---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Our sainted aunts prate of living for…"
description: "\"Our sainted aunts prate of living for others while our rich uncles call us mollycoddles for not fighting for what we want. Murder is a patriotic act if..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8d/nicholas-samstag-69037_aunt_our-sainted-aunts-prate-of-living-for-ot_1055358.jpg"
---

#  Our sainted aunts prate of living for others while our…

![“Our sainted aunts prate of living for others while our rich uncles call us mollycoddles for not fighting for what we want. Murder is a patriotic act if you commit it in a uniform; it is the blackest sin if you kill someone while wearing a gray flannel suit.” quote by Nicholas Samstag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8d/nicholas-samstag-69037_aunt_our-sainted-aunts-prate-of-living-for-ot_1055358.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8d/nicholas-samstag-69037_aunt_our-sainted-aunts-prate-of-living-for-ot_1055358.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8d/nicholas-samstag-69037_aunt_our-sainted-aunts-prate-of-living-for-ot_1055358.jpg)

> “Our sainted aunts prate of living for others while our rich uncles call us mollycoddles for not fighting for what we want. Murder is a patriotic act if you commit it in a uniform; it is the blackest sin if you kill someone while wearing a gray flannel suit.”

[Nicholas Samstag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-samstag/)

## About This Quote

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

The quote contrasts self‑sacrifice praised by some with criticism of self‑interest, and claims murder can be noble in uniform but sinful in civilian attire.

**In simple terms:** It says killing in uniform is patriotic, killing in civilian clothes is sinful.

Key Takeaway

Question the morality of violence based on context.

Themes

morality violence social norms politics hypocrisy

Mood

critical provocative

Type

controversial philosophical

When to use this quote

- military service
- political protest
- civilian activism
- family debates

Key Concepts

ethical relativism nationalism class conflict

Questions to Reflect On

- Is violence ever justified by uniform?
- How do class perceptions shape moral judgments?

A Different Perspective

The statement oversimplifies complex ethical issues and may glorify violence.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Aunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aunt/) [Commit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commit/) [Fighting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fighting/) [Flannels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flannels/) [Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gray/) [Military](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/military/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Murder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/murder/) [Murder Patriotic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/murder-patriotic-2547936/) [Patriotic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patriotic/) [Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rich/) [Sin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sin/) [Suits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suits/) [Uncles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/uncles/) [Uncles Mollycoddles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/uncles-mollycoddles-2547937/) [Uniforms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/uniforms/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [Want Murder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want-murder-500275/)

## Related quotes

> [“Perhaps he was frightened by the sheer prospect of matrimony, of marrying a girl he would one day want to murder.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-russo/perhaps-he-was-frightened-by-the-sheer-prospect-of-matrimony-of/)

[Richard Russo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-russo/)

> [“Do you want me to murder everyone here?!” "“Yes! They’re bad guys!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jess-liz-cross/do-you-want-me-to-murder-everyone-here-yes-they-re-bad-guys/)

[Jess-Liz Cross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jess-liz-cross/)

> [“They want us to murder our own fleet,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/they-want-us-to-murder-our-own-fleet/)

[Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/)

> [“Let me give you some advice here: People who want to have the sex talk with you will act the same way as people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flynn-meaney/let-me-give-you-some-advice-here-people-who-want-to-have-the-sex-talk/)

[Flynn Meaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flynn-meaney/)

> [“Because all you ever said to me," he explains, "was that you didn't want to hurt anyone. You didn't want to murder people." "I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/because-all-you-ever-said-to-me-he-explains-was-that-you-didn-t-want/)

[Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/)

> [I didn't want murder. It's all gone wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-kubrick/i-didn-t-want-murder-it-s-all-gone-wrong/)

[Stanley Kubrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-kubrick/)

> [Dieting makes me want to murder everyone around me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-foster-wallace/dieting-makes-me-want-to-murder-everyone-around-me/)

[David Foster Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-foster-wallace/)

> [“I want to murder the one who came out to the world with the face of love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ana-becciu/i-want-to-murder-the-one-who-came-out-to-the-world-with-the-face-of/)

[Ana Becciu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ana-becciu/)

> [“Is there a reason you look like you want to murder me?" "Not particularly. You have that effect on people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martina-boone/is-there-a-reason-you-look-like-you-want-to-murder-me-not/)

[Martina Boone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martina-boone/)

> [“She didn’t want to give the murder-pornography frame by frame. Didn’t want to recite her route across Manhattan, the length of the knife blade…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-pavone/she-didn-t-want-to-give-the-murder-pornography-frame-by-frame-didn-t/)

[Chris Pavone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-pavone/)

> [“Once upon a time, there were two youngsters, a boy and a girl. Their families hated each other. But the boy snuck into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-manson/once-upon-a-time-there-were-two-youngsters-a-boy-and-a-girl-their/)

[Mark Manson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-manson/)

> [My father, my uncles, my aunts, from my father's side and my mother's side... they were all professional musicians. My father was a concert…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lalo-schifrin/my-father-my-uncles-my-aunts-from-my-father-s-side-and-my-mother-s/)

[Lalo Schifrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lalo-schifrin/)

> [I love San Francisco so much. I call it the Emerald City and have been coming here since 1992. I have a few old…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-cohen/i-love-san-francisco-so-much-i-call-it-the-emerald-city-and-have-been/)

[Andy Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-cohen/)

> [I only wanted Uncle Vernon standing by his own car (a Hudson) on a clear day, I got him and the car. Ialso got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-friedlander/i-only-wanted-uncle-vernon-standing-by-his-own-car-a-hudson-on-a/)

[Lee Friedlander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-friedlander/)

> [Your aunt and uncle will be proud, though, won't they?" said Hermione as they got off the train and joined the crowd thronging toward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/your-aunt-and-uncle-will-be-proud-though-won-t-they-said-hermione-as/)

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

## More by Nicholas Samstag

> [“Consider what you would do with some of the many hours and a share of the energy that you now squander on people who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-samstag/consider-what-you-would-do-with-some-of-the-many-hours-and-a-share-of/)

[Nicholas Samstag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-samstag/)

> [The wonder is not that so many people have sick or battered souls, but that they think they have souls at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-samstag/the-wonder-is-not-that-so-many-people-have-sick-or-battered-souls-but/)

[Nicholas Samstag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-samstag/)

> [Judas sold his soul for thirty pieces of silver; Faust sold his for some extra years of youth; Marilyn Monroe deserted Jesus Christ for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-samstag/judas-sold-his-soul-for-thirty-pieces-of-silver-faust-sold-his-for/)

[Nicholas Samstag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-samstag/)

[Explore all 4 Nicholas Samstag quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-samstag/)

## More Aunt quotes

> [“My aunt Carol hasn’t heard her say a word in the whole six years and three months of Grace’s life—not a single syllable. Carol…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/my-aunt-carol-hasn-t-heard-her-say-a-word-in-the-whole-six-years-and/)

[Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/)

> [Your aunt and uncle will be proud, though, won't they?" said Hermione as they got off the train and joined the crowd thronging toward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/your-aunt-and-uncle-will-be-proud-though-won-t-they-said-hermione-as/)

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

> [I was painfully shy, so my aunt suggested to my mum that me and my brother go to Stage 84, a performing arts school…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-cooke/i-was-painfully-shy-so-my-aunt-suggested-to-my-mum-that-me-and-my/)

[Christian Cooke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-cooke/)

> [“Quin took on the air of someone who has just realized it's time for the yearly visit to the spinster great-aunt in a desperate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-fecteau/quin-took-on-the-air-of-someone-who-has-just-realized-it-s-time-for/)

[Amy Fecteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-fecteau/)

> [My aunt and uncle are clearly civilians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-kimmel/my-aunt-and-uncle-are-clearly-civilians/)

[Jimmy Kimmel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-kimmel/)

> [“Aunt Helen Beck had many intentions about her death. She was about being dead the way some people are about being British - she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-mccracken/aunt-helen-beck-had-many-intentions-about-her-death-she-was-about/)

[Elizabeth McCracken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-mccracken/)

> [I'll just do a round around of the house and make sure the rest of the family are fast asleep. We don't want that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerstin-gier/i-ll-just-do-a-round-around-of-the-house-and-make-sure-the-rest-of/)

[Kerstin Gier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerstin-gier/)

> [In the summer of 1964, my sister and I went to South Ballston, Virginia, to stay with my aunt and her kids. They passed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-p-jones/in-the-summer-of-1964-my-sister-and-i-went-to-south-ballston-virginia/)

[Edward P. Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-p-jones/)

> [“I look like Barbara Bush in drag." Aunt Jettie”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-harper/i-look-like-barbara-bush-in-drag-aunt-jettie/)

[Molly Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-harper/)

> [I only wanted Uncle Vernon standing by his own car (a Hudson) on a clear day, I got him and the car. Ialso got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-friedlander/i-only-wanted-uncle-vernon-standing-by-his-own-car-a-hudson-on-a/)

[Lee Friedlander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-friedlander/)

> [Both the five-year-olds looked at me with bewilderment and a bit of fearful uncertainty. I had a sudden horrifying image of the woman I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/both-the-five-year-olds-looked-at-me-with-bewilderment-and-a-bit-of/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

> [My aunt got me interested in journalism - she found an old typewriter, had it worked over, put it on the dining room table,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-jenkins/my-aunt-got-me-interested-in-journalism-she-found-an-old-typewriter/)

[Dan Jenkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-jenkins/)

> [This kind of thing always amazed Ginny--people who just walked away from institutions. People who left school when they didn't see the point. Aunt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-johnson/this-kind-of-thing-always-amazed-ginny-people-who-just-walked-away/)

[Maureen Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-johnson/)

> [“You will not be able to shelter her forever,” my aunt insists. “What will happen when you are gone someday, and all the suitable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-forest/you-will-not-be-able-to-shelter-her-forever-my-aunt-insists-what-will/)

[Laurie Forest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-forest/)

> [my sweet old etcetera aunt lucy during the recent war could and what is more did tell you just what everybody was fighting for,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/my-sweet-old-etcetera-aunt-lucy-during-the-recent-war-could-and-what/)

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

[Browse all 720 Aunt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aunt/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Our sainted aunts prate of living for others while our rich uncles call us mollycoddles for not fighting for what we want. Murder is a patriotic act if you commit it in a uniform; it is the blackest sin if you kill someone while wearing a gray flannel suit.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Nicholas Samstag"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-samstag/our-sainted-aunts-prate-of-living-for-others-while-our-rich-uncles/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Aunt"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-samstag/our-sainted-aunts-prate-of-living-for-others-while-our-rich-uncles/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8d/nicholas-samstag-69037_aunt_our-sainted-aunts-prate-of-living-for-ot_1055358.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8d/nicholas-samstag-69037_aunt_our-sainted-aunts-prate-of-living-for-ot_1055358.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8d/nicholas-samstag-69037_aunt_our-sainted-aunts-prate-of-living-for-ot_1055358.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Our sainted aunts prate of living for others while our rich uncles call us mollycoddles for not fighting for…” — Nicholas Samstag",
                "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": "Nicholas Samstag",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-samstag/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Our sainted aunts prate of living...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-samstag/our-sainted-aunts-prate-of-living-for-others-while-our-rich-uncles/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-samstag/our-sainted-aunts-prate-of-living-for-others-while-our-rich-uncles/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
