Who said it? (quote of the week 2025, no.4 )

“Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.”

"You don't reason with intellectuals. You shoot them."

"History is an agreed-upon lie."

"The leader deals in hope (as does the dope dealer )"

"If you fear defeat, you will surely lose."

"Death I can endure. Buit to live conquered and humiliated is unbearable."

"In war, as in prostitution, amateurs are often better than professionals."

For other posts in this "quote of the week" series, click here:
https://blog.bestamericanpoetry.com/the_best_american_poetry/quote-of-the-week/

[Picture -- Franz Kline with one of his canvases -- contains no hints or clues.]

Comments

[David Lehman]

Are all Italian women as graceful as you? "Not all, but la buona parte [a good many]" from Freud's Jokes and Their Relation to the Unconscous.

[Jacqueline L.]

The editor deals in typos.

Good list, very timely. History is cyclical, and here it is again. Let your enemy blather. You don't have to listen.

[That's Not My Neighbor]

Interestingly, this article juxtaposes Franz Kline with such strategic and political statements. Kline was an abstract painter, why is he included in this context? Is there a hidden connection between art and the philosophy of war and leadership? Or is this simply a random pairing?

[David Lehman]

Great question regarding the relation of Franz Kline to the statements, all of them attributed to Napoleon. It was "simply a random pairing," but I have no doubt that one could write a compelling essay exploring the relation of Kline's black-and-white pictures to, say, "History is an agreed-upon lie."