--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Gentlemen, let us suppose that man is not…" description: "\"“Gentlemen, let us suppose that man is not stupid. (Indeed one cannot refuse to suppose that, if only from the one consideration, that, if man is stupi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/751/fyodor-dostoyevsky-94_nature-of-man_gentlemen-let-us-suppose-that-man-is-not_2376341.jpg" --- # Gentlemen, let us suppose that man is not stupid. (Indeed… ![“Gentlemen, let us suppose that man is not stupid. (Indeed one cannot refuse to suppose that, if only from the one consideration, that, if man is stupid, then who is wise?) But if he is not stupid, he is monstrously ungrateful! Phenomenally ungrateful. In fact, I believe that the best definition of…” quote by Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/751/fyodor-dostoyevsky-94_nature-of-man_gentlemen-let-us-suppose-that-man-is-not_2376341.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/751/fyodor-dostoyevsky-94_nature-of-man_gentlemen-let-us-suppose-that-man-is-not_2376341.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/751/fyodor-dostoyevsky-94_nature-of-man_gentlemen-let-us-suppose-that-man-is-not_2376341.jpg) > ““Gentlemen, let us suppose that man is not stupid. (Indeed one cannot refuse to suppose that, if only from the one consideration, that, if man is stupid, then who is wise?) But if he is not stupid, he is monstrously ungrateful! Phenomenally ungrateful. In fact, I believe that the best definition of man is the ungrateful biped. But that is not all, that is not his worst defect; his worst defect is his perpetual moral obliquity, perpetual—from the days of the Flood to the Schleswig-Holstein period. Moral obliquity and consequently lack of good sense; for it has long been accepted that lack of good sense is due to no other cause than moral obliquity. Put it to the test and cast your eyes upon the history of mankind. What will you see? Is it a grand spectacle? Grand, if you like. Take the Colossus of Rhodes, for instance, that’s worth something. With good reason Mr. Anaevsky testifies of it that some say that it is the work of man’s hands, while others maintain that it has been created by nature herself. Is it many-coloured? Maybe it is many-coloured, too: if one takes the dress uniforms, military and civilian, of all peoples in all ages—that alone is worth something, and if you take the undress uniforms you will never get to the end of it; no historian would be equal to the job. Is it monotonous? May be it’s monotonous too: it’s fighting and fighting; they are fighting now, they fought first and they fought last—you will admit, that it is almost too monotonous. In short, one may say anything about the history of the world— anything that might enter the most disordered imagination. The only thing one can’t say is that it’s rational.”” [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Man is fundamentally ungrateful and morally crooked, despite any intelligence he may possess. **In simple terms:** People are ungrateful and morally twisted. Key Takeaway Recognize and challenge moral bias. Themes human nature gratitude morality history philosophy Mood reflective critical philosophical Type analytical thought‑provoking When to use this quote - personal reflection - ethical debates - historical analysis Key Concepts existentialism moral relativism anthropology Questions to Reflect On - How does gratitude shape societies? - Can moral progress be measured? A Different Perspective Human behavior also shows rational cooperation and altruism. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Man Stupid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-stupid-378569/) [Man Ungrateful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-ungrateful-243467/) [Moral Obliquity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral-obliquity-5870413/) [Nature of man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-man/) [Obliquity Consequently](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obliquity-consequently-5870414/) [Period Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/period-moral-5814663/) [Ur Eyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ur-eyes/) ## Related quotes > [I believe that one basic question, what we ought to do, period (the moral question), is a genuine one. There exists a true answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/torbjorn-tannsjo/i-believe-that-one-basic-question-what-we-ought-to-do-period-the/) [Torbjorn Tannsjo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/torbjorn-tannsjo/) > [“Man is stupid, you know, phenomenally stupid; or rather he is not at all stupid, but he is so ungrateful that you could not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/man-is-stupid-you-know-phenomenally-stupid-or-rather-he-is-not-at-all/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [He that calls a man ungrateful sums up all the veil that a man can be guilty of.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-swift/he-that-calls-a-man-ungrateful-sums-up-all-the-veil-that-a-man-can-be/) [Jonathan Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-swift/) > [“No: a poor man who is ungrateful, unthrifty, discontented and rebellious, is probably a real personality, and has much in him...As for the virtuous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/no-a-poor-man-who-is-ungrateful-unthrifty-discontented-and-rebellious/) [oscar wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [I believe the best definition of man is the ungrateful biped.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/i-believe-the-best-definition-of-man-is-the-ungrateful-biped/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [Does not the gratitude of the dog put to shame any man who is ungrateful to his benefactors?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-basil/does-not-the-gratitude-of-the-dog-put-to-shame-any-man-who-is/) [Saint Basil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-basil/) > [“In fact, I believe that the best definition of man is the ungrateful biped.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/in-fact-i-believe-that-the-best-definition-of-man-is-the-ungrateful/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [The man who is ungrateful is often less to blame than his benefactor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/the-man-who-is-ungrateful-is-often-less-to-blame-than-his-benefactor/) [François De La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/) > [A man may be ungrateful, but the human race is not so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/a-man-may-be-ungrateful-but-the-human-race-is-not-so/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [And when distress afflicts you in the sea, away go those whom you call on except He; but when He brings you safe to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quran/and-when-distress-afflicts-you-in-the-sea-away-go-those-whom-you-call/) [Quran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quran/) > [A man is perhaps ungrateful, but often less chargeable with ingratitude than his benefactor is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/a-man-is-perhaps-ungrateful-but-often-less-chargeable-with/) [François De La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/) > [“I believe that the best definition of man is the ungrateful biped.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/i-believe-that-the-best-definition-of-man-is-the-ungrateful-biped/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [“Blessed is a man..when he's too stupid to know what he's doing”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gainnax/blessed-is-a-man-when-he-s-too-stupid-to-know-what-he-s-doing/) [Gainnax](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gainnax/) > [Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man stupid and blind in the eyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/early-to-bed-early-to-rise-makes-a-man-stupid-and-blind-in-the-eyes/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [Was man made stupid to see his own stupidity? Is God by definition indifferent, beyond us all? Is the eternal truth man's fighting soul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-eberhart/was-man-made-stupid-to-see-his-own-stupidity-is-god-by-definition/) [Richard Eberhart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-eberhart/) ## More by Fyodor Dostoyevsky > [“Beauty is not only a terrible thing, it is also a mysterious thing. There God and the Devil strive for mastery, and the battleground…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/beauty-is-not-only-a-terrible-thing-it-is-also-a-mysterious-thing/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [“Listen! I know it's not right to talk. Better to set an example, better to just start - I have already started - and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/listen-i-know-it-s-not-right-to-talk-better-to-set-an-example-better/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [“When all are undressed, one is somehow not ashamed, but when one's the only one undressed and everybody is looking, it's degrading,' he kept…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/when-all-are-undressed-one-is-somehow-not-ashamed-but-when-one-s-the/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [“And what if there are only spiders there, or something of that sort”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/and-what-if-there-are-only-spiders-there-or-something-of-that-sort/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [“The morning was so damp and misty”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/the-morning-was-so-damp-and-misty/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [“I repeat, I repeat with emphasis: all "direct" persons and men of action are active just because they are stupid and limited. How explain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/i-repeat-i-repeat-with-emphasis-all-direct-persons-and-men-of-action/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [“He is a man of intelligence, but to act sensibly, intelligence is not enough.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/he-is-a-man-of-intelligence-but-to-act-sensibly-intelligence-is-not/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [ “if \[God\] doesn't exist, man is the chief of the earth, of the universe. Magnificent! Only how is he going to be good without… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/if-god-doesn-t-exist-man-is-the-chief-of-the-earth-of-the-universe/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [“From an encounter in 1862... “Dickens told me,” Dostoyevsky recalled in a letter written years later, “that all the good, simple people in his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/from-an-encounter-in-1862-dickens-told-me-dostoyevsky-recalled-in-a/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [“It must be the top drawer," he reflected. "So she carries the keys in a pocket on the right. All in one bunch on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/it-must-be-the-top-drawer-he-reflected-so-she-carries-the-keys-in-a/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [“- You take evil for good. It's a passing crisis. It's the result of your illness, perhaps. - You do despise me! It's simply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/you-take-evil-for-good-it-s-a-passing-crisis-it-s-the-result-of-your/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [“Clouds overlaid the sky as with a shroud of mist, and everything looked sad, rainy, and threatening under a fine drizzle which was beating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/clouds-overlaid-the-sky-as-with-a-shroud-of-mist-and-everything/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [“People who can speak well, speak briefly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/people-who-can-speak-well-speak-briefly/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [“I think I could stand anything, any suffering, only to be able to say and to repeat to myself every moment, 'I exist.' In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/i-think-i-could-stand-anything-any-suffering-only-to-be-able-to-say/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [“There is no more ceaseless or tormenting care for man, as long as he remains free, than to find someone to bow down to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/there-is-no-more-ceaseless-or-tormenting-care-for-man-as-long-as-he/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) [Explore all 1,078 Fyodor Dostoyevsky quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) ## More Nature of man quotes > [There is no human nature, since there is no god to conceive it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/there-is-no-human-nature-since-there-is-no-god-to-conceive-it/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [“Probably it goes without saying, but time machine guys don't get a lot of action. Had a one night stand with something cute a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-yu/probably-it-goes-without-saying-but-time-machine-guys-don-t-get-a-lot/) [Charles Yu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-yu/) > [The history of mankind interests us only as it exhibits a steady gain of truth and right, in the incessant conflict which it records…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-history-of-mankind-interests-us-only-as-it-exhibits-a-steady-gain/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“We have become human doings more than human beings, and the verb “rest,” as Jesus uses it, is largely foreign to us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/we-have-become-human-doings-more-than-human-beings-and-the-verb-rest/) [Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/) > [Nothing is so powerful as an insight into human nature... what compulsions drive a man, what instincts dominate his action. If you know these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-bernbach/nothing-is-so-powerful-as-an-insight-into-human-nature-what/) [William Bernbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-bernbach/) > [“The global population of Earth are involved in the following corporate government experiments: The long term effects of - 1. Nuclear bomb fallout radiation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-global-population-of-earth-are-involved-in-the-following/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mak-786/) > [Humans are, as Sartre put it, 'condemned to be free'. To insist that science, or God, objectively defines moral values is to abandon our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenan-malik/humans-are-as-sartre-put-it-condemned-to-be-free-to-insist-that/) [Kenan Malik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenan-malik/) > [Mankind have been slow to believe that order reigns in the universe-that the world is a cosmos and a chaos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/mankind-have-been-slow-to-believe-that-order-reigns-in-the-universe/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [Half the misery of human life might be extinguished if men would alleviate the general curse they lie under by mutual offices of compassion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/half-the-misery-of-human-life-might-be-extinguished-if-men-would/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [Every human creates his own problems. Problems are ones private property and we shouldnt meddle into them self-initiatively.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruben-papian/every-human-creates-his-own-problems-problems-are-ones-private/) [Ruben Papian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruben-papian/) > [“The deepest urge in human nature is the desire to be important.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/the-deepest-urge-in-human-nature-is-the-desire-to-be-important/) [John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/) > [“In the United States law, federally designated wilderness is famously defined as 'an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-marris/in-the-united-states-law-federally-designated-wilderness-is-famously/) [Emma Marris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-marris/) > [“For similar reasons, archaic humans did not initiate any revolutions. As far as we can tell, changes in social patterns, the invention of new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/for-similar-reasons-archaic-humans-did-not-initiate-any-revolutions/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) [Browse all 12,662 Nature of man quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-man/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Gentlemen, let us suppose that man is not stupid. (Indeed one cannot refuse to suppose that, if only from the one consideration, that, if man is stupid, then who is wise?) But if he is not stupid, he is monstrously ungrateful! Phenomenally ungrateful. In fact, I believe that the best definition of man is the ungrateful biped. But that is not all, that is not his worst defect; his worst defect is his perpetual moral obliquity, perpetual—from the days of the Flood to the Schleswig-Holstein period. Moral obliquity and consequently lack of good sense; for it has long been accepted that lack of good sense is due to no other cause than moral obliquity. Put it to the test and cast your eyes upon the history of mankind. What will you see? Is it a grand spectacle? Grand, if you like. Take the Colossus of Rhodes, for instance, that’s worth something. With good reason Mr. Anaevsky testifies of it that some say that it is the work of man’s hands, while others maintain that it has been created by nature herself. Is it many-coloured? Maybe it is many-coloured, too: if one takes the dress uniforms, military and civilian, of all peoples in all ages—that alone is worth something, and if you take the undress uniforms you will never get to the end of it; no historian would be equal to the job. Is it monotonous? May be it’s monotonous too: it’s fighting and fighting; they are fighting now, they fought first and they fought last—you will admit, that it is almost too monotonous. In short, one may say anything about the history of the world— anything that might enter the most disordered imagination. 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