Mr. Smith Goes to Washington Quotes
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Source: Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
Speaker: Jefferson Smith
"You think I'm licked. You all think I'm licked. Well, I'm not licked."
You think I'm licked. You all think I'm licked. Well, I'm not licked. And I'm going to stay right here and fight for this lost cause. Even if this room gets filled with lies like these, and the Taylors and all their armies come marching into this place.
Context
This line is spoken by Jefferson Smith, played by James Stewart, in the movie Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, directed by Frank Capra (1939).
Jefferson Smith is an idealistic man who gets appointed to the Senate because the governor of his state thinks he'll be easy to manipulate. At first, he is, but when Smith catches on, he launches a day long filibuster, forcing everyone to hear his point of view. This particular quote is one of many that Mr. Smith uses to battle the corrupt political machine.
Where you've heard it
This specific line got a shout-out in the 90's cartoon Duckman, but if even that's before your time, you've most likely heard Mr. Smith's famous filibuster referenced in relation to any crusader who's trying to stick it to the man.
Pretentious Factor
If you were to drop this quote at a dinner party, would you get an in-unison "awww" or would everyone roll their eyes and never invite you back? Here it is, on a scale of 1-10.
Not pretentious at all. Mr. Smith is about as earnest as they come.