For children are innocent and love justice, while most of us are wicked and naturally prefer mercy.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Children are innocent and love justice; adults are flawed and favor mercy.
- In plain terms
- Kids seek fairness, adults often choose compassion over strict justice.
- What can you take from it?
- Balance justice with mercy in adult decisions.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How can we integrate child‑like fairness into adult systems?
Another view
Adults can also value justice strongly; the dichotomy is not absolute.
More from Gilbert Keith Chesterton
If you'd take your head home and boil it for a turnip it might be useful. I can't say. But it might.
Permalink to quote #11 Moderate strength is shown in violence, supreme strength is shown in levity.
Permalink to quote #13 Briefly, you can only find truth with logic if you have already found truth without it.
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