--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is always only one question in the…" description: "\"“There is always only one question in the ethics of truth: how will I, as some-one, continue to exceed my own being?”\" — Alain Badiou" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/737/alain-badiou-12380_ethics_there-is-always-only-one-question-in-the_682445.jpg" --- # There is always only one question in the ethics of truth… ![“There is always only one question in the ethics of truth: how will I, as some-one, continue to exceed my own being?” quote by Alain Badiou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/737/alain-badiou-12380_ethics_there-is-always-only-one-question-in-the_682445.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/737/alain-badiou-12380_ethics_there-is-always-only-one-question-in-the_682445.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/737/alain-badiou-12380_ethics_there-is-always-only-one-question-in-the_682445.jpg) > ““There is always only one question in the ethics of truth: how will I, as some-one, continue to exceed my own being?”” [Alain Badiou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-badiou/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He asks how one can continually surpass oneself in the pursuit of truth, emphasizing perpetual self‑transcendence. **In simple terms:** How can we keep outdoing ourselves in truth? Key Takeaway Strive for continual self‑improvement. Themes philosophy ethics self‑transcendence Mood thought‑provoking introspective Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - academic research - personal growth - creative work - spiritual practice Key Concepts existentialism truth seeking Questions to Reflect On - What does exceeding yourself mean to you? - When is it healthy to pause? A Different Perspective Constant self‑exceeding can lead to burnout if not balanced. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Continue Exceed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/continue-exceed-5397062/) [Ethics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethics/) [Ethics Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethics-truth-1391299/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Question Ethics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/question-ethics-4421207/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Truth Continue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-continue-1038714/) ## Related quotes > [“The absolute truth is a wicked sort of rush. It's far more amusing than any lie. Both have the potential to empower and to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanya-thompson/the-absolute-truth-is-a-wicked-sort-of-rush-it-s-far-more-amusing/) [Tanya Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanya-thompson/) > [“She was certain of love. Beyond that? 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YOU NEED TO THINK. What are the consequences…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kassandra-dick/you-do-not-need-commandments-to-tell-you-what-is-right-and-wrong-you/) [Kassandra Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kassandra-dick/) > [I believed that regardless of political ideologies - the reality was I didn't even have any - which is no excuse, and it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-winston-wolkoff/i-believed-that-regardless-of-political-ideologies-the-reality-was-i/) [Stephanie Winston Wolkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-winston-wolkoff/) > [“Ethics is a dream.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-baxter/ethics-is-a-dream/) [Charles Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-baxter/) > [I think the ethics and morals of genetic engineering are very complicated. It intrigues me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-spottiswoode/i-think-the-ethics-and-morals-of-genetic-engineering-are-very/) [Roger Spottiswoode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-spottiswoode/) > [There is no perfect justice, just as there is no absolute in ethics. But there is perfect injustice, and we know it when we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-dershowitz/there-is-no-perfect-justice-just-as-there-is-no-absolute-in-ethics/) [Alan Dershowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-dershowitz/) ## More by Alain Badiou > [“The oppressed peoples of the earth are not objects for the exquisite turmoil of European consciences. They are subjects from which to learn how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-badiou/the-oppressed-peoples-of-the-earth-are-not-objects-for-the-exquisite/) [Alain Badiou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-badiou/) > [“The audacity of thought is not to repeat 'to the limit' that which is already entirely retained within the situation which the limit limits;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-badiou/the-audacity-of-thought-is-not-to-repeat-to-the-limit-that-which-is/) [Alain Badiou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-badiou/) > [Emancipatory politics always consists in making seem possible precisely that which, from within the situation, is declared to be impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-badiou/emancipatory-politics-always-consists-in-making-seem-possible/) [Alain Badiou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-badiou/) > [To believe that the intolerable crime is to burn a few cars and rob some shops, whereas to kill a young man is trivial,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-badiou/to-believe-that-the-intolerable-crime-is-to-burn-a-few-cars-and-rob/) [Alain Badiou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-badiou/) > [All resistance is a rupture with what is. 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But it is not. It is a production of truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-badiou/love-can-only-consist-in-failure-on-the-fallacious-assumption-that-it/) [Alain Badiou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-badiou/) > [Evil is the moment when I lack the strength to be true to the Good that compels me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-badiou/evil-is-the-moment-when-i-lack-the-strength-to-be-true-to-the-good/) [Alain Badiou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-badiou/) > [What kind of world does one see when one experiences it from the point of view of two and not one? What is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-badiou/what-kind-of-world-does-one-see-when-one-experiences-it-from-the/) [Alain Badiou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-badiou/) > [We could say that love is a tenacious adventure. The adventurous side is necessary, but equally so is the need for tenacity. To give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-badiou/we-could-say-that-love-is-a-tenacious-adventure-the-adventurous-side/) [Alain Badiou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-badiou/) > [I would say, if you like, that the party is like an out-moded mathematics...that is to say, the mathematics of Euclid. We need to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-badiou/i-would-say-if-you-like-that-the-party-is-like-an-out-moded/) [Alain Badiou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-badiou/) > [Evil is the interruption of a truth by the pressure of particular or individual interests.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-badiou/evil-is-the-interruption-of-a-truth-by-the-pressure-of-particular-or/) [Alain Badiou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-badiou/) > [Without mathematics, we are blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-badiou/without-mathematics-we-are-blind/) [Alain Badiou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-badiou/) [Explore all 54 Alain Badiou quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-badiou/) ## More Ethics quotes > [Self-respect and a clear conscience are powerful components of integrity and are the basis for enriching your relationships with others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-waitley/self-respect-and-a-clear-conscience-are-powerful-components-of/) [Denis Waitley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-waitley/) > [“Knowledge without conscience is but the ruin of the soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabelaise/knowledge-without-conscience-is-but-the-ruin-of-the-soul/) [Rabelaise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabelaise/) > [He who mistrusts most should be trusted least.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theognis-of-megara/he-who-mistrusts-most-should-be-trusted-least/) [Theognis of Megara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theognis-of-megara/) > [Writing adds up to the conscience of our times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-firrell/writing-adds-up-to-the-conscience-of-our-times/) [Martin Firrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-firrell/) > [Ethics is the activity of man directed to secure the inner perfection of his own personality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/ethics-is-the-activity-of-man-directed-to-secure-the-inner-perfection/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) > [My conscience is really active. So I feel bad about spending excess amount of money on things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/syd/my-conscience-is-really-active-so-i-feel-bad-about-spending-excess/) [Syd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/syd/) > [Records, radio, television, movies, magazines-all are monopolized by the money managers who are guided by one ethic, the words wealth and power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-taft-benson/records-radio-television-movies-magazines-all-are-monopolized-by-the/) [Ezra Taft Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-taft-benson/) > [Let us be thankful for health and competence, and, above all, for a quiet conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/izaak-walton/let-us-be-thankful-for-health-and-competence-and-above-all-for-a/) [Izaak Walton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/izaak-walton/) > [Making money doesn't oblige people to forfeit their honor or their conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-de-rothschild/making-money-doesn-t-oblige-people-to-forfeit-their-honor-or-their/) [Guy de Rothschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-de-rothschild/) > [“If we cannot be happy and powerful and prey on others, we invent conscience and prey on ourselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/if-we-cannot-be-happy-and-powerful-and-prey-on-others-we-invent/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [There is no perfect justice, just as there is no absolute in ethics. But there is perfect injustice, and we know it when we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-dershowitz/there-is-no-perfect-justice-just-as-there-is-no-absolute-in-ethics/) [Alan Dershowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-dershowitz/) > [I think the ethics and morals of genetic engineering are very complicated. It intrigues me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-spottiswoode/i-think-the-ethics-and-morals-of-genetic-engineering-are-very/) [Roger Spottiswoode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-spottiswoode/) > [What our species needs, above all else, is a generally accepted ethical system that is compatible with the scientific knowledge we now possess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-our-species-needs-above-all-else-is-a-generally-accepted-ethical/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Ethics is not definable, is not implementable, because it is not conscious; it involves not only our thinking, but also our feeling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valdemar-w-setzer/ethics-is-not-definable-is-not-implementable-because-it-is-not/) [Valdemar W Setzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valdemar-w-setzer/) > [Any time you give a man something he doesn't earn, you cheapen him. Our kids earn what they get, and that includes respect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-hayes/any-time-you-give-a-man-something-he-doesn-t-earn-you-cheapen-him-our/) [Woody Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-hayes/) [Browse all 4,548 Ethics quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethics/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“There is always only one question in the ethics of truth: how will I, as some-one, continue to exceed my own being?”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alain Badiou" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-badiou/there-is-always-only-one-question-in-the-ethics-of-truth-how-will-i/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ethics" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-badiou/there-is-always-only-one-question-in-the-ethics-of-truth-how-will-i/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/737/alain-badiou-12380_ethics_there-is-always-only-one-question-in-the_682445.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/737/alain-badiou-12380_ethics_there-is-always-only-one-question-in-the_682445.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/737/alain-badiou-12380_ethics_there-is-always-only-one-question-in-the_682445.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There is always only one question in the ethics of truth: how will I, as some-one, continue to exceed my own…” — Alain Badiou", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Alain Badiou", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-badiou/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“There is always only one question...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-badiou/there-is-always-only-one-question-in-the-ethics-of-truth-how-will-i/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-badiou/there-is-always-only-one-question-in-the-ethics-of-truth-how-will-i/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```