QuoteProject
Physically there is nothing to distinguish human society from the farm-yard except that children are more troublesome and costly than chickens and calves and that men and women are not so completely enslaved as farm stock.
George Bernard Shaw
ShareWTF𝕏

Interpretation

What this quote means

This quote suggests that human society is not fundamentally different from a farm, highlighting the burdens and costs children bring compared to livestock.

In this quote, George Bernard Shaw draws a provocative analogy between human society and agriculture, suggesting that the primary distinction lies in the nature of stewardship and the complexity of human relationships. He emphasizes the burdens associated with raising children, comparing them unfavorably to farm animals, while also acknowledging that humans have a greater degree of freedom compared to livestock. This reflection prompts a deeper consideration of societal roles, responsibilities, and the often-overlooked challenges that come with nurturing the next generation.

Themes

SocietyChildrenResponsibilityFreedomBurden

In practice

Example use cases

During a discussion on parenting in a community meeting, one might reference this quote to highlight the challenges of raising children.

More from George Bernard Shaw

What we want is to see the child in pursuit of knowledge, and not knowledge in pursuit of the child.
George Bernard ShawRead
Marriage is good enough for the lower classes: they have facilities for desertion that are denied to us.
George Bernard ShawRead
Forgive him, for he believes that the customs of his tribe are the laws of nature!
George Bernard ShawRead
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?
George Bernard ShawRead
Treat a friend as a person who may someday become your enemy; an enemy as a person who may someday become your friend.
George Bernard ShawRead
The happiness of credulity is a cheap and dangerous quality.
George Bernard ShawRead

Similar quotes

I think a person has to believe in something,_x000D_ or search out some kind of faith;_x000D_ otherwise life is empty, nothing._x000D_ How can you live not knowing why the cranes fly,_x000D_ why children are born, why there are stars in the sky..._x000D_ Either you know why you live,_x000D_ or it's all small, unnecessary bits.
Sarah RuhlRead
What a magical thing is the bed, and what a vulnerable, innocent creature is the sleeping human - the human who never looks more truthful or pitiful or benign; the curled-up, childlike dreaming soul who has for a few hours become an angel adrift.
Michael LeunigRead
Where there is no free agency, there can be no morality. Where there is no temptation, there can be little claim to virtue. Where the routine is rigorously proscribed by law, the law, and not the man, must have the credit of the conduct.
William H. PrescottRead
You couldn't be more wrong," I said. "You are buying into the cross-stitched sentiments of your parents' throw pillows. You're arguing that the fragile, rare thing is beautiful simply because it is fragile and rare. But that's a lie, and you know it." "You're a hard person to comfort," Augustus said. "Easy comfort isn't comforting," I said.
John GreenRead
The Law and the Gospel are two keys. The Law is the key that shutteth up all men under condemnation, and the Gospel is the key which opens the door and lets them out.
William TyndaleRead
A man is as much affected pleasurably or painfully by the image of a thing past or future as by the image of a thing present.
Baruch SpinozaRead

A little wisdom, now and then

Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.