--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The treason pleases, but the traitors are…" description: "\"The treason pleases, but the traitors are odious.\" — Miguel de Cervantes" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9de/miguel-de-cervantes-715_inspirational_the-treason-pleases-but-the-traitors-are_1195497.png" --- # The treason pleases, but the traitors are odious. ![“The treason pleases, but the traitors are odious.” quote by Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9de/miguel-de-cervantes-715_inspirational_the-treason-pleases-but-the-traitors-are_1195497.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9de/miguel-de-cervantes-715_inspirational_the-treason-pleases-but-the-traitors-are_1195497.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9de/miguel-de-cervantes-715_inspirational_the-treason-pleases-but-the-traitors-are_1195497.png) > “The treason pleases, but the traitors are odious.” [Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Treason may be appealing, but betrayers are morally repugnant. **In simple terms:** Betrayal looks attractive but is vile. Key Takeaway Reject treasonous temptations. Themes morality politics betrayal Mood cautious serious reflective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - political intrigue - personal relationships - corporate loyalty Key Concepts ethical decay power dynamics Questions to Reflect On - Why do people betray? - How to resist? A Different Perspective Complex motives can blur lines. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Intelligence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intelligence/) [Traitor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/traitor/) [Traitors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/traitors/) [Treason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/treason/) ## Related quotes > [Treason pleases, but not the traitor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/treason-pleases-but-not-the-traitor/) [Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) > [When I look at the Republicans, I am tempted to dismiss them as the Treason Party. Seriously, were a band of traitors to concoct…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-steinberg/when-i-look-at-the-republicans-i-am-tempted-to-dismiss-them-as-the/) Neil Steinberg > [America once used the words 'treason' and 'traitors' only in cases of actual betrayal of our nation's most vital secrets or interests.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-wilson/america-once-used-the-words-treason-and-traitors-only-in-cases-of/) [Rick Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-wilson/) > [“Treason . . . is only a word. When two princes fight for a chair where only one may sit, great lords and common…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/treason-is-only-a-word-when-two-princes-fight-for-a-chair-where-only/) [George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/) > [ I have nothing but contempt and anger for those who betray the trust by exposing the name of \[CIA\] sources. They are, in my… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-w-bush/i-have-nothing-but-contempt-and-anger-for-those-who-betray-the-trust/) [George H. W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-w-bush/) > [A government that can at pleasure accuse, shoot, and hang men, as traitors, for the one general offence of refusing to surrender themselves and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lysander-spooner/a-government-that-can-at-pleasure-accuse-shoot-and-hang-men-as/) [Lysander Spooner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lysander-spooner/) > [The traitor of other races is generally confined to the mediocre or irresponsible individual, but, unfortunately, the traitors among the Negro race are generally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-garvey/the-traitor-of-other-races-is-generally-confined-to-the-mediocre-or/) [Marcus Garvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-garvey/) > [And what does anyone know about traitors, or why Judas did what he did?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rhys/and-what-does-anyone-know-about-traitors-or-why-judas-did-what-he-did/) [Jean Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rhys/) > [Though we be active in the battle, if we are not fighting where the battle is the hottest, we are traitors to the cause.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/though-we-be-active-in-the-battle-if-we-are-not-fighting-where-the/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [What do you think spies are: priests, saints and martyrs? They're a squalid procession of vain fools, traitors too, yes; pansies, sadists and drunkards,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/what-do-you-think-spies-are-priests-saints-and-martyrs-they-re-a/) [John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) > [We must be brief when traitors brave the field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/we-must-be-brief-when-traitors-brave-the-field/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Do you think... that men have always massacred each other, as they do today? Have they always been liars, cheats, traitors, brigands, weak, flighty,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/do-you-think-that-men-have-always-massacred-each-other-as-they-do/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [It is the English, not their Government; for if they were not blind cowards, they would lynch Chamberlain and Halifax and all the other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enoch-powell/it-is-the-english-not-their-government-for-if-they-were-not-blind/) [Enoch Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enoch-powell/) > [Flatterers are the worst kind of traitors, for they will strengthen thy imperfections, encourage thee in all evils, correct thee in nothing, but so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-raleigh/flatterers-are-the-worst-kind-of-traitors-for-they-will-strengthen/) [Walter Raleigh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-raleigh/) > [Whistleblowers is another aspect that needs to be addressed. We have to restore the protections of whistleblowers and also the encouragement and rewards. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-gup/whistleblowers-is-another-aspect-that-needs-to-be-addressed-we-have/) [Ted Gup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-gup/) ## More by Miguel de Cervantes > [Beware, gentle knight - the greatest monster of them all is reason.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/beware-gentle-knight-the-greatest-monster-of-them-all-is-reason/) [Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) > [He had a face like a blessing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/he-had-a-face-like-a-blessing/) [Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) > [It is one thing to praise discipline, and another to submit to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/it-is-one-thing-to-praise-discipline-and-another-to-submit-to-it/) [Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) > [Those who'll play with cats must expect to be scratched.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/those-who-ll-play-with-cats-must-expect-to-be-scratched/) [Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) > [“So it appears to me, for when he could and should have wielded his pen to praise the virtues of so good a knight,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/so-it-appears-to-me-for-when-he-could-and-should-have-wielded-his-pen/) [Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) > [“Too much sanity may be madness — and maddest of all: to see life as it is, and not as it should be!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/too-much-sanity-may-be-madness-and-maddest-of-all-to-see-life-as-it/) [Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) > [Old, that's an affront no woman can well bear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/old-that-s-an-affront-no-woman-can-well-bear/) [Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) > [One should not talk of hatters in the house of the hanged.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/one-should-not-talk-of-hatters-in-the-house-of-the-hanged/) [Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) > [It is courage that vanquishes in war, and not good weapons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/it-is-courage-that-vanquishes-in-war-and-not-good-weapons/) [Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) > [Alas! all music jars when the soul's out of tune.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/alas-all-music-jars-when-the-soul-s-out-of-tune/) [Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) > [I follow a more easy, and, in my opinion, a wiser course, namely--to inveigh against the levity of the female sex, their fickleness, their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/i-follow-a-more-easy-and-in-my-opinion-a-wiser-course-namely-to/) [Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) > [Every man is as heaven made him, and sometimes a great deal worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/every-man-is-as-heaven-made-him-and-sometimes-a-great-deal-worse/) [Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) > [Great people create great acts of kindness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/great-people-create-great-acts-of-kindness/) [Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) > [One day, in the San Francisco walk, he came upon some badly painted figures and observed that good painters imitate nature but bad ones…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/one-day-in-the-san-francisco-walk-he-came-upon-some-badly-painted/) [Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) > [Drink moderately, for drunkeness neither keeps a secret, nor observes a promise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/drink-moderately-for-drunkeness-neither-keeps-a-secret-nor-observes-a/) [Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) [Explore all 386 Miguel de Cervantes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) ## More Inspirational quotes > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We talk to God--that is prayer; God talks to us--that is inspiration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-emilie-cady/we-talk-to-god-that-is-prayer-god-talks-to-us-that-is-inspiration/) [H. Emilie Cady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-emilie-cady/) > [You cant be controlling in improv.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-walsh/you-cant-be-controlling-in-improv/) [Matt Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-walsh/) > [The man who can master his time can master nearly anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/the-man-who-can-master-his-time-can-master-nearly-anything/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Just understand that the good that you want is already here. All you have to do is get in harmony with it. And you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/just-understand-that-the-good-that-you-want-is-already-here-all-you/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up the men to gather wood, divide the work, and give orders. Instead, teach them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/if-you-want-to-build-a-ship-don-t-drum-up-the-men-to-gather-wood/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [Obviously, if you don't love life, you can't enjoy an oyster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-clark/obviously-if-you-don-t-love-life-you-can-t-enjoy-an-oyster/) [Eleanor Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-clark/) > [It's not the method, it's the mindset.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-gilbert/it-s-not-the-method-it-s-the-mindset/) [Andy Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-gilbert/) > [It's a hard thing to describe. It's just this sense that you got something to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/it-s-a-hard-thing-to-describe-it-s-just-this-sense-that-you-got/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [Too much familiarity breeds contempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/too-much-familiarity-breeds-contempt/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [We never really perceive what color is physically!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-albers/we-never-really-perceive-what-color-is-physically/) [Josef Albers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-albers/) > [Politics is not an issue whether you like or dislike , but every citizen must involve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khem-veasna/politics-is-not-an-issue-whether-you-like-or-dislike-but-every/) [Khem Veasna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khem-veasna/) > [God reveals Himself through surprises.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/god-reveals-himself-through-surprises/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [Never underestimate the power of the human mind to believe what it wants to believe, no matter the conflicting evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-herbert/never-underestimate-the-power-of-the-human-mind-to-believe-what-it/) [Brian Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-herbert/) [Browse all 114,561 Inspirational quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The treason pleases, but the traitors are odious.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Miguel de Cervantes" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/the-treason-pleases-but-the-traitors-are-odious/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Inspirational" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/the-treason-pleases-but-the-traitors-are-odious/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9de/miguel-de-cervantes-715_inspirational_the-treason-pleases-but-the-traitors-are_1195497.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9de/miguel-de-cervantes-715_inspirational_the-treason-pleases-but-the-traitors-are_1195497.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9de/miguel-de-cervantes-715_inspirational_the-treason-pleases-but-the-traitors-are_1195497.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The treason pleases, but the traitors are odious.” — Miguel de Cervantes", "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": "Miguel de Cervantes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The treason pleases, but the traitors...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/the-treason-pleases-but-the-traitors-are-odious/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/the-treason-pleases-but-the-traitors-are-odious/#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 } } ] } ```