---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To wage a war for a purely moral reason…"
description: "\"To wage a war for a purely moral reason is as absurd as to ravish a woman for a purely moral reason\" — Anonymous"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51f/anonymous-1_absurd_to-wage-a-war-for-a-purely-moral-reason_1820724.jpg"
---

#  To wage a war for a purely moral reason is as absurd as to…

![“To wage a war for a purely moral reason is as absurd as to ravish a woman for a purely moral reason” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51f/anonymous-1_absurd_to-wage-a-war-for-a-purely-moral-reason_1820724.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51f/anonymous-1_absurd_to-wage-a-war-for-a-purely-moral-reason_1820724.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51f/anonymous-1_absurd_to-wage-a-war-for-a-purely-moral-reason_1820724.jpg)

> “To wage a war for a purely moral reason is as absurd as to ravish a woman for a purely moral reason”

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Waging war or committing assault for moral reasons is contradictory, highlighting the absurdity of justifying violence morally.

**In simple terms:** Violence for moral reasons is contradictory and absurd.

Key Takeaway

Question moral justifications for violent actions.

Themes

ethics violence morality contradiction

Mood

critical serious

Type

philosophical ethical

When to use this quote

- policy debates
- activism
- legal frameworks

Key Concepts

Just war theory moral relativism human rights

Questions to Reflect On

- Can any violent act be morally justified?
- What alternatives exist to moral violence?

A Different Perspective

Moral arguments can be misused to rationalize harm.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Absurd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absurd/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral/) [Moral Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral-reason-1446956/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [Purely Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purely-moral-2192010/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Reason Absurd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason-absurd-737757/) [Wage War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wage-war/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [War Purely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war-purely-1942927/)

## Related quotes

> [War had always seemed to me to be a purely human behavior. Accounts of warlike behavior date back to the very first written records…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-goodall/war-had-always-seemed-to-me-to-be-a-purely-human-behavior-accounts-of/)

[Jane Goodall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-goodall/)

> [Man stands face to face with the irrational. He feels within him his longing for happiness and for reason. The absurd is born of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/man-stands-face-to-face-with-the-irrational-he-feels-within-him-his/)

[Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/)

> [“5. There is no Mortal who is Purely Moral. By nature man should be either good or bad; or he should be good as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaiten-nukariya/5-there-is-no-mortal-who-is-purely-moral-by-nature-man-should-be/)

[Kaiten Nukariya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaiten-nukariya/)

> [I just want to make stories. They don't have to have a moral or a reason. There might be some mild cautionary notes, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neko-case/i-just-want-to-make-stories-they-don-t-have-to-have-a-moral-or-a/)

[Neko Case](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neko-case/)

> [What happened in World War II was what happened in war generally, and that was whatever the initiating cause, and however clear the moral…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/what-happened-in-world-war-ii-was-what-happened-in-war-generally-and/)

[Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/)

> [Even a purely moral act that has no hope of any immediate and visible political effect can gradually and indirectly, over time, gain in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-havel/even-a-purely-moral-act-that-has-no-hope-of-any-immediate-and-visible/)

[Vaclav Havel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-havel/)

> [Whatsoever is contrary to nature is contrary to reason, and whatsoever is contrary to reason is absurd.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baruch-spinoza/whatsoever-is-contrary-to-nature-is-contrary-to-reason-and-whatsoever/)

[Baruch Spinoza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baruch-spinoza/)

> [We should wage war not to win war, but to win peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-should-wage-war-not-to-win-war-but-to-win-peace/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Your soul is oftentimes a battlefield, upon your reason and your judgment wage war against your passion and your appetite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/your-soul-is-oftentimes-a-battlefield-upon-your-reason-and-your/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [In the best farce today we start with some absurd premise as to character or situation, but if the premises be once granted we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-the-best-farce-today-we-start-with-some-absurd-premise-as-to/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [It is the great business of every Christian to save souls. People complain that they do not know how to take hold of this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-the-great-business-of-every-christian-to-save-souls-people/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Only man can be absurd: for only man can be dignified.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/only-man-can-be-absurd-for-only-man-can-be-dignified/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [A material resurrection seems strange and even absurd except for purposes of punishment, and all punishment which is to revenge rather than correct must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-material-resurrection-seems-strange-and-even-absurd-except-for/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [The naive notion that a mother naturally acquires the complex skills of childrearing simply because she has given birth now seemsas absurd to me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-naive-notion-that-a-mother-naturally-acquires-the-complex-skills/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [It is a dangerous and fateful presumption, besides the absurd temerity that it implies, to disdain what we do not comprehend. For after you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-a-dangerous-and-fateful-presumption-besides-the-absurd-temerity/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

## More by Anonymous

> [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

[Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

## More Absurd quotes

> [“It seem absurd to me that they don't know, haven't felt any change or tremor, even as my life has been completely turned upside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/it-seem-absurd-to-me-that-they-don-t-know-haven-t-felt-any-change-or/)

[Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/)

> [When a person’s tongue is extensively wrong, it is absurd, no less than unscriptural, to say that their heart is right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-c-ryle/when-a-person-s-tongue-is-extensively-wrong-it-is-absurd-no-less-than/)

[J. C. Ryle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-c-ryle/)

> [Every sensible man, every honorable man, must hold the Christian sect in horror." "Christianity is the most ridiculous, the most absurd and bloody religion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/every-sensible-man-every-honorable-man-must-hold-the-christian-sect/)

[Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/)

> [It is human nature to think wisely and to act in an absurd fashion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatole-france/it-is-human-nature-to-think-wisely-and-to-act-in-an-absurd-fashion/)

[Anatole France](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatole-france/)

> [It is a dangerous and fateful presumption, besides the absurd temerity that it implies, to disdain what we do not comprehend. For after you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-a-dangerous-and-fateful-presumption-besides-the-absurd-temerity/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I thought to myself: if it’s true that every person has a star in the sky, mine must be distant, dim, and absurd. Perhaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sadegh-hedayat/i-thought-to-myself-if-it-s-true-that-every-person-has-a-star-in-the/)

[Sadegh Hedayat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sadegh-hedayat/)

> [If, indeed, a firearm were more dangerous to its possessors than to potential aggressors, would it not make sense for the government to arm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/if-indeed-a-firearm-were-more-dangerous-to-its-possessors-than-to/)

[David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/)

> [“You were torturing a cat," she says. "With a freaking prod." "A prod I built myself in metal shop," he says. "But of course…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/you-were-torturing-a-cat-she-says-with-a-freaking-prod-a-prod-i-built/)

[George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/)

> [I have never heard enough classical music to be able to enjoy it; &amp; the simple truth is, I detest it. Not mildly, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/i-have-never-heard-enough-classical-music-to-be-able-to-enjoy-it-the/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [To deprecate human reason by saying that none of us is or can be omniscient is absurd, for it takes an impossible standard as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-rothbard/to-deprecate-human-reason-by-saying-that-none-of-us-is-or-can-be/)

[Murray Rothbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-rothbard/)

> [“Rachel got up and did this happy little shuffle, like she was some cheerful farmer chick who'd just stepped outside to find the hick…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/rachel-got-up-and-did-this-happy-little-shuffle-like-she-was-some/)

[George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/)

> [The absurd duty, too often inculcated, of obeying a parent only on account of his being a parent, shackles the mind, and prepares it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-wollstonecraft/the-absurd-duty-too-often-inculcated-of-obeying-a-parent-only-on/)

[Mary Wollstonecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-wollstonecraft/)

> [The workman of today works every day in his life at the same tasks, and this fate is no less absurd. But it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-workman-of-today-works-every-day-in-his-life-at-the-same-tasks/)

[Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/)

> [I was once part of a Christmas cabaret. I sang 'I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus.' I tap-danced. I had a ten-gallon hat. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-dinklage/i-was-once-part-of-a-christmas-cabaret-i-sang-i-saw-mommy-kissing/)

[Peter Dinklage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-dinklage/)

> [Solitude produces originality, bold and astonishing beauty, poetry. But solitude also produces perverseness, the disproportianate, the absurd and the forbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-mann/solitude-produces-originality-bold-and-astonishing-beauty-poetry-but/)

[Thomas Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mann/)

[Browse all 1,644 Absurd quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absurd/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "To wage a war for a purely moral reason is as absurd as to ravish a woman for a purely moral reason",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Anonymous"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-wage-a-war-for-a-purely-moral-reason-is-as-absurd-as-to-ravish-a/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Absurd"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-wage-a-war-for-a-purely-moral-reason-is-as-absurd-as-to-ravish-a/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51f/anonymous-1_absurd_to-wage-a-war-for-a-purely-moral-reason_1820724.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51f/anonymous-1_absurd_to-wage-a-war-for-a-purely-moral-reason_1820724.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51f/anonymous-1_absurd_to-wage-a-war-for-a-purely-moral-reason_1820724.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“To wage a war for a purely moral reason is as absurd as to ravish a woman for a purely moral reason” — Anonymous",
                "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": "Anonymous",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "To wage a war for a...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-wage-a-war-for-a-purely-moral-reason-is-as-absurd-as-to-ravish-a/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-wage-a-war-for-a-purely-moral-reason-is-as-absurd-as-to-ravish-a/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
