--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It strikes me, sir, that you are nearing…" description: "\"“It strikes me, sir, that you are nearing the point where even a grateful American might tell you to go to the devil.-Nero Wolfe to an FBI Agent”\" — Re..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/80e/rex-stout-2846_devil_it-strikes-me-sir-that-you-are-nearing-t_2948591.png" --- # It strikes me, sir, that you are nearing the point where… ![“It strikes me, sir, that you are nearing the point where even a grateful American might tell you to go to the devil.-Nero Wolfe to an FBI Agent” quote by Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/80e/rex-stout-2846_devil_it-strikes-me-sir-that-you-are-nearing-t_2948591.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/80e/rex-stout-2846_devil_it-strikes-me-sir-that-you-are-nearing-t_2948591.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/80e/rex-stout-2846_devil_it-strikes-me-sir-that-you-are-nearing-t_2948591.png) > ““It strikes me, sir, that you are nearing the point where even a grateful American might tell you to go to the devil.-Nero Wolfe to an FBI Agent”” [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Even a grateful American may criticize authority when it approaches moral limits, highlighting the tension between loyalty and conscience. **In simple terms:** Criticism can arise despite gratitude. Key Takeaway Question authority when needed. Themes ethics loyalty power conscience Mood serious reflective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - political discourse - legal contexts - personal relationships Key Concepts moral courage political critique personal integrity Questions to Reflect On - When should gratitude yield to moral objection? - How do you balance respect and truth? A Different Perspective Blind loyalty can suppress necessary dissent. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Devil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devil/) [Devil Nero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devil-nero-4432493/) [Fbi Agent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fbi-agent-683590/) [Nero Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nero-wolfe-1648299/) [Tell Devil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tell-devil-287836/) [Wolfe Fbi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wolfe-fbi-4432492/) ## Related quotes > [“Women don't require motives that are comprehensible to my intellectual processes. (Nero Wolfe)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/women-don-t-require-motives-that-are-comprehensible-to-my-2/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [“Only the man that knows to little, knows too much." Nero Wolfe”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/only-the-man-that-knows-to-little-knows-too-much-nero-wolfe/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [I try to know what I need to know. I make sure to know what I want to know. (Nero Wolfe)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/i-try-to-know-what-i-need-to-know-i-make-sure-to-know-what-i-want-to/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [“I have undertaken to to find an explanation for something that can't possibly be explained-Nero Wolfe”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/i-have-undertaken-to-to-find-an-explanation-for-something-that-can-t/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [“More people saying what they believe would be a great improvement. Because I often do I am unfit for common intercourse.-Nero Wolfe in "Blood…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/more-people-saying-what-they-believe-would-be-a-great-improvement/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [ “Mrs. Rachel Bruner: \[trying to goad Wolfe\] I thought you were afraid of nobody and nothing. Nero Wolfe: \[unruffled\] I can dodge folly without… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/mrs-rachel-bruner-trying-to-goad-wolfe-i-thought-you-were-afraid-of/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [Tell the devil to go to hell... that's where he belongs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-hart/tell-the-devil-to-go-to-hell-that-s-where-he-belongs/) [Mark Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-hart/) > [“I knew how to use a dictionary, and if I was going to be spending time around Nero Wolfe, I would have to buy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-knew-how-to-use-a-dictionary-and-if-i-was-going-to-be-spending-time/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I've always believed in the Nero Wolfe theory of knowledge. You can just sit quietly in your room - according to Pascal, the activity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/i-ve-always-believed-in-the-nero-wolfe-theory-of-knowledge-you-can/) [Katha Pollitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/) > [“How can you tell when the devil is lying? His lips are moving.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-groeschel/how-can-you-tell-when-the-devil-is-lying-his-lips-are-moving/) [Craig Groeschel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-groeschel/) > [This dark cloud is still around, My thoughts wander in and out. And if I die before I wake, Tell the Devil I'm on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/falling-in-reverse/this-dark-cloud-is-still-around-my-thoughts-wander-in-and-out-and-if/) [Falling In Reverse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/falling-in-reverse/) > [A brave man is a man who dares to look the Devil in the face and tell him he is a Devil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/a-brave-man-is-a-man-who-dares-to-look-the-devil-in-the-face-and-tell/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [When your goin threw hell tell the devil I'm Just passing threw and keep going…heaven will find you](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/india-ardoin/when-your-goin-threw-hell-tell-the-devil-i-m-just-passing-threw-and/) [India Ardoin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/india-ardoin/) > [Tell the devil I said hey , when you get back to where your from.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-mars/tell-the-devil-i-said-hey-when-you-get-back-to-where-your-from/) [Bruno Mars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-mars/) > [“So tell me, if you’re the Devil, what does that make me?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-cole/so-tell-me-if-you-re-the-devil-what-does-that-make-me/) [Daniel Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-cole/) ## More by Rex Stout > [A person who does not read cannot think. He may have good mental processes, but he has nothing to think about. You can feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/a-person-who-does-not-read-cannot-think-he-may-have-good-mental/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [If I'm home with no chore at hand, and a package of books has come, the television set and the chess board and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/if-i-m-home-with-no-chore-at-hand-and-a-package-of-books-has-come-the/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [To say that man is a reasoning animal is a very different thing than to say that most of man's decisions are based on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/to-say-that-man-is-a-reasoning-animal-is-a-very-different-thing-than/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [“Frankly, I wish I could make my heart quit doing an extra thump when Wolfe says satisfactory, Archie. It's childish.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/frankly-i-wish-i-could-make-my-heart-quit-doing-an-extra-thump-when/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [What good is an obscenity trial except to popularize literature?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/what-good-is-an-obscenity-trial-except-to-popularize-literature/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [In a world that operates largely at random, coincidences are to be expected, but any one of them must always be mistrusted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/in-a-world-that-operates-largely-at-random-coincidences-are-to-be/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [“everything from war to picnics depends on the weather, as Wolfe remarked”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/everything-from-war-to-picnics-depends-on-the-weather-as-wolfe/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [The more you put in your brain, the more it will hold -- if you have one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/the-more-you-put-in-your-brain-the-more-it-will-hold-if-you-have-one/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [“When we turned right on Thirty-fifth Street our suffix came along. By the time we rolled to the curb in front of Wolfe's house…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/when-we-turned-right-on-thirty-fifth-street-our-suffix-came-along-by/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [What the tongue has promised, the body must submit to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/what-the-tongue-has-promised-the-body-must-submit-to/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [The Glass Key is better than anything Hemingway ever wrote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/the-glass-key-is-better-than-anything-hemingway-ever-wrote/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [Genius is fine for the ignition spark, but to get there someone has to see that the radiator doesn't leak and no tire is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/genius-is-fine-for-the-ignition-spark-but-to-get-there-someone-has-to/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [A Dickens character to me is a theatrical projection of a character. Not that it isn't real. It's real, but in that removed sense.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/a-dickens-character-to-me-is-a-theatrical-projection-of-a-character/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [“To pronounce French properly you must have within you a deep antipathy, not to say scorn, for some of the most sacred of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/to-pronounce-french-properly-you-must-have-within-you-a-deep/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [A man may debar nonsense from his library of reason, but not from the arena of his impulses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/a-man-may-debar-nonsense-from-his-library-of-reason-but-not-from-the/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) [Explore all 148 Rex Stout quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) ## More Devil quotes > [“The Devil can cite Scripture for his purpose, Sergeant,’ Anthony Payne replied. ‘That is from The Merchant of Venice, but it holds great truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-arnold/the-devil-can-cite-scripture-for-his-purpose-sergeant-anthony-payne/) [Michael Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-arnold/) > [Alimony - the ransom that the happy pay to the devil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/alimony-the-ransom-that-the-happy-pay-to-the-devil/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [“Beauty is not only a terrible thing, it is also a mysterious thing. There God and the Devil strive for mastery, and the battleground…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/beauty-is-not-only-a-terrible-thing-it-is-also-a-mysterious-thing/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [The devil has been defeated, stop trying to defeat him. What we have left is the fight of faith, and it's a good fight!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-oyakhilome/the-devil-has-been-defeated-stop-trying-to-defeat-him-what-we-have/) [Chris Oyakhilome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-oyakhilome/) > [You gonna take the case?" It's not a case. It's a missing person. Sort of." You're gonna have a devil of a time finding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-evanovich/you-gonna-take-the-case-it-s-not-a-case-it-s-a-missing-person-sort-of/) [Janet Evanovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-evanovich/) > [Your head's like mine, like all our heads; big enough to contain every god and devil there ever was. Big enough to hold the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grant-morrison/your-head-s-like-mine-like-all-our-heads-big-enough-to-contain-every/) [Grant Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grant-morrison/) > [And so it is, that both the Devil and the angelic Spirit present us with objects of desire to awaken our power of choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/and-so-it-is-that-both-the-devil-and-the-angelic-spirit-present-us/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Remember that Abraham Lincoln was a Whig far longer than he was a Republican. As a whole, the Whigs looked upon banks and corporations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-c-guelzo/remember-that-abraham-lincoln-was-a-whig-far-longer-than-he-was-a/) [Allen C. Guelzo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-c-guelzo/) > [Wine is the first weapon that devils use in attacking the young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-jerome/wine-is-the-first-weapon-that-devils-use-in-attacking-the-young/) [St. Jerome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-jerome/) > [“I tend to agree with that little devil more and more these days.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-casey/i-tend-to-agree-with-that-little-devil-more-and-more-these-days/) [Elle Casey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-casey/) > [This is the gift of your species and this is the danger, because you do not choose to control your imaginings. You imagine wonderful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-crichton/this-is-the-gift-of-your-species-and-this-is-the-danger-because-you/) [Michael Crichton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-crichton/) > [“The devil?” Jason heaved the tick over his shoulder like a collier with his sack. “Satan. The adversary. The enemy of the plan of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/the-devil-jason-heaved-the-tick-over-his-shoulder-like-a-collier-with/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [God never talks. But the devil keeps advertising, Father. The devil does a lot of commercials.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-peter-blatty/god-never-talks-but-the-devil-keeps-advertising-father-the-devil-does/) [William Peter Blatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-peter-blatty/) > [If it was a sin for you to choose me . . . then I would go to the Devil himself and bless him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-gabaldon/if-it-was-a-sin-for-you-to-choose-me-then-i-would-go-to-the-devil/) [Diana Gabaldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-gabaldon/) > [“The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist”—Charles Baudelaire “The second greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-baudelaire/the-greatest-trick-the-devil-ever-pulled-was-convincing-the-world-he/) [Charles Baudelaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-baudelaire/) [Browse all 4,283 Devil quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devil/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It strikes me, sir, that you are nearing the point where even a grateful American might tell you to go to the devil.-Nero Wolfe to an FBI Agent”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Rex Stout" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/it-strikes-me-sir-that-you-are-nearing-the-point-where-even-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Devil" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/it-strikes-me-sir-that-you-are-nearing-the-point-where-even-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/80e/rex-stout-2846_devil_it-strikes-me-sir-that-you-are-nearing-t_2948591.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/80e/rex-stout-2846_devil_it-strikes-me-sir-that-you-are-nearing-t_2948591.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/80e/rex-stout-2846_devil_it-strikes-me-sir-that-you-are-nearing-t_2948591.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It strikes me, sir, that you are nearing the point where even a grateful American might tell you to go to…” — Rex Stout", "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": "Rex Stout", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“It strikes me, sir, that you...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/it-strikes-me-sir-that-you-are-nearing-the-point-where-even-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/it-strikes-me-sir-that-you-are-nearing-the-point-where-even-a/#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 } } ] } ```