--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The soldier does not wish to appear a…" description: "\"The soldier does not wish to appear a coward, disloyal, or un-American. The situation has been so defined that he can see himself as patriotic, courage..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/936/stanley-milgram-22480_compliance_the-soldier-does-not-wish-to-appear-a-co_1259112.jpg" --- # The soldier does not wish to appear a coward, disloyal, or… ![“The soldier does not wish to appear a coward, disloyal, or un-American. The situation has been so defined that he can see himself as patriotic, courageous, and manly only through compliance.” quote by Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/936/stanley-milgram-22480_compliance_the-soldier-does-not-wish-to-appear-a-co_1259112.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/936/stanley-milgram-22480_compliance_the-soldier-does-not-wish-to-appear-a-co_1259112.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/936/stanley-milgram-22480_compliance_the-soldier-does-not-wish-to-appear-a-co_1259112.jpg) > “The soldier does not wish to appear a coward, disloyal, or un-American. The situation has been so defined that he can see himself as patriotic, courageous, and manly only through compliance.” [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Soldiers conform to patriotic identity only when compliance is defined, revealing how authority shapes self‑perception **In simple terms:** Compliance shapes identity under authority Key Takeaway Question authority and define personal values Themes authority identity conformity Mood critical serious Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - military training - workplace culture - political movements - education curricula Key Concepts social psychology military ethics Questions to Reflect On - When have you followed a role you didn't truly endorse? - What mechanisms protect personal integrity? A Different Perspective Blind compliance can suppress individuality ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Compliance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compliance/) [Courageous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courageous/) [Disloyal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disloyal/) [Manly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/manly/) [Patriotic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patriotic/) [Patriotism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patriotism/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [Soldier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soldier/) [Wish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wish/) ## Related quotes > [“I’ve never understood how using a high-powered rifle to kill an unsuspecting animal from a safe distance makes some feel courageous and manly. People…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilkie-martin/i-ve-never-understood-how-using-a-high-powered-rifle-to-kill-an/) [Wilkie Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilkie-martin/) > [I wonder if a soldier ever does mend a bullet hole in his coat?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clara-barton/i-wonder-if-a-soldier-ever-does-mend-a-bullet-hole-in-his-coat/) [Clara Barton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clara-barton/) > [“to any soldier, what he does is tactical and what his next senior does is strategic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-c-wylie/to-any-soldier-what-he-does-is-tactical-and-what-his-next-senior-does/) [J.C. Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-c-wylie/) > [A true soldier does not argue as he marches, how success is going to be ultimately achieved. But he is confident that if he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/a-true-soldier-does-not-argue-as-he-marches-how-success-is-going-to/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [Truth-telling to Congress and the public is not disloyal in America: it is an expression of the higher loyalty officials owe to the Constitution,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-ellsberg/truth-telling-to-congress-and-the-public-is-not-disloyal-in-america/) [Daniel Ellsberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-ellsberg/) > [There's the most resistance to an actor singing. It's like I'm being disloyal to my industry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-bacon/there-s-the-most-resistance-to-an-actor-singing-it-s-like-i-m-being/) [Kevin Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-bacon/) > [I adored my birth father and constantly worried that I was being disloyal to him and his schoolteacher roots if I spent too much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-andrews/i-adored-my-birth-father-and-constantly-worried-that-i-was-being/) [Julie Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-andrews/) > [How can we feel our need of His help, or our dependence on Him, or our debt to Him, or the nature of His…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-henry-newman/how-can-we-feel-our-need-of-his-help-or-our-dependence-on-him-or-our/) [John Henry Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-henry-newman/) > [The United States has tried for years to live down President Franklin D. Roosevelt's order during World War II to move Japanese-Americans on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-thomas/the-united-states-has-tried-for-years-to-live-down-president-franklin/) [Helen Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-thomas/) > [AOC is divisive and disloyal to her own party.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-devine/aoc-is-divisive-and-disloyal-to-her-own-party/) [Miranda Devine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-devine/) > [We must not confuse dissent with disloyalty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-r-murrow/we-must-not-confuse-dissent-with-disloyalty/) [Edward R. Murrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-r-murrow/) > [Love is not selfish or unkind. Nor is it boastful or disloyal. Love is simply a deep feeling found within the heart that money…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/april-haney/love-is-not-selfish-or-unkind-nor-is-it-boastful-or-disloyal-love-is/) April Haney > [As Asian-Americans, the charge that is often lobbed against us is sort of the least original: the idea that somehow we're perpetual foreigners, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-henry-hwang/as-asian-americans-the-charge-that-is-often-lobbed-against-us-is-sort/) [David Henry Hwang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-henry-hwang/) > [The Emancipation Proclamation is predicated upon the idea that the President may so annul the constitutions and laws of sovereign states, overthrow their domestic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melville-fuller/the-emancipation-proclamation-is-predicated-upon-the-idea-that-the/) [Melville Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melville-fuller/) > [In one consort there sat cruel revenge and rancorous despite, disloyal treason and heart-burning hate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-spenser/in-one-consort-there-sat-cruel-revenge-and-rancorous-despite-disloyal/) [Edmund Spenser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-spenser/) ## More by Stanley Milgram > [I started with the belief that every person who came to the laboratory was free to accept or to reject the dictates of authority.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/i-started-with-the-belief-that-every-person-who-came-to-the/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [Obedience is the psychological mechanism that links individual action to political purpose. It is the dispositional cement that binds men to systems of authority.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/obedience-is-the-psychological-mechanism-that-links-individual-action/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [It may be that we are puppets-puppets controlled by the strings of society. But at least we are puppets with perception, with awareness. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/it-may-be-that-we-are-puppets-puppets-controlled-by-the-strings-of/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [When an individual wishes to stand in opposition to authority, he does best to find support for his position from others in his group.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/when-an-individual-wishes-to-stand-in-opposition-to-authority-he-does/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [Relatively few people have the resources needed to resist authority.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/relatively-few-people-have-the-resources-needed-to-resist-authority/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [Each individual possesses a conscience which to a greater or lesser degree serves to restrain the unimpeded flow of impulses destructive to others. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/each-individual-possesses-a-conscience-which-to-a-greater-or-lesser/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [“It has been reliably established that from 1933 to 1945 millions of innocent people were systematically slaughtered on command. Gas chambers were built, death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/it-has-been-reliably-established-that-from-1933-to-1945-millions-of/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [I would say, on the basis of having observe a thousand people in the experiment and having my own intuition shaped and informed by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/i-would-say-on-the-basis-of-having-observe-a-thousand-people-in-the/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [The state produced in the laboratory may be likened to a light doze, compared to the profound slumber induced by the preponent authority system…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/the-state-produced-in-the-laboratory-may-be-likened-to-a-light-doze/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [The essence in obedience consists in the fact that a person comes to view himself as an instrument for carrying out another person's wishes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/the-essence-in-obedience-consists-in-the-fact-that-a-person-comes-to/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [The disappearance of a sense of responsibility is the most far-reaching consequence of submission to authority.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/the-disappearance-of-a-sense-of-responsibility-is-the-most-far/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [Although a person acting under authority performs actions that seem to violate standards of conscience, it would not be true to say that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/although-a-person-acting-under-authority-performs-actions-that-seem/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [Some system of authority is a requirement of all communal living, and it is only the man dwelling in isolation who is not forced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/some-system-of-authority-is-a-requirement-of-all-communal-living-and/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [And perhaps our awareness is the first step to our liberation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/and-perhaps-our-awareness-is-the-first-step-to-our-liberation/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [A substantial proportion of people do what they are told to do, irrespective of the content of the act, and without pangs of conscience,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/a-substantial-proportion-of-people-do-what-they-are-told-to-do/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) [Explore all 27 Stanley Milgram quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) ## More Compliance quotes > [The most influential people strive for genuine buy-in and commitment - they don't rely on compliance techniques that only secure short-term persuasion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-goulston/the-most-influential-people-strive-for-genuine-buy-in-and-commitment/) [Mark Goulston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-goulston/) > [It is important that New York City is in compliance with international criminal law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zohran-mamdani/it-is-important-that-new-york-city-is-in-compliance-with/) [Zohran Mamdani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zohran-mamdani/) > [The public, investors and stakeholders now expect higher standards of tax compliance and more transparency from large businesses about the way they approach taxation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-gauke/the-public-investors-and-stakeholders-now-expect-higher-standards-of/) [David Gauke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-gauke/) > [An uprising would punish only the country, and that is out of the question. But there is yet another approach, the most effectiveform of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-grillparzer/an-uprising-would-punish-only-the-country-and-that-is-out-of-the/) [Franz Grillparzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-grillparzer/) > [Melania Trump posted on Twitter -I have at all times been in full compliance with the immigration laws of this country. It's the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melania-trump/melania-trump-posted-on-twitter-i-have-at-all-times-been-in-full/) [Melania Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melania-trump/) > [ The cost of taxpayer compliance with \[the tax code\] is over $80 billion per year, more than eight times the cost of the IRS budget ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-o-rossotti/the-cost-of-taxpayer-compliance-with-the-tax-code-is-over-80-billion/) Charles O. Rossotti > [Acting after being asked is compliance. Acting without being asked is kindness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-kaufman/acting-after-being-asked-is-compliance-acting-without-being-asked-is/) [Ron Kaufman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-kaufman/) > [We rely on our voter registration studies to warn states that they are failing to comply with the requirements of the National Voter Registration…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-fitton/we-rely-on-our-voter-registration-studies-to-warn-states-that-they/) [Tom Fitton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-fitton/) > [“We need people who push boundaries rather than retreat inside them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-fargo/we-need-people-who-push-boundaries-rather-than-retreat-inside-them/) [Tim Fargo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-fargo/) > [We are looking for targets that have a tremendous strategic fit for the company. The colleges must have complementary education programs, have an excellent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-larson/we-are-looking-for-targets-that-have-a-tremendous-strategic-fit-for/) John Larson > [If we speak calmly, in a businesslike fashion, let me draw your attention to the fact that Russia supplies arms to the legitimate government…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/if-we-speak-calmly-in-a-businesslike-fashion-let-me-draw-your/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [As American taxpayers know too well, the tax code is incredibly complex and compliance is all to expensive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-ramstad/as-american-taxpayers-know-too-well-the-tax-code-is-incredibly/) [Jim Ramstad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-ramstad/) > [The man who submits to violence is debased by his compliance; but when he submits to that right of authority which he acknowledges in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/the-man-who-submits-to-violence-is-debased-by-his-compliance-but-when/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [“Company leaders should understand regulatory compliance because it is crucial for maintaining legal and ethical business practices. A comprehensive understanding of compliance ensures they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hendrith-vanlon-smith-jr/company-leaders-should-understand-regulatory-compliance-because-it-is/) [Hendrith Vanlon Smith Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hendrith-vanlon-smith-jr/) > [Ensure compliance and be responsive to the feedback.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-mclellan/ensure-compliance-and-be-responsive-to-the-feedback/) [Anne McLellan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-mclellan/) [Browse all 176 Compliance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compliance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The soldier does not wish to appear a coward, disloyal, or un-American. 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