He who made us would have been a pitiful bungler, if he had made the rules of our moral conduct a matter of science. For one man of science, there are thousands who are not. What would have become of them? Man was destined for society. His morality, therefore, was to be formed to this object. He was endowed with a sense of right and wrong, merely relative to this.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Jefferson claims morality is innate and social, not a science reserved for the few.
- In plain terms
- Morality is a natural sense for everyone, not a science for scientists.
- What can you take from it?
- Moral sense is universal and natural.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Is morality learned or innate?
- How do we define right and wrong?
Another view
Science can still inform ethical decisions effectively.
More from Thomas Jefferson
And for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes,…
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Permalink to quote #144 We must therefore...hold them as we hold the rest of mankind, enemies in war, in peace friends.
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