--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When the war (WWI) finally ended it was…" description: "\"“When the war (WWI) finally ended it was necessary for both sides to maintain, indeed even to inflate, the myth of sacrifice so that the whole affair w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a47/robert-hughes-9113_affair_when-the-war-wwi-finally-ended-it-was-ne_3074956.jpg" --- # When the war (WWI) finally ended it was necessary for both… ![“When the war (WWI) finally ended it was necessary for both sides to maintain, indeed even to inflate, the myth of sacrifice so that the whole affair would not be seen for what it was: a meaningless waste of millions of lives. Logically, if the flower of youth had been cut down in Flanders, the…” quote by Robert Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a47/robert-hughes-9113_affair_when-the-war-wwi-finally-ended-it-was-ne_3074956.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a47/robert-hughes-9113_affair_when-the-war-wwi-finally-ended-it-was-ne_3074956.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a47/robert-hughes-9113_affair_when-the-war-wwi-finally-ended-it-was-ne_3074956.jpg) > ““When the war (WWI) finally ended it was necessary for both sides to maintain, indeed even to inflate, the myth of sacrifice so that the whole affair would not be seen for what it was: a meaningless waste of millions of lives. Logically, if the flower of youth had been cut down in Flanders, the survivors were not the flower: the dead were superior to the traumatized living. In this way, the virtual destruction of a generation further increased the distance between the old and the young, between the official and the unofficial.”” [Robert Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hughes/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. After WWI, societies inflated the sacrifice myth to mask the war’s senseless loss, creating a generational divide between survivors and the dead. **In simple terms:** War’s waste was hidden by glorifying sacrifice. Key Takeaway Recognize myths that conceal tragedy. Themes war memory mythmaking Mood critical somber Type historical philosophical When to use this quote - education curricula - memorial design - public debates - family storytelling Key Concepts historical narrative psychology political discourse Questions to Reflect On - Why do societies cling to heroic war narratives? - How does this myth affect younger generations? A Different Perspective Myths can simplify complex grief, hindering honest healing. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Affair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affair/) [Both sides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/both-sides/) [Cut Flanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cut-flanders-5219608/) [Cutting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cutting/) [Destruction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destruction/) [Distance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distance/) [Flanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flanders/) [Flanders Survivors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flanders-survivors-5219606/) [Flower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flower/) [Generations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generations/) [Glory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/glory/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Meaningless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meaningless/) [Millions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/millions/) [Myth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/myth/) [Myth Sacrifice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/myth-sacrifice-2689171/) [Officials](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/officials/) [Sacrifice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sacrifice/) [Sides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sides/) [Superiors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/superiors/) [Survivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/survivor/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [Waste](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waste/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Whole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whole/) [Wwi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wwi/) [Wwi Finally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wwi-finally-5219607/) [Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young/) [Youth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/youth/) ## Related quotes > [“The quintessential emblem of religion — and the clearest manifestation of the perversity that lies at its core — is the sacrifice of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-greenblatt/the-quintessential-emblem-of-religion-and-the-clearest-manifestation/) [Stephen Greenblatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-greenblatt/) > [In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row, That mark our place, and in the sky, The larks, still bravely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mccrae/in-flanders-fields-the-poppies-blow-between-the-crosses-row-on-row/) [John McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mccrae/) > [Thus the liberties of Holland and Flanders waxed, daily, stronger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lothrop-motley/thus-the-liberties-of-holland-and-flanders-waxed-daily-stronger/) [John Lothrop Motley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lothrop-motley/) > [If God had intended us to fly, he'd have never given us railways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-flanders/if-god-had-intended-us-to-fly-he-d-have-never-given-us-railways/) [Michael Flanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-flanders/) > [Under the tropic is our language spoke, And part of Flanders hath receiv'd our yoke.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-waller/under-the-tropic-is-our-language-spoke-and-part-of-flanders-hath/) [Edmund Waller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-waller/) > [“The crowd listened all the more closely for having waited and despaired, especially since this time the bells, ringing softly, demanded a deeper hush.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-rodenbach/the-crowd-listened-all-the-more-closely-for-having-waited-and/) [Georges Rodenbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-rodenbach/) > [“I’ll find out who’s inside. Wait here and keep alert!’ Hallam rasped. He skirted the main path to skulk towards one of the shuttered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cook/i-ll-find-out-who-s-inside-wait-here-and-keep-alert-hallam-rasped-he/) [David Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cook/) > [In later years, it was common, and I was guilty in this respect, to question the motives of those who joined the new British…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-lemass/in-later-years-it-was-common-and-i-was-guilty-in-this-respect-to/) [Sean Lemass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-lemass/) > [“It was van Hulle who had been the initiator of this restoration of their ancestral language to its former glory as a means of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-rodenbach/it-was-van-hulle-who-had-been-the-initiator-of-this-restoration-of/) [Georges Rodenbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-rodenbach/) > [We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lie In Flanders fields.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mccrae/we-lived-felt-dawn-saw-sunset-glow-loved-and-were-loved-and-now-we/) [John McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mccrae/) > [All these mountains of Irish dead, all these corpses mangled beyond recognition, all these arms, legs, eyes, ears, fingers, toes, hands, all these shivering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-connolly/all-these-mountains-of-irish-dead-all-these-corpses-mangled-beyond/) [James Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-connolly/) > [Always be sincere, whether you mean it or not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-flanders/always-be-sincere-whether-you-mean-it-or-not/) [Michael Flanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-flanders/) > [In Flanders fields the poppies blow,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mccrae/in-flanders-fields-the-poppies-blow/) [John McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mccrae/) > [Architectural kitsch is most common in the commercial pop vernacular - typified by the Big Duck of 1931 in Flanders, New York, a Long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-filler/architectural-kitsch-is-most-common-in-the-commercial-pop-vernacular/) [Martin Filler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-filler/) > [You have sent me a Flanders mare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-viii-of-england/you-have-sent-me-a-flanders-mare/) [Henry VIII of England](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-viii-of-england/) ## More by Robert Hughes > [“Most of the time they buy what other people buy. 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Not even Gaudi, who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hughes/one-thing-is-sure-the-sagrada-familia-is-the-first-catholic-temple/) [Robert Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hughes/) > [What strip mining is to nature the art market has become to culture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hughes/what-strip-mining-is-to-nature-the-art-market-has-become-to-culture/) [Robert Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hughes/) > [For the machine meant the conquest of horizontal space. It also meant a sense of that space which few people had experienced before –…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hughes/for-the-machine-meant-the-conquest-of-horizontal-space-it-also-meant/) [Robert Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hughes/) > [It was a secular cathedral, dedicated to the rites of travel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hughes/it-was-a-secular-cathedral-dedicated-to-the-rites-of-travel/) [Robert Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hughes/) > [“The World's Fair audience tended to think of the machine as unqualifiedly good, strong, stupid and obedient. They thought of it as a giant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hughes/the-world-s-fair-audience-tended-to-think-of-the-machine-as/) [Robert Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hughes/) > [What has our culture lost in 1980 that the avant-garde had in 1890? Ebullience, idealism, confidence, the belief that there was plenty of territory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hughes/what-has-our-culture-lost-in-1980-that-the-avant-garde-had-in-1890/) [Robert Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hughes/) > [On the whole, money does artists much more good than harm. The idea that one benefits from cold water, crusts and debt collectors is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hughes/on-the-whole-money-does-artists-much-more-good-than-harm-the-idea/) [Robert Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hughes/) > [Popular in our time, unpopular in his. So runs the stereotype of rejected genius.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hughes/popular-in-our-time-unpopular-in-his-so-runs-the-stereotype-of/) [Robert Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hughes/) [Explore all 75 Robert Hughes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hughes/) ## More Affair quotes > [Histories never conclude; they just pause their prose. Their stories are, if they are truthful, untidy affairs, resistant to windings-up and sortings-out. They beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/histories-never-conclude-they-just-pause-their-prose-their-stories/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [Islam never differentiates between men and women as regards political rights and puts them on an equal footing. 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