--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A man is not born to run away.\" Justice…" description: "\"“A man is not born to run away.\" Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes (1921).*”\" — Richard Maxwell Brown" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/434/richard-maxwell-brown-30686_born-to-run_a-man-is-not-born-to-run-away-justice-ol_847019.jpg" --- # A man is not born to run away." Justice Oliver Wendell… ![“A man is not born to run away." Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes (1921).*” quote by Richard Maxwell Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/434/richard-maxwell-brown-30686_born-to-run_a-man-is-not-born-to-run-away-justice-ol_847019.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/434/richard-maxwell-brown-30686_born-to-run_a-man-is-not-born-to-run-away-justice-ol_847019.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/434/richard-maxwell-brown-30686_born-to-run_a-man-is-not-born-to-run-away-justice-ol_847019.jpg) > ““A man is not born to run away." Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes (1921).\*”” [Richard Maxwell Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-maxwell-brown/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. One should not flee from responsibility; duty and courage are essential. **In simple terms:** Do not run away; face duties. Key Takeaway Embrace responsibility despite fear. Themes duty courage responsibility ethics Mood reflective determined Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - public service - legal practice - personal challenges Key Concepts moral philosophy personal integrity social contract Questions to Reflect On - What responsibilities are you avoiding? - How can you cultivate courage? A Different Perspective Fear can be paralyzing. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Born to run](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/born-to-run/) [Justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice/) ## Related quotes > [“The only simplicity for which I would give a straw is that which is on the other side of the complex—not that which never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-lucas/the-only-simplicity-for-which-i-would-give-a-straw-is-that-which-is/) [Peter Lucas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-lucas/) > [ \[Oliver Wendell\] Holmes never believed in the truth and morality of the laws he was upholding. He said, "I loathe the thick-fingered clowns we… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-rosen/oliver-wendell-holmes-never-believed-in-the-truth-and-morality-of-the/) [Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-rosen/) > [“Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes reminded us, it is a ‘less evil that some criminals should escape than that the government should play an ignoble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-lawson/justice-oliver-wendell-holmes-reminded-us-it-is-a-less-evil-that-some/) [Guy Lawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-lawson/) > [“Where we love is home—home that our feet may leave but not our hearts. —Oliver Wendell Holmes”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-j-klune/where-we-love-is-home-home-that-our-feet-may-leave-but-not-our-hearts-2/) [T.J. Klune](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-j-klune/) > [But the doctors in the past, as the review of the evidence showed, branded Jenner, Semmelweis, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr., Pasteur, Lister, Koch and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-douglas/but-the-doctors-in-the-past-as-the-review-of-the-evidence-showed/) [Paul Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-douglas/) > [There's such a kind of complicated line between politics and the law and we don't sit around and say, hey, you know, what would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dahlia-lithwick/there-s-such-a-kind-of-complicated-line-between-politics-and-the-law/) [Dahlia Lithwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dahlia-lithwick/) > [“Law, like taxes in the words of the great judge Oliver Wendell Holmes, is the price of civilization.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-p-trachtman/law-like-taxes-in-the-words-of-the-great-judge-oliver-wendell-holmes/) [Joel P. 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Cooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-b-cooney/) > [“Oliver Wendell Holmes has said, “What lies before us and what lies behind us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tracy/oliver-wendell-holmes-has-said-what-lies-before-us-and-what-lies/) [Brian Tracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tracy/) > [The highway's jammed with broken heroes on a last chance power drive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/the-highway-s-jammed-with-broken-heroes-on-a-last-chance-power-drive/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [We were born to run; we were born because we run.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-mcdougall/we-were-born-to-run-we-were-born-because-we-run/) [Christopher McDougall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-mcdougall/) ## More by Richard Maxwell Brown > [“Indeed, the tendency of the Americain iiuud seems to he very strongly against the enforcement of any rule which requires a person to flee…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-maxwell-brown/indeed-the-tendency-of-the-americain-iiuud-seems-to-he-very-strongly/) [Richard Maxwell Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-maxwell-brown/) > [“Following the Civil War, Americans began to perceive it new version of the earlier land-population-wealth crisis as an alarming trend of land consolidation and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-maxwell-brown/following-the-civil-war-americans-began-to-perceive-it-new-version-of/) [Richard Maxwell Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-maxwell-brown/) > [“Western Civil War of Incorporation”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-maxwell-brown/western-civil-war-of-incorporation/) [Richard Maxwell Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-maxwell-brown/) > [“Kearney did not go as far in geographic distance as he did in mode of livelihood: although he only went across San Francisco Bay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-maxwell-brown/kearney-did-not-go-as-far-in-geographic-distance-as-he-did-in-mode-of/) [Richard Maxwell Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-maxwell-brown/) > [“What might have developed into it great controversy in England over the duty to retreat failed to occur in the absence of conditions like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-maxwell-brown/what-might-have-developed-into-it-great-controversy-in-england-over/) [Richard Maxwell Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-maxwell-brown/) > [“Although Holmes's apothegm, "detached reflection cannot be demanded in the presence of an uplifted knife," is sometimes quoted, Holmes scholars have generally ignored the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-maxwell-brown/although-holmes-s-apothegm-detached-reflection-cannot-be-demanded-in/) [Richard Maxwell Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-maxwell-brown/) > [“The new surveillance is spearheaded by burgeoning, ever-more-sophisticated electronic means that include-among a staggering array of devices-potent lasers, parabolic microphones and other "bugs" with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-maxwell-brown/the-new-surveillance-is-spearheaded-by-burgeoning-ever-more/) [Richard Maxwell Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-maxwell-brown/) > [“A recent widely publicized case unites themes of no duty to retreat and, in individual terms, conquest and mastery. 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Corral in Tombstone, Arizona, a year and a half after the Mussel Slough shootout, took place in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-maxwell-brown/because-the-gunfight-near-the-o-k-corral-in-tombstone-arizona-a-year/) [Richard Maxwell Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-maxwell-brown/) > [“In late twentieth-century America, this "jurisprudence of lawlessness" is a bit out of (fate. While there is a vigorous victim-rights movement in our nation''…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-maxwell-brown/in-late-twentieth-century-america-this-jurisprudence-of-lawlessness/) [Richard Maxwell Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-maxwell-brown/) > [“Should your opponent threaten you, you must not defend yourself with violence until you have attempted to get away-to flee from the scene altogether.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-maxwell-brown/should-your-opponent-threaten-you-you-must-not-defend-yourself-with/) [Richard Maxwell Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-maxwell-brown/) > [“Where one, without fault is placed under circumstances sufficient to excite the fears of it reasonable man that another designs to commit it felony,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-maxwell-brown/where-one-without-fault-is-placed-under-circumstances-sufficient-to/) [Richard Maxwell Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-maxwell-brown/) > [“The particular no-duty-to-retreat walkdown that occurred in the public square of the remote southwest Missouri town of Springfield in July 1865 received national publicity,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-maxwell-brown/the-particular-no-duty-to-retreat-walkdown-that-occurred-in-the/) [Richard Maxwell Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-maxwell-brown/) [Explore all 17 Richard Maxwell Brown quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-maxwell-brown/) ## More Born to run quotes > [We were born to run; we were born because we run.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-mcdougall/we-were-born-to-run-we-were-born-because-we-run/) [Christopher McDougall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-mcdougall/) > [The highway's jammed with broken heroes on a last chance power drive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/the-highway-s-jammed-with-broken-heroes-on-a-last-chance-power-drive/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [Anytime you spend six months on a song (Born to Run), there's something not exactly going right. A song should take about three hours.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-van-zandt/anytime-you-spend-six-months-on-a-song-born-to-run-there-s-something/) [Steven Van Zandt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-van-zandt/) > [“The reason we race isn't so much to beat each other, he understood, but to be with each other.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-mcdougall/the-reason-we-race-isn-t-so-much-to-beat-each-other-he-understood-but/) [Christopher McDougall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-mcdougall/) > [“There are two goddesses in your heard. The Goddess of Wisdom and the Goddess of Wealth. Everyone thinks they need to get wealth first,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-vigil/there-are-two-goddesses-in-your-heard-the-goddess-of-wisdom-and-the/) Joe Vigil > [We're still buzzin' about Bruce Springsteen at halftime, but I'll tell you if there was one guy we weren't thinking was 'Born To Run'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-costas/we-re-still-buzzin-about-bruce-springsteen-at-halftime-but-i-ll-tell/) [Bob Costas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-costas/) > [Wendy, let me in, I wanna be your friend. I wanna guard your dreams and visions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/wendy-let-me-in-i-wanna-be-your-friend-i-wanna-guard-your-dreams-and/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I'd like my life to be like a Bruce Springsteen song. Just once. I know I'm not born to run, I know that Seven…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/i-d-like-my-life-to-be-like-a-bruce-springsteen-song-just-once-i-know/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [“As he ran next to Noriko, a thought suddenly occurred to him. The screaming, their hasty footsteps, and the officer warning them to stop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/koushun-takami/as-he-ran-next-to-noriko-a-thought-suddenly-occurred-to-him-the/) [Koushun Takami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/koushun-takami/) > [“Every day in Africa a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abe-gubegna/every-day-in-africa-a-gazelle-wakes-up-it-knows-it-must-run-faster/) Abe Gubegna > [Not everyone is born to run a $4 billion company. There is no magic formula. I've learned, and I've grown by learning. That's why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mackey/not-everyone-is-born-to-run-a-4-billion-company-there-is-no-magic/) [John Mackey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mackey/) > [Someday girl, I don't know when, were gonna get to the place where we really want to go, and we'll walk in the sun.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/someday-girl-i-don-t-know-when-were-gonna-get-to-the-place-where-we/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [In the day we sweat it out on the streets on a runaway American dream.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/in-the-day-we-sweat-it-out-on-the-streets-on-a-runaway-american-dream/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [After 'Born to Run,' I had a reaction to my good fortune. With success, it felt like a lot of people who'd come before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/after-born-to-run-i-had-a-reaction-to-my-good-fortune-with-success-it/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > ["Born To Run," that expands every time we go out. It just seems to you - more of your life fills it in, fills…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/born-to-run-that-expands-every-time-we-go-out-it-just-seems-to-you/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) [Browse all 37 Born to run quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/born-to-run/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“A man is not born to run away.\" Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes (1921).*”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Maxwell Brown" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-maxwell-brown/a-man-is-not-born-to-run-away-justice-oliver-wendell-holmes-1921/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Born to run" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-maxwell-brown/a-man-is-not-born-to-run-away-justice-oliver-wendell-holmes-1921/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/434/richard-maxwell-brown-30686_born-to-run_a-man-is-not-born-to-run-away-justice-ol_847019.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/434/richard-maxwell-brown-30686_born-to-run_a-man-is-not-born-to-run-away-justice-ol_847019.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/434/richard-maxwell-brown-30686_born-to-run_a-man-is-not-born-to-run-away-justice-ol_847019.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A man is not born to run away.\" Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes (1921).*” — Richard Maxwell Brown", "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": "Richard Maxwell Brown", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-maxwell-brown/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“A man is not born to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-maxwell-brown/a-man-is-not-born-to-run-away-justice-oliver-wendell-holmes-1921/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-maxwell-brown/a-man-is-not-born-to-run-away-justice-oliver-wendell-holmes-1921/#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 } } ] } ```