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If there is a conflict between the security of the sovereign state and the security of the human commonwealth, the human commonwealth comes first. If there is a conflict between the well-being of the nation and the well-being of humanity, the well-being of humanity comes first. If there is a conflict between the needs of this generation and the needs of all later generations, the needs of the later generations come first. If there is a conflict between public edict and private conscience, private conscience comes first. If there is a conflict between the easy drift of prosperity and the ordeal of peace, the ordeal of peace comes first.

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Feb 04, 2026

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Quote Author: Lionel Trilling

Lionel Trilling

Lionel Trilling

Lionel Trilling (July 4, 1905 - November 5, 1975) was an American literary critic, author, and teacher. Trilling was a member of the group known as "The New York Intellectuals" and was a frequent contributor to the Partisan Review . Although he never established a new school of literary criticism, he is viewed as one of the great literary critics of the twentieth century for his ability to trace the cultural, social, and political implications of the literature of his time.

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