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Who really said it

The only way to abolish war is to make peace heroic

Hinton’s idea — repeated by Dewey James Hinton Writer on philosophy and religion
Disputed Free to reuse

The earlier thought is James Hinton’s. Dewey repeats it in Human Nature and Conduct while explicitly naming Hinton, so a claim that Dewey never used the idea would be wrong. The displayed slogan is a compact recasting of Dewey’s acknowledgment.

Last verified 9 Nov 2026 · how we verify · spot an error?

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Disputed credit — copy with the correction

“The only way to abolish war is to make peace heroic” James Hinton — Philosophy and Religion: Selections from the Manuscripts of the Late James Hinton (Edited by Caroline Haddon, 2nd ed. London: Kegan Paul, Trench & Co., 1884, p. 267). Attribution or wording remains qualified; see source notes. · Verbatim: “In order to get rid of war we must make peace heroic.”

The slide-ready mistake: crediting Dewey as the originator. He repeated Hinton’s idea; the compact search slogan differs from both documented passages.

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Free to use, including in commercial and paid presentations — no permission or licence needed.

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In context

Evoking the world of James Hinton — Writer on philosophy and religion. Theme: "The only way to abolish war is to make peace heroic". Atmospheric and restrained, cinematic directional light, a muted period-appropriate palette, fine grain and texture. Compose with generous empty space for the quote and a small credit line. No lettering in the image itself.

Minimalist

Minimalist editorial slide for the quote "The only way to abolish war is to make peace heroic". Clean background, a single muted accent color, generous negative space, subtle paper or linen texture, no literal illustration — let the words carry it. Reserve clear space for a serif quote and a small credit line. No lettering in the image itself.

Provenance

The source

Work
Philosophy and Religion: Selections from the Manuscripts of the Late James Hinton
Location
Edited by Caroline Haddon, 2nd ed. London: Kegan Paul, Trench & Co., 1884, p. 267

In order to get rid of war we must make peace heroic.

This is Hinton’s actual formulation in the 1884 scan. Dewey later restates it while naming him; the displayed standalone slogan is not the exact wording of this Hinton passage.

Read the documented source

How we verified this

Public domain

The documented text comes from a work published before 1931 and is public domain in the United States.

Rights status is our research, not legal advice — and copyright varies by country and edition. For commercial or published use, confirm with the rightsholder. See terms.

Fact-check

Dewey names his source

Dewey did use the idea while explicitly attributing it to Hinton. The familiar standalone sentence compresses that acknowledgment.

John Dewey Repeater, not originator

In Human Nature and Conduct ↗, Dewey introduces the idea by naming Hinton. The 1884 Hinton text ↗ contains the earlier thought with different wording.

Hinton supplies the earlier formulation; Dewey’s 1922 passage ↗ openly acknowledges him. Neither source prints the search slogan as an isolated verbatim Hinton sentence.

Context

Why it mattered

Hinton argues that ordinary life should acquire the devotion and courage associated with war. Dewey applies this argument to the social conditions that channel human impulses, rather than proposing a purely verbal appeal for peace.

Explore

Filed under

More provenance-checked quotes on the same theme, each with its reuse status.

Courage Justice Change

Go further

Dig deeper

Trusted places to keep pulling the thread — primary archives, fact-checks, and scholarship. We show how we used each one before you leave.

1884 Hinton primary textarchive.org

The second-edition title page dates the volume to 1884, and page 267 contains Hinton’s formulation.
Dewey’s 1922 primary textwww.gutenberg.org

Dewey names Hinton before restating the idea in Human Nature and Conduct.
Wikiquote attribution noteen.wikiquote.org

Wikiquote attributes the idea to Hinton and explains Dewey’s explicit acknowledgment.

The author

About James Hinton

James Hinton

Writer on philosophy and religion

James Hinton wrote on philosophy, religion, and ethics. Caroline Haddon edited the posthumous manuscript selections used for this record.

For writers & researchers

Cite this

The primary source (Chicago)

James Hinton. Philosophy and Religion: Selections from the Manuscripts of the Late James Hinton. Edited by Caroline Haddon, 2nd ed. London: Kegan Paul, Trench & Co., 1884, p. 267.

This verification page

Quotle.info. “Who really said ‘The only way to abolish war is to make peace heroic’?” Last verified 9 Nov 2026. https://quotle.info/who-said/the-only-way-to-abolish-war-is-to-make-peace-heroic/

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