Arrogance Quote by Dinah Maria Murlock Craik
“This is practically the language used to fallen women, and chiefly by their own sex: "God may forgive you, but we never can!" - a declaration which, however common, in spirit if not in substance, is, when one comes to analyse it, unparalleled in its arrogance of blasphemy. That for a single offence, however grave, a whole life should be blasted, is a doctrine repugnant even to Nature's own dealings in the visible world.”
About This Quote
Source Essay: The Woman Question, Dinah Maria Murlock Craik, 1885
The quote condemns the harsh moral judgment that condemns a woman's whole life for a single transgression, calling it an arrogant, blasphemous doctrine.
In simple terms: Condemning a life for one mistake is cruel and arrogant.
Key Takeaway
Reject blanket moral judgments.
Themes
morality
gender
justice
Mood
critical
reflective
Type
ethical
social commentary
When to use this quote
- courtroom sentencing
- family shaming
- public scandal
- religious condemnation
Key Concepts
blasphemy
hypocrisy
social control
Questions to Reflect On
- How do we balance accountability with compassion?
- What alternatives exist to punitive moral judgments?
A Different Perspective
Such extreme condemnation ignores context and possibility of redemption.
![“Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this [step by step, from humans to apes to monkeys to lemurs] - leading us insensibly from the crown and summit of the animal creation down to creatures, from which there is but a step, as it seems, to the…” quote by Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/f0b/thomas-huxley-1183_animal_perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us_3051.jpg)
