---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I know not which I prefer the look…"
description: "\"I know not which I prefer the look of—those who attack us or that which defends us!\" — Michael Moorcock"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb2/michael-moorcock-8974_looks_i-know-not-which-i-prefer-the-look-of-th_2236204.jpg"
---

#  I know not which I prefer the look of—those who attack us…

![“I know not which I prefer the look of—those who attack us or that which defends us!” quote by Michael Moorcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb2/michael-moorcock-8974_looks_i-know-not-which-i-prefer-the-look-of-th_2236204.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb2/michael-moorcock-8974_looks_i-know-not-which-i-prefer-the-look-of-th_2236204.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb2/michael-moorcock-8974_looks_i-know-not-which-i-prefer-the-look-of-th_2236204.jpg)

> “I know not which I prefer the look of—those who attack us or that which defends us!”

[Michael Moorcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moorcock/)

## 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 is torn between preferring aggressive critics or protective defenders.

**In simple terms:** Choosing between attackers and protectors is difficult.

Key Takeaway

Reflect on what you value in opposition.

Themes

conflict choice identity

Mood

thoughtful analytical

Type

philosophical literary

When to use this quote

- personal relationships
- political discourse
- media consumption

Key Concepts

adversarial dynamics self‑defense psychology

Questions to Reflect On

- Do you favor confrontation or protection?
- How does this preference shape your actions?

A Different Perspective

The dichotomy may oversimplify complex motivations.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Defends](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defends/)

## Related quotes

> [There are people who prefer to look their fate in the eye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/there-are-people-who-prefer-to-look-their-fate-in-the-eye/)

[Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/)

> [Relying on the face might be human nature - even babies prefer to look at attractive people. But, of course, judging someone based on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-bloom/relying-on-the-face-might-be-human-nature-even-babies-prefer-to-look/)

[Paul Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-bloom/)

> [I prefer to look at a natural woman. A woman should be courageous to become older, not desperate to look younger than her age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giorgio-armani/i-prefer-to-look-at-a-natural-woman-a-woman-should-be-courageous-to/)

[Giorgio Armani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giorgio-armani/)

> [“I prefer to look up in hope than down in expectation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-ankers/i-prefer-to-look-up-in-hope-than-down-in-expectation/)

Richard M. Ankers

> [I prefer you to look me in the eyes if I decide to stab you. Backstabbing is for losers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-prefer-you-to-look-me-in-the-eyes-if-i-decide-to-stab-you/)

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

> [I don't watch a lot of old clips of myself because I don't like it; I prefer to look to the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erling-haaland/i-don-t-watch-a-lot-of-old-clips-of-myself-because-i-don-t-like-it-i/)

[Erling Haaland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erling-haaland/)

> [I don't enjoy sitting with make-up all the time and that is why I have decided to go for the natural look. Not only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katrina-kaif/i-don-t-enjoy-sitting-with-make-up-all-the-time-and-that-is-why-i/)

[Katrina Kaif](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katrina-kaif/)

> [I don't like to look too 'done' - I prefer to look more natural.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-childs/i-don-t-like-to-look-too-done-i-prefer-to-look-more-natural/)

[Amy Childs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-childs/)

> [I tend not to look too much back; I tend to look forward. So, I suppose, I know, I've had probably most of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-harris/i-tend-not-to-look-too-much-back-i-tend-to-look-forward-so-i-suppose/)

[Steve Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-harris/)

> [Ecuador is a country which defends the right to life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-correa/ecuador-is-a-country-which-defends-the-right-to-life/)

[Rafael Correa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-correa/)

> [God loves and defends those with the least economic and social power, and so should we.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/god-loves-and-defends-those-with-the-least-economic-and-social-power/)

[Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/)

> [Republicans constantly claim to be the party that defends the Constitution. We have no legitimate right to that claim until we get right on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mckinnon/republicans-constantly-claim-to-be-the-party-that-defends-the/)

[Mark McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mckinnon/)

> [The length of this document defends it well against the risk of its being read.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/the-length-of-this-document-defends-it-well-against-the-risk-of-its/)

[Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/)

> [Every nation makes decisions based on self-interest and defends them on the basis of morality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-sloane-coffin/every-nation-makes-decisions-based-on-self-interest-and-defends-them/)

[William Sloane Coffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-sloane-coffin/)

> [Truth is treasurer.You have not to defend it.Truth always defends itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dranil-kr-sinha/truth-is-treasurer-you-have-not-to-defend-it-truth-always-defends/)

[DrAnil Kr Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dranil-kr-sinha/)

## More by Michael Moorcock

> [Introduce your main characters and themes in the first third of your novel. If you are writing a plot-driven genre novel make sure all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/introduce-your-main-characters-and-themes-in-the-first-third-of-your/)

[Michael Moorcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moorcock/)

> [ It remains a mystery to me why some of that \[pulp\] fiction should be judged inferior to the rafts and rafts of bad social… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/it-remains-a-mystery-to-me-why-some-of-that-pulp-fiction-should-be/)

[Michael Moorcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moorcock/)

> [“We would all be better off dead, useless eaters of the lotus that we are.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/we-would-all-be-better-off-dead-useless-eaters-of-the-lotus-that-we/)

[Michael Moorcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moorcock/)

> [“This gentleman is known the width and breadth of the comics world as "that bastard Klaw.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/this-gentleman-is-known-the-width-and-breadth-of-the-comics-world-as/)

[Michael Moorcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moorcock/)

> [“The sentiment may perceive and love the universe, but the universe cannot perceive and love the sentiment. The universe sees no distinction between the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/the-sentiment-may-perceive-and-love-the-universe-but-the-universe/)

[Michael Moorcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moorcock/)

> [Destiny's Champion, Fate's fool. Eternity's Soldier, Time's Tool.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/destiny-s-champion-fate-s-fool-eternity-s-soldier-time-s-tool/)

[Michael Moorcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moorcock/)

> [I'd started doing fanzines from the age of nine. I'd been doing as many copies as you can get carbon paper into an upright…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/i-d-started-doing-fanzines-from-the-age-of-nine-i-d-been-doing-as/)

[Michael Moorcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moorcock/)

> [“Time is a dream - or a nightmare - from which there is never any waking. We who travel in Time are dreamers who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/time-is-a-dream-or-a-nightmare-from-which-there-is-never-any-waking/)

[Michael Moorcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moorcock/)

> [“IT IS THE colour of a bleached skull, his flesh; and the long hair which flows below his shoulders is milk-white. From the tapering,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/it-is-the-colour-of-a-bleached-skull-his-flesh-and-the-long-hair/)

[Michael Moorcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moorcock/)

> [The past is a script we are constantly rewriting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/the-past-is-a-script-we-are-constantly-rewriting/)

[Michael Moorcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moorcock/)

> [And you, Prince Elric? She attracted the albino's wandering attention. Do you know his story? Elric shook his head. I only know, he said,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/and-you-prince-elric-she-attracted-the-albino-s-wandering-attention/)

[Michael Moorcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moorcock/)

> [Some of my earliest work was in comics. I tend to think in pictures and always like to write scenes possessing the dynamic you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/some-of-my-earliest-work-was-in-comics-i-tend-to-think-in-pictures/)

[Michael Moorcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moorcock/)

> [The problems for which I could find no solution in fact had no solution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/the-problems-for-which-i-could-find-no-solution-in-fact-had-no/)

[Michael Moorcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moorcock/)

> [“She had always been beautiful in his eyes, and admirable, too. He had worshipped her, in some ways, for her courage in adversity, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/she-had-always-been-beautiful-in-his-eyes-and-admirable-too-he-had/)

[Michael Moorcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moorcock/)

> [Because I had sought to challenge Destiny, Destiny had taken vengeance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/because-i-had-sought-to-challenge-destiny-destiny-had-taken-vengeance/)

[Michael Moorcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moorcock/)

[Explore all 76 Michael Moorcock quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moorcock/)

## More Attack quotes

> [British Forces should be in a position to give back in a ten fold measure any attack that the Germans may attempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-banting/british-forces-should-be-in-a-position-to-give-back-in-a-ten-fold/)

[Frederick Banting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-banting/)

> [“THE UNFORGIVEN Tell me if you've ever had to deal with these kinds of people: The kind who take and don't give. The kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzy-kassem/the-unforgiven-tell-me-if-you-ve-ever-had-to-deal-with-these-kinds-of/)

[Suzy Kassem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzy-kassem/)

> [When I hit bottom, I can attack the problem and get to where I want to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-rodman/when-i-hit-bottom-i-can-attack-the-problem-and-get-to-where-i-want-to/)

[Dennis Rodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-rodman/)

> [It was both necessary and desirable for us to be so strong at sea that no Sea Power could attack us without risk, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernhard-von-bulow/it-was-both-necessary-and-desirable-for-us-to-be-so-strong-at-sea/)

[Bernhard von Bulow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernhard-von-bulow/)

> [The best way to counter-attack a hater is to make it blatantly obvious that their attack has had no impact on you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-ferriss/the-best-way-to-counter-attack-a-hater-is-to-make-it-blatantly/)

[Tim Ferriss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-ferriss/)

> [President Obama has never summarized the Obama Doctrine with such clarity, but here is what it would look like: 'I will undertake any military…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-abrams/president-obama-has-never-summarized-the-obama-doctrine-with-such/)

[Elliott Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-abrams/)

> [Everything has got a place in my house. If something is moved I get a panic attack.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rylan-clark-neal/everything-has-got-a-place-in-my-house-if-something-is-moved-i-get-a/)

[Rylan Clark-Neal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rylan-clark-neal/)

> [I mean, it's not just the rappers, you know what i'm saying? People want to attack anybody that's a large figure, you know what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-notorious-b-i-g/i-mean-it-s-not-just-the-rappers-you-know-what-i-m-saying-people-want/)

[The Notorious B.I.G](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-notorious-b-i-g/)

> [Sometimes when you take a tough action against one side in the conflict, they see you as part of the conflict and they attack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kofi-annan/sometimes-when-you-take-a-tough-action-against-one-side-in-the/)

[Kofi Annan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kofi-annan/)

> [“Hence, when able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must seem inactive; when we are near, we must make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-tzu/hence-when-able-to-attack-we-must-seem-unable-when-using-our-forces/)

[Sun Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-tzu/)

> [Free speech has a very small constituency on the modern campus, particularly if the speaker under attack is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-leo/free-speech-has-a-very-small-constituency-on-the-modern-campus/)

[John Leo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-leo/)

> [Daniil is a player who will not give you many chances to attack. If I have enough power and choose the right moment, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrey-rublev/daniil-is-a-player-who-will-not-give-you-many-chances-to-attack-if-i/)

[Andrey Rublev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrey-rublev/)

> [Distributed ledgers are inherently harder to attack because instead of a single database, there are multiple shared copies of the same database, so a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-walport/distributed-ledgers-are-inherently-harder-to-attack-because-instead/)

[Mark Walport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-walport/)

> [Attack life. It's going to kill you anyways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/attack-life-it-s-going-to-kill-you-anyways/)

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

> [For those of us in the political business, generally, it's been pretty much an unwritten but understood rule that family and children are out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-nutter/for-those-of-us-in-the-political-business-generally-it-s-been-pretty/)

[Michael Nutter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-nutter/)

Browse all 1,074 Attack quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I know not which I prefer the look of—those who attack us or that which defends us!",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Michael Moorcock"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/i-know-not-which-i-prefer-the-look-of-those-who-attack-us-or-that/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Attack"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/i-know-not-which-i-prefer-the-look-of-those-who-attack-us-or-that/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb2/michael-moorcock-8974_looks_i-know-not-which-i-prefer-the-look-of-th_2236204.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb2/michael-moorcock-8974_looks_i-know-not-which-i-prefer-the-look-of-th_2236204.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb2/michael-moorcock-8974_looks_i-know-not-which-i-prefer-the-look-of-th_2236204.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I know not which I prefer the look of—those who attack us or that which defends us!” — Michael Moorcock",
                "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": "Michael Moorcock",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moorcock/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I know not which I prefer...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/i-know-not-which-i-prefer-the-look-of-those-who-attack-us-or-that/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moorcock/i-know-not-which-i-prefer-the-look-of-those-who-attack-us-or-that/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
