--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For my own part I would as soon be…" description: "\"For my own part I would as soon be descended from that heroic little monkey, who braved his dreaded enemy in order to save the life of his keeper; or f..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1b/charles-darwin-507_baboons_for-my-own-part-i-would-as-soon-be-desce_2191607.jpg" --- # For my own part I would as soon be descended from that… ![“For my own part I would as soon be descended from that heroic little monkey, who braved his dreaded enemy in order to save the life of his keeper; or from that old baboon, who, descending from the mountains, carried away in triumph his young comrade from a crowd of astonished dogs-as from a savage…” quote by Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1b/charles-darwin-507_baboons_for-my-own-part-i-would-as-soon-be-desce_2191607.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1b/charles-darwin-507_baboons_for-my-own-part-i-would-as-soon-be-desce_2191607.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1b/charles-darwin-507_baboons_for-my-own-part-i-would-as-soon-be-desce_2191607.jpg) > “For my own part I would as soon be descended from that heroic little monkey, who braved his dreaded enemy in order to save the life of his keeper; or from that old baboon, who, descending from the mountains, carried away in triumph his young comrade from a crowd of astonished dogs-as from a savage who delights to torture his enemies, offers up bloody sacrifices, practices infanticide without remorse, treats his wives like slaves, knows no decency, and is haunted by the grossest superstitions.” [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage contrasts noble, heroic animal behavior with brutal, immoral human actions, highlighting a tension between natural virtue and cultural vice. **In simple terms:** It compares brave animal deeds to cruel human acts, showing a conflict between natural goodness and human cruelty. Key Takeaway Recognize and cultivate the noble instincts within us while rejecting cruelty. Themes nature morality humanity civilization violence Mood reflective critical inspirational Type philosophical ethical social When to use this quote - education reform - animal welfare advocacy - human rights activism - personal moral reflection Key Concepts evolutionary ethics animal behavior cultural critique Questions to Reflect On - What innate virtues can we nurture to counteract societal cruelty? - How does recognizing animal heroism influence our moral standards? A Different Perspective Human societies often justify cruelty through tradition, limiting progress toward ethical behavior. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Comrade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comrade/) [Decency](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decency/) [Delight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/delight/) [Dog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dog/) [Enemy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enemy/) [Evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) [Heroic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heroic/) [Infanticide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/infanticide/) [Monkeys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monkeys/) [Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order/) [Practice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/practice/) [Remorse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remorse/) [Sacrifice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sacrifice/) [Savages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/savages/) [Slave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slave/) [Superstitions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/superstitions/) [Torture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/torture/) [Triumph](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/triumph/) [Wife](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wife/) ## Related quotes > [Christianity is haunted by the theory of a God with a craving for bloody sacrifices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-b-s-haldane/christianity-is-haunted-by-the-theory-of-a-god-with-a-craving-for/) [John B. S. Haldane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-b-s-haldane/) > [Nothing says you care for me better than offering to torture my enemies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-v-snyder/nothing-says-you-care-for-me-better-than-offering-to-torture-my-2/) [Maria V. Snyder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-v-snyder/) > [Nothing says you care for me better than offering to torture my enemies." He grinned. "No sense doing things halfhearted. And to think, some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-v-snyder/nothing-says-you-care-for-me-better-than-offering-to-torture-my/) [Maria V. Snyder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-v-snyder/) > [Dread not infanticide; the crime is imaginary: we are always mistress of what we carry in our womb, and we do no more harm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marquis-de-sade/dread-not-infanticide-the-crime-is-imaginary-we-are-always-mistress/) [Marquis de Sade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marquis-de-sade/) > [... in all cases of monstrosity at birth anaesthetics should be applied by doctors publicly appointed for that purpose... Every successive year would see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tennessee-celeste-claflin/in-all-cases-of-monstrosity-at-birth-anaesthetics-should-be-applied/) [Tennessee Celeste Claflin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tennessee-celeste-claflin/) > [“The Nazis are not justified by saying, Don't you know that there is more than just the issue of the Jews? The issues are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-bayly/the-nazis-are-not-justified-by-saying-don-t-you-know-that-there-is/) [Joseph Bayly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-bayly/) > [What becomes of the surplus of human life? It is either, 1st. destroyed by infanticide, as among the Chinese and Lacedemonians; or 2d. it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-madison/what-becomes-of-the-surplus-of-human-life-it-is-either-1st-destroyed/) [James Madison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-madison/) > [I know girls who pine for it. They like to play dress-up and pretend being Vor ladies of old, rescued from menace by romantic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/i-know-girls-who-pine-for-it-they-like-to-play-dress-up-and-pretend/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) > [One of the worst elements of Obama's career, which no one talks about, is that he voted twice for a bill that said, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nat-hentoff/one-of-the-worst-elements-of-obama-s-career-which-no-one-talks-about/) [Nat Hentoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nat-hentoff/) > [ \[To the mother of two unruly children in a restaurant after the woman said she really didn't know what to do with her children:\]… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-crawford/to-the-mother-of-two-unruly-children-in-a-restaurant-after-the-woman/) [Joan Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-crawford/) > [As Indian citizens, we subsist on a regular diet of caste massacres and nuclear tests, mosque breakings and fashion shows, church burnings and expanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/as-indian-citizens-we-subsist-on-a-regular-diet-of-caste-massacres/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [Of course, infanticide needs to be strictly legally controlled and rare - but it should not be ruled out, any more than abortion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/of-course-infanticide-needs-to-be-strictly-legally-controlled-and/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [We have to join hands and fight against female infanticide, when life is snuffed out the minute people find out it is a girl.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nita-ambani/we-have-to-join-hands-and-fight-against-female-infanticide-when-life/) [Nita Ambani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nita-ambani/) > [Abraham Lincoln recognized that we could not survive as a free land when some men could decide that others were not fit to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/abraham-lincoln-recognized-that-we-could-not-survive-as-a-free-land/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [Life once conceived, must be protected with the utmost care; abortion and infanticide are abominable crimes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/life-once-conceived-must-be-protected-with-the-utmost-care-abortion/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) ## More by Charles Darwin > [The love for all living creatures is the most noble attribute of man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/the-love-for-all-living-creatures-is-the-most-noble-attribute-of-man/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [The main conclusion here arrived at ... is that man is descended from some less highly organized form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/the-main-conclusion-here-arrived-at-is-that-man-is-descended-from/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [So great is the economy of nature, that most flowers which are fertilised by crepuscular or nocturnal insects emit their odour chiefly or exclusively…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/so-great-is-the-economy-of-nature-that-most-flowers-which-are/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [I see no good reasons why the views given in this volume should shock the religious views of anyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/i-see-no-good-reasons-why-the-views-given-in-this-volume-should-shock/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [I am quite conscious that my speculations run beyond the bounds of true science…It is a mere rag of an hypothesis with as many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/i-am-quite-conscious-that-my-speculations-run-beyond-the-bounds-of/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [If worms have the power of acquiring some notion, however rude, of the shape of an object and over their burrows, as seems the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/if-worms-have-the-power-of-acquiring-some-notion-however-rude-of-the/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [We can allow satellites, planets, suns, universe, nay whole systems of universes, to be governed by laws, but the smallest insect, we wish to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/we-can-allow-satellites-planets-suns-universe-nay-whole-systems-of/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [Formerly Milton's Paradise Lost had been my chief favourite, and in my excursions during the voyage of the Beagle, when I could take only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/formerly-milton-s-paradise-lost-had-been-my-chief-favourite-and-in-my/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [May we not suspect that the vague but very real fears of children, which are quite independent of experience, are the inherited effects of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/may-we-not-suspect-that-the-vague-but-very-real-fears-of-children/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [It may be said that natural selection is daily and hourly scrutinizing, throughout the world, every variation, even the slightest; rejecting that which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/it-may-be-said-that-natural-selection-is-daily-and-hourly/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [“Darwin, landing in Brazil in 1832, had a similar reaction, colored by his reading of his predecessor." Humboldt's glorious descriptions are & will for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/darwin-landing-in-brazil-in-1832-had-a-similar-reaction-colored-by/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [...all nature is perverse & will not do as I wish it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/all-nature-is-perverse-will-not-do-as-i-wish-it/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [“To admit that species generally become rare before they become extinct—to feel no surprise at the comparative rarity of one species with another, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/to-admit-that-species-generally-become-rare-before-they-become/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [To suppose that the eye could have been formed by natural selection, seems, I freely confess, absurd in the highest possible degree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/to-suppose-that-the-eye-could-have-been-formed-by-natural-selection/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [It is interesting to contemplate an entangled bank clothed with many plants of many kinds with birds singing on the bushes, with various insects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/it-is-interesting-to-contemplate-an-entangled-bank-clothed-with-many/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) [Explore all 497 Charles Darwin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) ## More Baboons quotes > [Medicine is magical and magical is art, the boy in the bubble, and the baby with the baboon heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/medicine-is-magical-and-magical-is-art-the-boy-in-the-bubble-and-the/) [Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/) > [“Baboons are very wise animals,” Bast said. “Agh!” Khufu picked his nose, then turned his Technicolor bum our direction. He threw his friends the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/baboons-are-very-wise-animals-bast-said-agh-khufu-picked-his-nose/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [“Our descent, then, is the origin of our evil passions!! The devil under form of Baboon is our grandfather. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/our-descent-then-is-the-origin-of-our-evil-passions-the-devil-under/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [Right,” I said. “So the baboon, the crocodile…any other pets I should know about?” Amos thought for a moment. “Visible ones? No, I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/right-i-said-so-the-baboon-the-crocodile-any-other-pets-i-should-know/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [In the Baboon community, it is not how strong you are that is important, but who you know that counts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-attenborough/in-the-baboon-community-it-is-not-how-strong-you-are-that-is/) [David Attenborough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-attenborough/) > [There once was a brainy baboon, Who always breathed down a bassoon, For he said, It appears That in billions of years I shall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-once-was-a-brainy-baboon-who-always-breathed-down-a-bassoon-for/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The French are sawed-off sissies who eat snails and slugs and cheese that smells like people's feet. Utter cowards who force their own children…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/the-french-are-sawed-off-sissies-who-eat-snails-and-slugs-and-cheese/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [“Africa, which they had somehow visualized as an extension of Europe -- an extension of terms, of references to a definitive past -- had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-durrell/africa-which-they-had-somehow-visualized-as-an-extension-of-europe-an/) [Lawrence Durrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-durrell/) > [A baboon in a forest is a matter of legitimate speculation; a baboon in a zoo is an object of public curiosity; but a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-baboon-in-a-forest-is-a-matter-of-legitimate-speculation-a-baboon/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Our baboon was going completely sky goddess - which is to say, nuts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/our-baboon-was-going-completely-sky-goddess-which-is-to-say-nuts/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [We were alone in a strange mansion with a baboon, a crocodile, and a weird cat. And apparently, the entire world was in danger.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/we-were-alone-in-a-strange-mansion-with-a-baboon-a-crocodile-and-a/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [What is a group of baboons called? A congress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-is-a-group-of-baboons-called-a-congress/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I am a wizard, not a baboon brandishing a stick.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-am-a-wizard-not-a-baboon-brandishing-a-stick/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [And besides, look at elder flowers and bluebells-they are a sign that pure creation takes place - even the butterfly. But humanity never gets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-besides-look-at-elder-flowers-and-bluebells-they-are-a-sign-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It had always been a notion of mine that sanity is like a clearing in the jungle where the humans agree to meet from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-had-always-been-a-notion-of-mine-that-sanity-is-like-a-clearing-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) Browse all 66 Baboons quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "For my own part I would as soon be descended from that heroic little monkey, who braved his dreaded enemy in order to save the life of his keeper; or from that old baboon, who, descending from the mountains, carried away in triumph his young comrade from a crowd of astonished dogs-as from a savage who delights to torture his enemies, offers up bloody sacrifices, practices infanticide without remorse, treats his wives like slaves, knows no decency, and is haunted by the grossest superstitions.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Charles Darwin" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/for-my-own-part-i-would-as-soon-be-descended-from-that-heroic-little/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Baboons" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/for-my-own-part-i-would-as-soon-be-descended-from-that-heroic-little/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1b/charles-darwin-507_baboons_for-my-own-part-i-would-as-soon-be-desce_2191607.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1b/charles-darwin-507_baboons_for-my-own-part-i-would-as-soon-be-desce_2191607.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1b/charles-darwin-507_baboons_for-my-own-part-i-would-as-soon-be-desce_2191607.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“For my own part I would as soon be descended from that heroic little monkey, who braved his dreaded enemy in…” — Charles Darwin", "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": "Charles Darwin", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "For my own part I would...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/for-my-own-part-i-would-as-soon-be-descended-from-that-heroic-little/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/for-my-own-part-i-would-as-soon-be-descended-from-that-heroic-little/#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 } } ] } ```