---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But, like all metaphoric wars, the…"
description: "\"But, like all metaphoric wars, the copyright wars are not actual conflicts of survival. Or at least, they are not conflicts for survival of a people or..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fee/lawrence-lessig-3201_business_but-like-all-metaphoric-wars-the-copyrig_228597.jpg"
---

#  But, like all metaphoric wars, the copyright wars are not…

![“But, like all metaphoric wars, the copyright wars are not actual conflicts of survival. Or at least, they are not conflicts for survival of a people or a society, even if they are wars of survival for certain businesses or, more accurately, business models. Thus we must keep i mind the other…” quote by Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fee/lawrence-lessig-3201_business_but-like-all-metaphoric-wars-the-copyrig_228597.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fee/lawrence-lessig-3201_business_but-like-all-metaphoric-wars-the-copyrig_228597.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fee/lawrence-lessig-3201_business_but-like-all-metaphoric-wars-the-copyrig_228597.jpg)

> “But, like all metaphoric wars, the copyright wars are not actual conflicts of survival. Or at least, they are not conflicts for survival of a people or a society, even if they are wars of survival for certain businesses or, more accurately, business models. Thus we must keep i mind the other values or objectives that might also be affected by this war. We must make sure this war doesn't cost more than it is worth. We must be sure it is winnable, or winnable at a price we're willing to pay.”

[Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Copyright disputes are strategic business battles, not existential threats to societies.

**In simple terms:** Copyright wars are about profit, not survival.

Key Takeaway

Weigh costs against benefits before engaging.

Themes

law economics technology ethics

Mood

analytical thoughtful

Type

policy strategic

When to use this quote

- corporate negotiations
- legislative lobbying
- digital media planning

Key Concepts

intellectual property business strategy public policy

Questions to Reflect On

- What values should guide copyright policy?
- How to balance creator rights with public access?

A Different Perspective

May overlook cultural value of shared knowledge.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Conflict](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conflict/) [Copyright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/copyright/) [Metaphoric](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/metaphoric/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Survival](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/survival/) [Values](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/values/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/)

## Related quotes

> [Where hunger is imposed by external circumstances, the act of starvation remains literal, a tragic biological event that does not serve metaphoric or symbolic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-chernin/where-hunger-is-imposed-by-external-circumstances-the-act-of/)

[Kim Chernin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-chernin/)

> [“The darkness surrounding can envelop one,but if you light only one match, you have defeated it all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-m-r-ph-l/the-darkness-surrounding-can-envelop-one-but-if-you-light-only-one/)

M.I.M. Răphæl

> [Metaphors are dangerous. Love begins with a metaphor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/metaphors-are-dangerous-love-begins-with-a-metaphor/)

[Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/)

> [I was in the studio so much, it was about the search for air in a metaphoric sense, and the breathing has more to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keren-ann/i-was-in-the-studio-so-much-it-was-about-the-search-for-air-in-a/)

[Keren Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-ann/)

> [Thought is metaphoric, and proceeds by comparison, and the metaphors of language derive therefrom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i-a-richards/thought-is-metaphoric-and-proceeds-by-comparison-and-the-metaphors-of/)

[I. A. Richards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/i-a-richards/)

> [Alan Moore does have a sheen of class. He's a smart guy, and I'm sure there was a metaphoric level, I'm not denying that,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chester-brown/alan-moore-does-have-a-sheen-of-class-he-s-a-smart-guy-and-i-m-sure/)

[Chester Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chester-brown/)

> [Literature is conscious mythology: as society develops, its mythical stories become structural principles of story-telling, its mythical concepts, sun-gods and the like, become habits…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/literature-is-conscious-mythology-as-society-develops-its-mythical/)

[Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/)

> [“You might be surrounded in a room of utter darkness, but if you light only one match, all the darkness is defeated.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-ivezic/you-might-be-surrounded-in-a-room-of-utter-darkness-but-if-you-light/)

Michelle Ivezic

> [Much more than an entertaining set of exaggerated facts, fiction is a metaphoric method of describing, dramatizing and condensing historical events, personal actions, psychological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/much-more-than-an-entertaining-set-of-exaggerated-facts-fiction-is-a/)

[Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/)

> [A poem in form still has to have voice, gesture, a sense of discovery, a metaphoric connection, as any poetry does.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-morgan/a-poem-in-form-still-has-to-have-voice-gesture-a-sense-of-discovery-a/)

[Robert Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-morgan/)

> [What this means is that children, homemakers, executives, farmers, and long-living persons can all have high ego strength and good mental health if they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-samples/what-this-means-is-that-children-homemakers-executives-farmers-and/)

[Bob Samples](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-samples/)

> [“Nothing abstruse or ambivalent about it, not a speck of the metaphoric or the symbolic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/nothing-abstruse-or-ambivalent-about-it-not-a-speck-of-the-metaphoric/)

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

> [Journeys up the Metaphoric River are hugely enjoyable and highly recommended. Since every genre is nourished by its heady waters, a paddle steamer can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasper-fforde/journeys-up-the-metaphoric-river-are-hugely-enjoyable-and-highly/)

[Jasper Fforde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasper-fforde/)

> [Our job as writers and thinkers in the time is how to bring about the occasions that let people have that first-person experience -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-crouch/our-job-as-writers-and-thinkers-in-the-time-is-how-to-bring-about-the/)

[Stanley Crouch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-crouch/)

> [Names generate meaning in a short amount of space — they provoke thoughts, questions. That's something I like doing. Of course, you have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-ferris/names-generate-meaning-in-a-short-amount-of-space-they-provoke/)

[Joshua Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-ferris/)

## More by Lawrence Lessig

> [It's fine to talk about politics with people you agree with. But it is rude to argue about politics with people you disagree with.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/it-s-fine-to-talk-about-politics-with-people-you-agree-with-but-it-is/)

[Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/)

> [As I've indicated, most books go out of print within one year. The same is true of music and film. Commercial culture is sharklike.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/as-i-ve-indicated-most-books-go-out-of-print-within-one-year-the-same/)

[Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/)

> [I think the reality is that copyright law has for a very long time been a tiny little part of American jurisprudence, far removed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/i-think-the-reality-is-that-copyright-law-has-for-a-very-long-time/)

[Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/)

> [Code plus law is combining to reduce rights consumers used to have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/code-plus-law-is-combining-to-reduce-rights-consumers-used-to-have/)

[Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/)

> [Overregulation corrupts citizens and weakens the rule of law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/overregulation-corrupts-citizens-and-weakens-the-rule-of-law/)

[Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/)

> [Power runs with ideas that only the crazy would draw into doubt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/power-runs-with-ideas-that-only-the-crazy-would-draw-into-doubt/)

[Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/)

> [Remember the refrain: We always build on the past; the past always tries to stop us. Freedom is about stopping the past, but we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/remember-the-refrain-we-always-build-on-the-past-the-past-always/)

[Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/)

> [Politics is that rare sport where the amateur contest is actually more interesting than the professional.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/politics-is-that-rare-sport-where-the-amateur-contest-is-actually/)

[Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/)

> [If the only way a library can offer an Internet exhibit about the New Deal is to hire a lawyer to clear the rights…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/if-the-only-way-a-library-can-offer-an-internet-exhibit-about-the-new/)

[Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/)

> [Some blame the drug companies. I don't. They are corporations. Their managers are ordered by law to make money for the corporation. They push…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/some-blame-the-drug-companies-i-don-t-they-are-corporations-their/)

[Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/)

> [By the time Apple's Macintosh operating system finally falls into the public domain, there will be no machine that could possibly run it. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/by-the-time-apple-s-macintosh-operating-system-finally-falls-into-the/)

[Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/)

> [As more and more citizens express what they think, and defend it in writing, that will change the way people understand public issues. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/as-more-and-more-citizens-express-what-they-think-and-defend-it-in/)

[Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/)

> [I think if the copyright regime focuses on the people we are supposed to be helping, the artists and creators, and builds a system…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/i-think-if-the-copyright-regime-focuses-on-the-people-we-are-supposed/)

[Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/)

> [There is still the illusion that if we could declare corporations are not people or that money is not speech, all would be solved.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/there-is-still-the-illusion-that-if-we-could-declare-corporations-are/)

[Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/)

> [“But sometimes they're just oblivious, and their obliviousness brings out the worst in me. I remember once talking to one about the principle of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/but-sometimes-they-re-just-oblivious-and-their-obliviousness-brings/)

[Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/)

[Explore all 137 Lawrence Lessig quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/)

## More Business quotes

> [Companies with cultures that celebrate diverse opinions and encourage the exchange of ideas have an advantage when solving difficult problems. A company that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-mcmillon/companies-with-cultures-that-celebrate-diverse-opinions-and-encourage/)

[Doug McMillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-mcmillon/)

> [You can laugh at me, but I understand show business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ksenia-sobchak/you-can-laugh-at-me-but-i-understand-show-business/)

[Ksenia Sobchak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ksenia-sobchak/)

> [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [I'm a business first and foremost so whatever my business is, it's separate from my personal. It's like whatever I do business wise, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/snoop-dogg/i-m-a-business-first-and-foremost-so-whatever-my-business-is-it-s/)

[Snoop Dogg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/snoop-dogg/)

> [Many early-stage entrepreneurs make one simple mistake: Describing this 'big picture' in vague concepts and words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunil-nagaraj/many-early-stage-entrepreneurs-make-one-simple-mistake-describing/)

[Sunil Nagaraj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunil-nagaraj/)

> [Nobody has a crystal ball, and part of evolving a business plan is to say, 'I might have said we're going left, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-kavanaugh/nobody-has-a-crystal-ball-and-part-of-evolving-a-business-plan-is-to/)

[Ryan Kavanaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-kavanaugh/)

> [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/)

[G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/)

> [ “\[S\]ometimes, when you are a food person, the possible irrelevance of what you are doing doesn’t cross your mind until it’s too late. (Once,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-ephron/s-ometimes-when-you-are-a-food-person-the-possible-irrelevance-of/)

[Nora Ephron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-ephron/)

> [If you have a different mindset, you will have a different outcome: if you make different choices from your peers, your life will then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-ma/if-you-have-a-different-mindset-you-will-have-a-different-outcome-if/)

[Jack Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-ma/)

> [“Some say the Earth is angry Because he wants no company; I say the Earth is angry Because he lives alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/some-say-the-earth-is-angry-because-he-wants-no-company-i-say-the/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [ If the State does not acquire supremacy over \[vast private\] enterprises, it becomes their puppet, and they become the real State. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/if-the-state-does-not-acquire-supremacy-over-vast-private-enterprises/)

[Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/)

> [It's not just that families can't buy a home or start a business without some savings tucked away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cooper/it-s-not-just-that-families-can-t-buy-a-home-or-start-a-business/)

[Jim Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cooper/)

> [I'm not into business at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-mercury/i-m-not-into-business-at-all/)

[Freddie Mercury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-mercury/)

> [I've long believed one of the mainsprings of our own liberty has been the widespread ownership of property among our people and the expectation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-ve-long-believed-one-of-the-mainsprings-of-our-own-liberty-has-been/)

[Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/)

[Browse all 39,016 Business quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "But, like all metaphoric wars, the copyright wars are not actual conflicts of survival. Or at least, they are not conflicts for survival of a people or a society, even if they are wars of survival for certain businesses or, more accurately, business models. Thus we must keep i mind the other values or objectives that might also be affected by this war. We must make sure this war doesn't cost more than it is worth. We must be sure it is winnable, or winnable at a price we're willing to pay.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Lawrence Lessig"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/but-like-all-metaphoric-wars-the-copyright-wars-are-not-actual/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Business"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/but-like-all-metaphoric-wars-the-copyright-wars-are-not-actual/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fee/lawrence-lessig-3201_business_but-like-all-metaphoric-wars-the-copyrig_228597.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fee/lawrence-lessig-3201_business_but-like-all-metaphoric-wars-the-copyrig_228597.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fee/lawrence-lessig-3201_business_but-like-all-metaphoric-wars-the-copyrig_228597.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“But, like all metaphoric wars, the copyright wars are not actual conflicts of survival. Or at least, they…” — Lawrence Lessig",
                "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": "Lawrence Lessig",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "But, like all metaphoric wars, the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/but-like-all-metaphoric-wars-the-copyright-wars-are-not-actual/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/but-like-all-metaphoric-wars-the-copyright-wars-are-not-actual/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
