Badness Quote by Anthony Burgess
““They don't go into what is the cause of goodness, so why of the other shop? If lewdies are good that's because they like it, and I wouldn't ever interfere with their pleasures, and so of the other shop. And I was patronizing the other shop. More, badness is of the self, the one, the you or me on our oddy knockies, and that self is made by old Bog or God and is his great pride and radosty. But the not-self cannot have the bad, meaning they of the government and the judges and the schools cannot allow the bad because they cannot allow the self. And is not our modern history, my brothers, the story of the brave malenky selves fighting these big machines?””
About This Quote
The passage juxtaposes moral agency with deterministic forces, suggesting that individual desire and external authority shape notions of good and bad.
In simple terms: Goodness and badness arise from self and external powers.
Key Takeaway
Moral judgments intertwine personal desire and societal structures.
Themes
philosophy of ethics
determinism
authority
Mood
conflicted
thoughtful
Type
philosophical
abstract
When to use this quote
- debates on legal responsibility
- psychological analysis of desire
Key Concepts
free will
social control
Practical Applications
- examine personal motivations
- evaluate institutional influence on behavior
Questions to Reflect On
- Can morality be fully separated from societal authority?
- How does personal desire influence ethical standards?
A Different Perspective
The text mixes metaphor and obscure references, limiting clear philosophical argument.
![“If you’re comparing the badness of two words and you won’t even say one of them [the n-word], that’s the worse word.” quote by John Mulaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/662/john-mulaney-7291_badness_if-you-re-comparing-the-badness-of-two-w_380636.jpg)