [Hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hands/) [He man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/he-man/) [Matched](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/matched/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Nails](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nails/) [Propose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/propose/) [Propose British](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/propose-british-3629923/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Show The World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/show-the-world/) [Shows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shows/) [Sovereign](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sovereign/) [Turn Amazons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turn-amazons-3629924/) [Turns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turns/) [Valour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/valour/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [“Can you not see that we still might win? We lost a battle, not a war.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-essex/can-you-not-see-that-we-still-might-win-we-lost-a-battle-not-a-war/) [Karen Essex](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-essex/) > [Nothing of real worth can ever be bought. Love, friendship, honour, valour, respect. All these things have to be earned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-gemmell/nothing-of-real-worth-can-ever-be-bought-love-friendship-honour/) [David Gemmell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-gemmell/) > [In the second century of the Christian era, the Empire of Rome comprehended the fairest part of the earth, and the most civilised portion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-gibbon/in-the-second-century-of-the-christian-era-the-empire-of-rome/) [Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-gibbon/) > [I am not carrying on a war of extermination against the Romans. I am contending for honor and empire. My ancestors yielded to Roman…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannibal/i-am-not-carrying-on-a-war-of-extermination-against-the-romans-i-am/) [Hannibal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannibal/) > [These idle disputants overlooked the invariable laws of nature, which have connected peace with innocence, plenty with industry, and safety with valour.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-gibbon/these-idle-disputants-overlooked-the-invariable-laws-of-nature-which/) [Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-gibbon/) > [“Let me say this about courage under fire. In my experience, valour in action counts for far less than simply performing one’s commonplace task…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pressfield/let-me-say-this-about-courage-under-fire-in-my-experience-valour-in/) [Steven Pressfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pressfield/) > [The desire which urges us to deserve praise strengthens our good qualities, and praise given to wit, valour, and beauty, tends to increase them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/the-desire-which-urges-us-to-deserve-praise-strengthens-our-good/) [Francois de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/) > [How can a man commit acts of martial valour if he values his life?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/torii-mototada/how-can-a-man-commit-acts-of-martial-valour-if-he-values-his-life/) [Torii Mototada](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/torii-mototada/) > [Where it is permissible both to die and not to die, it is an abuse of valour to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mencius/where-it-is-permissible-both-to-die-and-not-to-die-it-is-an-abuse-of/) [Mencius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mencius/) > [Nothing short of the Almighty Power of God can Save us - it is not in our Numbers, our Union, or our Valour that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-clark/nothing-short-of-the-almighty-power-of-god-can-save-us-it-is-not-in/) [Abraham Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-clark/) > [“Perfect valour is to do without witnesses what one would do before all the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/perfect-valour-is-to-do-without-witnesses-what-one-would-do-before/) [François de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/) > [“Valour begot respect, whether in life or in the aftermath of death.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amish-tripathi/valour-begot-respect-whether-in-life-or-in-the-aftermath-of-death/) [Amish Tripathi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amish-tripathi/) > [I do not admire a virtue like valour when it is pushed to excess, if I do not see at the same time the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/i-do-not-admire-a-virtue-like-valour-when-it-is-pushed-to-excess-if-i/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [Indeed, the crowning proof of their valour and their strength is that they keep up their superiority without harm to others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/indeed-the-crowning-proof-of-their-valour-and-their-strength-is-that/) [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) > [And by a prudent flight and cunning save A life which valour could not, from the grave. 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If they must be showing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/female-virtues-are-of-a-domestick-turn-the-family-is-the-proper/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [As addictions go, reading is among the cleanest, easiest to feed, happiest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/as-addictions-go-reading-is-among-the-cleanest-easiest-to-feed/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [There is no society or conversation to be kept up in the world without good-nature, or something which must bear its appearance and supply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/there-is-no-society-or-conversation-to-be-kept-up-in-the-world/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [When love once pleads admission to our hearts, In spite of all the virtue we can boast, The woman that deliberates is lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/when-love-once-pleads-admission-to-our-hearts-in-spite-of-all-the/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Many actions calculated to procure fame are not conducive to ultimate happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/many-actions-calculated-to-procure-fame-are-not-conducive-to-ultimate/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [T is liberty crowns Britannia's Isle, And makes her barren rocks and her bleak mountains smile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/t-is-liberty-crowns-britannia-s-isle-and-makes-her-barren-rocks-and/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Reading is a basic tool in the living of a good life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/reading-is-a-basic-tool-in-the-living-of-a-good-life/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [The moral perfections of the Deity, the more attentively, we consider, the more perfectly still shall we know them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/the-moral-perfections-of-the-deity-the-more-attentively-we-consider/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [The utmost we can hope for in this world is contentment; if we aim at anything higher, we shall meet with nothing but grief…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/the-utmost-we-can-hope-for-in-this-world-is-contentment-if-we-aim-at/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Courage that grows from constitution often forsakes a man when he has occasion for it; courage which arises from a sense of duty acts;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/courage-that-grows-from-constitution-often-forsakes-a-man-when-he-has/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [The most skillful flattery is to let a person talk on, and be a listener.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/the-most-skillful-flattery-is-to-let-a-person-talk-on-and-be-a/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) [Explore all 620 Joseph Addison quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) ## More Animated quotes > [When you do a voice in an animated film, you don't see the finished product at all. You're not animating. You're not doing the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mirren/when-you-do-a-voice-in-an-animated-film-you-don-t-see-the-finished/) [Helen Mirren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mirren/) > [Like the collector, the photographer is animated by a passion that, even when it appears to be for the present, is linked to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/like-the-collector-the-photographer-is-animated-by-a-passion-that/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) > [The sectaries of a persecuted religion, depressed by fear, animated with resentment, and perhaps heated by enthusiasm, are seldom in a proper temper of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-gibbon/the-sectaries-of-a-persecuted-religion-depressed-by-fear-animated/) [Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-gibbon/) > [ Marylata \[ Elton\] introduced me to Hans Zimmer. Hans tapped me \[to\] work on songs for DreamWorks' animated features. 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