What we want is to see the child in pursuit of knowledge, and not knowledge in pursuit of the child.
Men are not governed by justice, but by law or persuasion. When they refuse to be governed by law or persuasion, they have to be governed by force or fraud, or both.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote suggests that human behavior is shaped more by laws and persuasion than by a sense of justice.
George Bernard Shaw's quote highlights the complexities of human governance and societal order. It implies that while justice should ideally guide individuals' actions, in reality, humans are more effectively influenced by laws or persuasive arguments. When these fail to govern behavior, individuals resort to force or deceit, indicating a breakdown in moral and ethical considerations. This statement reflects on the nature of authority and the reasons behind human compliance or rebellion.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
To discuss the challenges of maintaining order in a society, especially in a political debate.
More from George Bernard Shaw
All quotes →Marriage is good enough for the lower classes: they have facilities for desertion that are denied to us.
Forgive him, for he believes that the customs of his tribe are the laws of nature!
Those who talk most about the blessings of marriage and the constancy of its vows are the very people who declare that if the chain were broken and the prisoners left free to choose, the whole social fabric would fly asunder. You cannot have the argument both ways. If the prisoner is happy, why lock him in? If he is not, why pretend that he is?
Treat a friend as a person who may someday become your enemy; an enemy as a person who may someday become your friend.
The happiness of credulity is a cheap and dangerous quality.
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Once upon a time' lasts forever.
We are like ignorant shepherds living on a site where great civilizations once flourished. The shepherds play with the fragments that pop up to the surface, having no notion of the beautiful structures of which they were once a part.
Some say that cats are devils, but they behave badly only when they are alone. When they are among us cats are angels.
Many years ago, our father Ibrahim (AS) made a choice. He loved his son. But He loved God more. The commandment came to sacrifice his son. But it wasn't his son that was slaughtered. It was his attachment to anything that could compete with his love for God. So let us ask ourselves in these beautiful days of sacrifice, which attachments do we need to slaughter?