Appeals Quote by Elizabeth Stuart Phelps Ward
“... life is moral responsibility. Life is several other things, we do not deny. It is beauty, it is joy, it is tragedy, it is comedy, it is psychical and physical pleasure, it is the interplay of a thousand rude or delicate motions and emotions, it is the grimmest and the merriest motley of phantasmagoria that could appeal to the gravest or the maddest brush ever put to palette; but it is steadily and sturdily and always moral responsibility.”
About This Quote
Source Book: The Story of a Country Town by Elizabeth Stuart Phelps Ward, 1883
Life encompasses beauty, joy, tragedy, comedy, physical and mental pleasure, and complex emotions, yet its core purpose is moral responsibility.
In simple terms: Life is many things, but always a moral duty.
Key Takeaway
Embrace all experiences while upholding ethical duties.
Themes
ethics
human experience
emotion
responsibility
complexity
Mood
reflective
thoughtful
inspirational
Type
philosophical
literary
ethical
When to use this quote
- personal growth
- artistic creation
- social activism
- mental health
- ethical decision making
Key Concepts
moral philosophy
existentialism
psychology
Questions to Reflect On
- How do you balance pleasure with ethical obligations?
- What responsibilities arise from your emotional experiences?
A Different Perspective
Moral responsibility can be obscured by personal desire or societal pressure.
![“To exist as an advertisement of her husband's income, or her father's generosity, has become a second nature to many a woman who must have undergone, one would say, some long and subtle process of degradation before she sunk [sic] so low, or grovelled so serenely.” quote by Elizabeth Stuart Phelps Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/a22/elizabeth-stuart-phelps-ward-2_advertisements_to-exist-as-an-advertisement-of-her-husb_1017596.jpg)
