A dogmatic belief in objective value is necessary to the very idea of a rule which is not tyranny or an obedience which is not slavery.
C. S. LewisRead
Strictly speaking, there are no such things as good and bad impulses. Think...of a piano. It has not got two kinds of notes on it, the 'right' notes and the 'wrong' ones. Every single note is right at one time and wrong at another. The Moral Law is not any one instinct or set of instincts: it is something which makes a kind of tune (the tune we call goodness or right conduct) by directing the instincts.
Interpretation
What this quote means
C.S. Lewis suggests that impulses are not inherently good or bad; rather, their value depends on context.
In this quote, C.S. Lewis argues that impulses themselves cannot be strictly categorized as good or bad. He uses the analogy of a piano, which contains various notes that can be right or wrong depending on the context in which they are played. This illustrates that moral behavior arises from the way our instincts are directed to create a harmonious moral 'tune' rather than being dictated by a rigid set of rules.
Themes
ImpulsesMoralityContextInstinctsGoodness
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about ethics, one might cite this quote to illustrate the complexity of moral decisions.
More from C. S. Lewis
All quotes →I enjoyed my breakfast this morning, and I think that was a good thing and do not think it was condemned by God. But I do not think myself a good man for enjoying it.
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Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither.
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Forgiving and being forgiven are two names for the same thing. The important thing is that a discord has been resolved.
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I pray because I can't help myself. I pray because I'm helpless. It doesn't change God - it changes me.
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The instrument through which you see God is your whole self. And if a man's self is not kept clean and bright, his glimpse of God will be blurred
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