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About this quote

What does it mean?
Ingersoll expresses a strong personal aversion to the concept of celibacy, calling it obscene.
In plain terms
He considers celibacy to be the most obscene word.
What can you take from it?
Reject societal stigma around natural human connections.

Where it applies

  • religious debates
  • personal choice
  • social norms

Putting it to work

  • challenge norms
  • defend personal choice
  • question dogma

Questions to consider

  • Is celibacy inherently negative?
  • Who decides what is obscene?

Another view

The statement is hyperbolic and dismissive of those who choose celibacy.

More from Robert G. Ingersoll

  1. Thought and speech must be free. The man or men who would put a chain upon the brain or a padlock on the tongue are heirs of the Inquisition, the enemies of so…

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  2. To me, the tenderest word in our language, the most pathetic fact within our knowledge, is maternity. Around this sacred word cluster the joys and sorrows, the…

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  3. They say that God says to me, 'Forgive your enemies.' I say, 'I do'; but he says, 'I will damn mine.' God should be consistent. If he wants me to forgive my en…

    Permalink to quote #218

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