According to Frederic Prokosch, in his Voices: A Memoir (1983), this was once said to him by Housman.
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In every American there is an air of incorrigible innocence, which seems to conceal a diabolical cunning.

— A. E. Housman

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "In every American there is an air of incorrigible innocence, which seems to conceal a diabolical cunning." in the context of "According to Frederic Prokosch, in his Voices: A Memoir (1983), this was once said to him by Housman." to mean that wisdom is timeless.

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Source: Wikiquote: "A. E. Housman" (Attributed) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
A. E. Housman

About A. E. Housman

Alfred Edward Housman (26 March 1859 – 30 April 1936), usually known as A.E. Housman, was an English poet and classical scholar, now best known for his cycle of poems A Shropshire Lad.