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Quote by Judith N. Shklar

“Cruelty, like lying, repels instantly and easily because it is 'ugly.' It is a vice that disfigures human characters, not a transgression of a divine or human rule.”

Quote by Judith N. Shklar

Work

Ordinary Vices

This book delves into the various vices that humans are prone to, examining how they shape personal lives and societal dynamics. It offers a nuanced look at the darker aspects of human nature. more

Author

Judith N. Shklar
Judith N. Shklar

Judith N. Shklar was an American political theorist renowned for her exploration of political emotion and the moral aspects of politics. She served as a professor at Harvard University and her writings have had a profound impact on the fields of political theory and ethics. more

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“If our hands did never offer violence to our brethren, a bloody thought doth prove us murderers before him.[Cf Mt 5:21f] If we had never opened our mouths to utter any scandalous, offensive, or hurtful word, the cry of our secret cogitations is heard in the ears of God. If we did not commit the evils which we do daily and hourly, either in deeds, words, or thoughts, yet in the good things which we do how many defects are there intermingled! (A Learned Discourse on Justification, p. 8)”

“God, in that which is done, respecteth specially the mind and intention of the doer. Cut off then all those things wherein we have regarded our own glory, those things which we do to please men or to satisfy our own liking, those things which we do with any by-respect [that is, with any secondary or ulterior motive], not sincerely and purely for the love of God, and a small score will serve for the number of our righteous deeds. Let the holiest and best thing that we do be considered: we are never better affected unto God than when we pray; yet when we pray how are our affections many times distracted! How little reverence do we show to the grand majesty of that God unto whom we speak! How little remorse of our own miseries! How little taste of the sweet influence of his tender mercy do we feel! Are we not as unwilling many times to begin, and as glad to make an end, as if God in saying "Call upon me" had set us a very burdensome task? (A Learned Discourse on Justification, p. 8)”