--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We must face the fact that society is…" description: "\"“We must face the fact that society is founded on intolerance. [. . .] We may prate of toleration as we will; but society must always draw a line somew..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dcb/george-bernard-shaw-68_intolerance_we-must-face-the-fact-that-society-is-fo_2004410.jpg" --- # We must face the fact that society is founded on… ![“We must face the fact that society is founded on intolerance. [. . .] We may prate of toleration as we will; but society must always draw a line somewhere between allowable conduct and insanity or crime, in spite of the risk of mistaking sages for lunatics and saviours for blasphemers. We must…” quote by George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dcb/george-bernard-shaw-68_intolerance_we-must-face-the-fact-that-society-is-fo_2004410.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dcb/george-bernard-shaw-68_intolerance_we-must-face-the-fact-that-society-is-fo_2004410.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dcb/george-bernard-shaw-68_intolerance_we-must-face-the-fact-that-society-is-fo_2004410.jpg) > ““We must face the fact that society is founded on intolerance. \[. . .\] We may prate of toleration as we will; but society must always draw a line somewhere between allowable conduct and insanity or crime, in spite of the risk of mistaking sages for lunatics and saviours for blasphemers. We must persecute, even to the death; and all we can do to mitigate the danger of persecution is, first, to be very careful what we persecute, and second, to bear in mind that unless there is a large liberty to shock conventional people, and a well informed sense of the value of originality, individuality, and eccentricity, the result will be apparent stagnation covering a repression of evolutionary forces which will eventually explode with extravagant and probably destructive violence.”” [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Society must balance tolerance with limits, avoiding both oppression and chaos, while protecting originality and preventing violent backlash. **In simple terms:** Society needs limits on tolerance to protect freedom and prevent violence. Key Takeaway Set clear boundaries to protect both liberty and safety. Themes tolerance freedom societal limits originality danger Mood thoughtful concerned critical Type philosophical political When to use this quote - political policy - legal systems - education curricula - media regulation - community standards Key Concepts social contract ethical boundaries evolutionary pressure Questions to Reflect On - What limits are necessary to protect society without suppressing creativity? - How can we distinguish harmful actions from eccentricity? A Different Perspective Over‑restriction can stifle innovation; under‑restriction can invite chaos. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Danger Persecution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/danger-persecution-3544925/) [Founded Intolerance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/founded-intolerance-3544926/) [Intolerance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intolerance/) [Persecution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/persecution/) [Persecution Careful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/persecution-careful-3544924/) [Tolerance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tolerance/) ## Related quotes > [There is no religion that was founded on intolerance - and no religion that does not value the sanctity of human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohamed-elbaradei/there-is-no-religion-that-was-founded-on-intolerance-and-no-religion/) [Mohamed ElBaradei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohamed-elbaradei/) > [Though all society is founded on intolerance, all improvement is founded on tolerance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/though-all-society-is-founded-on-intolerance-all-improvement-is/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [We have entered a period of intolerance which combines, as it sometimes does in America, with a sugary taste for euphemism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hughes/we-have-entered-a-period-of-intolerance-which-combines-as-it/) [Robert Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hughes/) > [...I couldn't but surmise that the devil, looking at the cruel wars that Christianity has occasioned, the persecutions, the tortures Christian has inflicted on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/i-couldn-t-but-surmise-that-the-devil-looking-at-the-cruel-wars-that/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [Christians are beginning to lose the spirit of intolerance which animated them: experience has shown the error of the expulsion of the Jews from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baron-de-montesquieu/christians-are-beginning-to-lose-the-spirit-of-intolerance-which/) [Baron de Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baron-de-montesquieu/) > [We must confront persecution faced by many Christian communities and the intolerance that plagues us. We must overcome anti-Semitism and the prejudice that divides…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ban-ki-moon/we-must-confront-persecution-faced-by-many-christian-communities-and/) [Ban Ki-moon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ban-ki-moon/) > [Fanaticism is the child of false zeal and of superstition, the father of intolerance and of persecution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-william-fletcher/fanaticism-is-the-child-of-false-zeal-and-of-superstition-the-father/) [John William Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-william-fletcher/) > [“If we look back into history for the character of present sects in Christianity, we shall find few that have not in their turns…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-franklin/if-we-look-back-into-history-for-the-character-of-present-sects-in/) [ben franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-franklin/) > [“Thus identified with astronomy, in proclaiming truths supposed to be hostile to Scripture, Geology has been denounced as the enemy of religion. The twin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brewster/thus-identified-with-astronomy-in-proclaiming-truths-supposed-to-be/) [David Brewster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brewster/) > [My aim is to lay bare and proclaim the crying and horrible guilt of the bloody doctrine of persecution as one of the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-williams/my-aim-is-to-lay-bare-and-proclaim-the-crying-and-horrible-guilt-of/) [Roger Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-williams/) > [In Constantinople, more Christians were slaughtered by Christians in the years 342-343 than by all the persecutions by pagans in the history of Rome.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-durant/in-constantinople-more-christians-were-slaughtered-by-christians-in/) [Will Durant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-durant/) > [The world may disagree with the Church, but the world knows very definitely with what it is disagreeing. In the future as in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-world-may-disagree-with-the-church-but-the-world-knows-very/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“If the Pentateuch be true, religious persecution is a duty. The dungeons of the Inquisition were temples, and the clank of every chain upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-g-ingersoll/if-the-pentateuch-be-true-religious-persecution-is-a-duty-the/) [Robert G. Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-g-ingersoll/) > [A man who is convinced of the truth of his religion is indeed never tolerant. At the least, he is to feel pity for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/a-man-who-is-convinced-of-the-truth-of-his-religion-is-indeed-never/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [Let us, then, fellow citizens, unite with one heart and one mind. Let us restore to social intercourse that harmony and affection without which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/let-us-then-fellow-citizens-unite-with-one-heart-and-one-mind-let-us/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) ## More by George Bernard Shaw > [I love little children too but I don't cut off their heads and stick them in vases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/i-love-little-children-too-but-i-don-t-cut-off-their-heads-and-stick/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Blasphemy and sedition (meaning the truth about Church and State).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/blasphemy-and-sedition-meaning-the-truth-about-church-and-state/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [In the arts of life, man invents nothing; but in the arts of death he outdoes Nature herself, and produces by chemistry and machinery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/in-the-arts-of-life-man-invents-nothing-but-in-the-arts-of-death-he/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“My religious convictions and scientific views cannot at present be more specifically defined than as those of a believer in creative evolution. I desire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/my-religious-convictions-and-scientific-views-cannot-at-present-be/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [What a man believes may be ascertained, not from his creed, but from the assumptions on which he habitually acts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/what-a-man-believes-may-be-ascertained-not-from-his-creed-but-from/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [You are my inspiration and my folly. You are my light across the sea, my million nameless joys, and my day's wage. You are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/you-are-my-inspiration-and-my-folly-you-are-my-light-across-the-sea/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Men have to do some awfully mean things to keep up their respectability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/men-have-to-do-some-awfully-mean-things-to-keep-up-their/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The schoolmaster is the person who takes the children off the parents' hands for a consideration. That is to say, he establishes a child…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-schoolmaster-is-the-person-who-takes-the-children-off-the-parents/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [As long as I have a want, I have a reason for living. Satisfaction is death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/as-long-as-i-have-a-want-i-have-a-reason-for-living-satisfaction-is/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The camera can represent flesh so superbly that, if I dared, I would never photograph a figure without asking that figure to take its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-camera-can-represent-flesh-so-superbly-that-if-i-dared-i-would/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [A man who is not a communist at the age of twenty is a fool. Any man who is still communist at the age…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/a-man-who-is-not-a-communist-at-the-age-of-twenty-is-a-fool-any-man/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [But to admire a strong person and to live under that strong person’s thumb are two different things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/but-to-admire-a-strong-person-and-to-live-under-that-strong-person-s/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Socialism is the same as Communism, only better English.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/socialism-is-the-same-as-communism-only-better-english/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The person who is ignorant enough to believe that his nourishment depends on meat is in a horrible dilemma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-person-who-is-ignorant-enough-to-believe-that-his-nourishment/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [In the arts of peace Man is a bungler.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/in-the-arts-of-peace-man-is-a-bungler/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) [Explore all 1,640 George Bernard Shaw quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## More Intolerance quotes > [Dialogue and education for peace can help free our hearts from the impulse toward intolerance and the rejection of others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/dialogue-and-education-for-peace-can-help-free-our-hearts-from-the/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [I resolutely believe that respect for diversity is a fundamental pillar in the eradication of racism, xenophobia and intolerance. There is no excuse for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rigoberta-menchu/i-resolutely-believe-that-respect-for-diversity-is-a-fundamental/) [Rigoberta Menchu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rigoberta-menchu/) > [the Republicans love to say that the Democratic Party is ruled by 'special interests.' But when pressed to name these 'special interests,' the usual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-ferraro/the-republicans-love-to-say-that-the-democratic-party-is-ruled-by/) [Geraldine Ferraro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-ferraro/) > [I have tried to defend what is most precious to our American society, a society that is now at war against the forces of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demian-bichir/i-have-tried-to-defend-what-is-most-precious-to-our-american-society/) [Demian Bichir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demian-bichir/) > [Peace cannot be built on exclusivism, absolutism, and intolerance. But neither can it be built on vague liberal slogans and pious programs gestated in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/peace-cannot-be-built-on-exclusivism-absolutism-and-intolerance-but/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [Too small is our world to allow discrimination, bigotry and intolerance to thrive in any corner of it, let alone in the United States…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliot-engel/too-small-is-our-world-to-allow-discrimination-bigotry-and/) [Eliot Engel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliot-engel/) > [House music is about love, and lots of hip hop is about hate and intolerance, so in that respect, it's not good at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-lowe/house-music-is-about-love-and-lots-of-hip-hop-is-about-hate-and/) [Chris Lowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-lowe/) > [“Intolerance is a failed master of non-existent reason.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sir-kristian-goldmund-aumann/intolerance-is-a-failed-master-of-non-existent-reason/) [sir kristian goldmund aumann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sir-kristian-goldmund-aumann/) > [Pat Buchanan... was fired by MSNBC for doing nothing more than voicing his rock-solid conservative thoughts on the otherwise failing network... The real message…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-nugent/pat-buchanan-was-fired-by-msnbc-for-doing-nothing-more-than-voicing/) [Ted Nugent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-nugent/) > [I believe in a wall between church and state so high that no one can climb over it. When religion controls government, political liberty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-ervin/i-believe-in-a-wall-between-church-and-state-so-high-that-no-one-can/) [Sam Ervin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-ervin/) > [Profiling any segment of society and viewing them as a threat is a sign of intolerance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fethullah-gulen/profiling-any-segment-of-society-and-viewing-them-as-a-threat-is-a/) [Fethullah Gulen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fethullah-gulen/) > [I want you to just let a wave of intolerance wash over you. I want you to let a wave of hatred wash over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-terry/i-want-you-to-just-let-a-wave-of-intolerance-wash-over-you-i-want-you/) [Randall Terry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-terry/) > [“When you are alone in the wilderness, opinions or beliefs of any kind are dropped as the absurd accoutrements they are. But after being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-ligotti/when-you-are-alone-in-the-wilderness-opinions-or-beliefs-of-any-kind/) [Thomas Ligotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-ligotti/) > [Intolerance has always been one of the cornerstones of Christianity - the glorious heritage of the Inquisition. It's no coincidence that most of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madalyn-murray-o-hair/intolerance-has-always-been-one-of-the-cornerstones-of-christianity/) [Madalyn Murray O'Hair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madalyn-murray-o-hair/) > [Hatred, intolerance, poor hygienic conditions and violence all have roots in illiteracy, so we're trying to do something to help the poor and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdul-qadeer-khan/hatred-intolerance-poor-hygienic-conditions-and-violence-all-have/) [Abdul Qadeer Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdul-qadeer-khan/) [Browse all 572 Intolerance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intolerance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We must face the fact that society is founded on intolerance. 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We must persecute, even to the death; and all we can do to mitigate the danger of persecution is, first, to be very careful what we persecute, and second, to bear in mind that unless there is a large liberty to shock conventional people, and a well informed sense of the value of originality, individuality, and eccentricity, the result will be apparent stagnation covering a repression of evolutionary forces which will eventually explode with extravagant and probably destructive violence.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "George Bernard Shaw" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/we-must-face-the-fact-that-society-is-founded-on-intolerance-we-may/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Intolerance" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/we-must-face-the-fact-that-society-is-founded-on-intolerance-we-may/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dcb/george-bernard-shaw-68_intolerance_we-must-face-the-fact-that-society-is-fo_2004410.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dcb/george-bernard-shaw-68_intolerance_we-must-face-the-fact-that-society-is-fo_2004410.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dcb/george-bernard-shaw-68_intolerance_we-must-face-the-fact-that-society-is-fo_2004410.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We must face the fact that society is founded on intolerance. 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