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American mothers did not give their sons for the pursuit of material aims. Nor did these boys accept the idea of risking their lives for such material aims. I know — and will later tell my countrymen — that it was a spiritual crusade that led you into the war.

— Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Letter to an American (1944)

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More quotes by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral.

Pilote de Guerre (1942)

Your task is not to foresee the future, but to enable it.

Citadelle or The Wisdom of the Sands (1948)

Transport of the mails, transport of the human voice, transport of flickering pictures — in this century, as in others, our highest accomplishments still have the single aim of bringing men together.

Terre des Hommes (1939)

Human drama does not show itself on the surface of life. It is not played out in the visible world, but in the hearts of men.

Terre des Hommes (1939)

It seems to me that those who complain of man's progress confuse ends with means.

Terre des Hommes (1939)

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Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.