--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Morality has in the past made progress…" description: "\"Morality has in the past made progress when we broadened the category of things we weren't permitted to harm (animals, 'infidels'); saw through some de..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/000/catherine-wilson-12038_animal_morality-has-in-the-past-made-progress-w_3226031.jpg" --- # Morality has in the past made progress when we broadened… ![“Morality has in the past made progress when we broadened the category of things we weren't permitted to harm (animals, 'infidels'); saw through some delusions and rationalisations about what harms are good for people themselves (prison punishment, hysterectomies for unhappy 1950s wives); and…” quote by Catherine Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/000/catherine-wilson-12038_animal_morality-has-in-the-past-made-progress-w_3226031.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/000/catherine-wilson-12038_animal_morality-has-in-the-past-made-progress-w_3226031.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/000/catherine-wilson-12038_animal_morality-has-in-the-past-made-progress-w_3226031.jpg) > “Morality has in the past made progress when we broadened the category of things we weren't permitted to harm (animals, 'infidels'); saw through some delusions and rationalisations about what harms are good for people themselves (prison punishment, hysterectomies for unhappy 1950s wives); and readjusted our for-the-good of others criteria so as to demand only reasonable sacrifices (ceasing to use children as handy chimney sweeps).” [Catherine Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-wilson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Societal moral expansion occurs when we extend protection to previously excluded groups and reject harmful rationalizations, demanding only reasonable sacrifices for the common good. **In simple terms:** Moral progress expands protection and rejects harmful excuses. Key Takeaway Challenge unjust norms and seek reasonable sacrifices. Themes ethics social change human rights Mood reflective critical Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - animal welfare advocacy - legal reform - public health policy - education curricula Key Concepts moral philosophy cognitive bias utilitarianism Questions to Reflect On - Which groups are still excluded from moral consideration? - How can we identify hidden rationalizations? A Different Perspective Progress can be uneven and face entrenched interests. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Delusion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/delusion/) [Demand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demand/) [Harm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/harm/) [Infidel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/infidel/) [Morality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morality/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prison/) [Progress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/progress/) [Punishment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/punishment/) [Sacrifice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sacrifice/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Unhappy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unhappy/) [Wife](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wife/) ## Related quotes > [“Bonis nocet, qui malis parcit. He harms the good (people) who spares the evil.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca/bonis-nocet-qui-malis-parcit-he-harms-the-good-people-who-spares-the/) [Seneca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca/) > [I had a hysterectomy because I had really bad fibroids.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andi-oliver/i-had-a-hysterectomy-because-i-had-really-bad-fibroids/) [Andi Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andi-oliver/) > [A week in the hospital she had told us. A hysterectomy, she had said. It had seemed unremarkable to me in a woman of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/a-week-in-the-hospital-she-had-told-us-a-hysterectomy-she-had-said-it/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [Greed plays a role in causing unnecessary surgery, although I don't think the economic motive alone is enough to explain it. There's no doubt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-s-mendelsohn/greed-plays-a-role-in-causing-unnecessary-surgery-although-i-don-t/) [Robert S. Mendelsohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-s-mendelsohn/) > [I did not, thank the Lord, have to have a hysterectomy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dolly-parton/i-did-not-thank-the-lord-have-to-have-a-hysterectomy/) [Dolly Parton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dolly-parton/) > [As a cancer survivor of a radical hysterectomy, there are complications that happen after the fact and your body changes and, going through those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-grammer/as-a-cancer-survivor-of-a-radical-hysterectomy-there-are/) [Camille Grammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-grammer/) > [Back in my mid-20s I was told I'd never be able to have children as I wasn't having periods. Doctors tried to start up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-scott/back-in-my-mid-20s-i-was-told-i-d-never-be-able-to-have-children-as-i/) [Jill Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-scott/) > [“Fuck the miracle of life, where do I sign up for a hysterectomy?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/fuck-the-miracle-of-life-where-do-i-sign-up-for-a-hysterectomy/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) ## More by Catherine Wilson > [A moral rule is essentially 'advantage-reducing.' It prohibits you doing something you could do that would serve your interests at someone else's expense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-wilson/a-moral-rule-is-essentially-advantage-reducing-it-prohibits-you-doing/) [Catherine Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-wilson/) > [Atomism had no absolute 'above' and 'below' and no such rulers, so favoured the undersranding of justice as an agreement amongst equals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-wilson/atomism-had-no-absolute-above-and-below-and-no-such-rulers-so/) [Catherine Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-wilson/) > [We have to gamble, and sometimes lose as George Ainslie argues; this keeps the appetite for life sharp.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-wilson/we-have-to-gamble-and-sometimes-lose-as-george-ainslie-argues-this/) [Catherine Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-wilson/) > [There is no single test or formula for producing moral progress anymore than there is for generating scientific truths. It is a process involving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-wilson/there-is-no-single-test-or-formula-for-producing-moral-progress/) [Catherine Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-wilson/) > [Epicurus thought that friendship and conviviality, which require present attention rather than being in an alcoholic stupor, as well as trying to understand and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-wilson/epicurus-thought-that-friendship-and-conviviality-which-require/) [Catherine Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-wilson/) > [For seventeenth-century astronomers, the Epicurean doctrine of multiple worlds separated by void space was seen to fit with the new Copernican system in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-wilson/for-seventeenth-century-astronomers-the-epicurean-doctrine-of/) [Catherine Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-wilson/) > [Leibniz accepted the argument that there must be indestructible simple entities if there is to be a complex world, but Epicurean morals and politics…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-wilson/leibniz-accepted-the-argument-that-there-must-be-indestructible/) [Catherine Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-wilson/) > [I had the idea that there were secret laws of the universe that could explain the baffling human reality around me, and that philosophers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-wilson/i-had-the-idea-that-there-were-secret-laws-of-the-universe-that-could/) [Catherine Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-wilson/) > [The higher the coefficient of inequality (Gini coefficient) in a society, the worse things tend to be for those at the bottom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-wilson/the-higher-the-coefficient-of-inequality-gini-coefficient-in-a/) [Catherine Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-wilson/) > [We call 'Slavery is wrong' a moral truth because there is a specific history of theoretical investigation of a particular kind of slavery. 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At one end of the spectrum, there is harassment, pestering, blackmail, and an abuse of institutional power, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-wilson/human-courtship-has-some-wild-extremes-at-one-end-of-the-spectrum/) [Catherine Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-wilson/) > [In the old systems, hierarchies emanate power from above to below through forms of line management and are ideologically supported by cosmologies and theologies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-wilson/in-the-old-systems-hierarchies-emanate-power-from-above-to-below/) [Catherine Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-wilson/) > [Even if you just want to make a simple clothing item for yourself or go for a long hike in the forest - something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-wilson/even-if-you-just-want-to-make-a-simple-clothing-item-for-yourself-or/) [Catherine Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-wilson/) > [People should be able to develop their abilities and interests and have access to such goods as friendship, artistry, and nature and a political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-wilson/people-should-be-able-to-develop-their-abilities-and-interests-and/) [Catherine Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-wilson/) [Explore all 56 Catherine Wilson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-wilson/) ## More Animal quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [Animals know nothing of themselves, and they also know nothing of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/animals-know-nothing-of-themselves-and-they-also-know-nothing-of-the/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Humans are animals too, but some do not like to work from expectations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/humans-are-animals-too-but-some-do-not-like-to-work-from-expectations/) Mak\_786 > [When grubbing for necessities man is still an animal. He becomes uniquely human when he reaches out for the superfluous and extravagant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/when-grubbing-for-necessities-man-is-still-an-animal-he-becomes/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [I'm 38 and I'm single, and I'm having my most intense and gratifying relationship with a dog. But we all learn about love in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-knapp/i-m-38-and-i-m-single-and-i-m-having-my-most-intense-and-gratifying/) [Caroline Knapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-knapp/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/a-horse-a-horse-my-kingdom-for-a-horse/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“it is a federal system of sadistic torture, vivisection, and animal genocide, which has been carried on for decades under the fraudulent guise of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tobias/it-is-a-federal-system-of-sadistic-torture-vivisection-and-animal/) [Michael Tobias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tobias/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [We must love animals in such a powerful way that we should reject to eat them!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/we-must-love-animals-in-such-a-powerful-way-that-we-should-reject-to/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“The universe contains any amount of horrible ways to be woken up, such as the noise of the mob breaking down the front door,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/the-universe-contains-any-amount-of-horrible-ways-to-be-woken-up-such/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [This brings me back to the image of Kafka standing before a fish in the Berlin aquarium, a fish on which his gaze fell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/this-brings-me-back-to-the-image-of-kafka-standing-before-a-fish-in/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [That dog, I say that dog is lower than a snake full of buckshot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foghorn-leghorn/that-dog-i-say-that-dog-is-lower-than-a-snake-full-of-buckshot/) [Foghorn Leghorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foghorn-leghorn/) > [I bet plants go like 'Weeeeeeeee!' whenever they're swallowed by a giraffe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-bet-plants-go-like-weeeeeeeee-whenever-they-re-swallowed-by-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Animal rights without veganism is like human rights with slavery. It makes no sense. None whatsoever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/animal-rights-without-veganism-is-like-human-rights-with-slavery-it/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) [Browse all 13,456 Animal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Morality has in the past made progress when we broadened the category of things we weren't permitted to harm (animals, 'infidels'); saw through some delusions and rationalisations about what harms are good for people themselves (prison punishment, hysterectomies for unhappy 1950s wives); and readjusted our for-the-good of others criteria so as to demand only reasonable sacrifices (ceasing to use children as handy chimney sweeps).", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Catherine Wilson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-wilson/morality-has-in-the-past-made-progress-when-we-broadened-the-category/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Animal" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-wilson/morality-has-in-the-past-made-progress-when-we-broadened-the-category/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/000/catherine-wilson-12038_animal_morality-has-in-the-past-made-progress-w_3226031.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/000/catherine-wilson-12038_animal_morality-has-in-the-past-made-progress-w_3226031.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/000/catherine-wilson-12038_animal_morality-has-in-the-past-made-progress-w_3226031.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Morality has in the past made progress when we broadened the category of things we weren't permitted to harm…” — Catherine Wilson", "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": "Catherine Wilson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-wilson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Morality has in the past made...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-wilson/morality-has-in-the-past-made-progress-when-we-broadened-the-category/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-wilson/morality-has-in-the-past-made-progress-when-we-broadened-the-category/#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 } } ] } ```