What would you have done, had I been brought before you as a prisoner?
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- What would you have done if I were a prisoner before you?
- In plain terms
- He asks how one would act toward a captive.
- What can you take from it?
- Consider moral choices when faced with a prisoner.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How does power affect moral decisions?
- What standards should guide treatment of prisoners?
Another view
The hypothetical may not reflect real constraints or contexts.
More from Alp Arslan
I love the war because there is victory at its end.
Permalink to quote #1 My punishment is far heavier, I forgive you, and set you free.
Permalink to quote #3
Related quotes
Monsters remain human beings. In fact, to reduce them to a subhuman level is to exonerate them of their acts of terrorism and mass murder - just as animals are…
Andrew SullivanAndrew Sullivan quote #1 Well I think we do have to define torture. One man's torture is another man's CIA's sponsored swim lesson.
Rachel MarsdenRachel Marsden quote #6 The object of this Essay is to assert one very simple principle, as entitled to govern absolutely the dealings of society with the individual in the way of com…
John Stuart MillJohn Stuart Mill quote #14