When you look closely it is a question whether that which is a wrong to the present community may not prove to have been a right to the interests of posterity. That sounds a little foggy; but I will make my meaning more clear when I say that I think right and wrong are both tools which are being wielded by those great hands which are shaping the destinies of the universe, that both are making for improvement; but that the action of the one is immediate, and that of the other more slow, but none the less certain. Our own distinction of right and wrong is founded too much upon the immediate convenience of the community, and does not inquire sufficiently deeply into the ultimate effect.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Right and wrong are tools for long-term improvement, though immediate effects differ.
- In plain terms
- What is right now might be wrong later, and both help the future.
- What can you take from it?
- Look beyond immediate convenience to see long-term effects.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How do we judge the past?
- Is morality absolute or relative?
Another view
It risks justifying harmful actions by claiming future benefits.
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