--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When you prevent me from doing anything I…" description: "\"When you prevent me from doing anything I want to do, that is persecution; when I prevent you from doing anything you want to do, that is law, order, a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52b/george-bernard-shaw-68_character_when-you-prevent-me-from-doing-anything_2677456.jpg" --- # When you prevent me from doing anything I want to do, that… ![“When you prevent me from doing anything I want to do, that is persecution; when I prevent you from doing anything you want to do, that is law, order, and morals.” quote by George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52b/george-bernard-shaw-68_character_when-you-prevent-me-from-doing-anything_2677456.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52b/george-bernard-shaw-68_character_when-you-prevent-me-from-doing-anything_2677456.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52b/george-bernard-shaw-68_character_when-you-prevent-me-from-doing-anything_2677456.jpg) > “When you prevent me from doing anything I want to do, that is persecution; when I prevent you from doing anything you want to do, that is law, order, and morals.” [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. Contrasts persecution with law‑ordered morality, highlighting power dynamics. **In simple terms:** Oppression vs. lawful morality. Key Takeaway Question who defines morality. Themes ethics power law persecution morality Mood provocative critical Type philosophical dramatic When to use this quote - legal systems - activism - education - personal ethics Key Concepts social contract political philosophy human rights Questions to Reflect On - Who decides what is moral? - How does power shape law? A Different Perspective May simplify complex moral issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Judgment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judgment/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) [Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral/) [Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order/) [Order Morals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order-morals-2552474/) [Persecution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/persecution/) [Persecution Prevent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/persecution-prevent-2552473/) [Prevent Doing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prevent-doing-1275344/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [Want Persecution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want-persecution-1522033/) ## Related quotes > [It is a monstrous thing that I will say, but I will say it all the same: I find in many things more restraint…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/it-is-a-monstrous-thing-that-i-will-say-but-i-will-say-it-all-the/) [Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/) > [“I want you to see persecution and opposition and slander and misunderstanding and disappointment and self-recrimination and weakness and danger as the normal portion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-piper/i-want-you-to-see-persecution-and-opposition-and-slander-and/) [John Piper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-piper/) > [I only want to control the things that prevent me from doing my job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jannik-sinner/i-only-want-to-control-the-things-that-prevent-me-from-doing-my-job/) [Jannik Sinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jannik-sinner/) > [When you're seeking after bodily pleasure of food and drink for example, this is going to prevent you from doing what you should be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-adamson/when-you-re-seeking-after-bodily-pleasure-of-food-and-drink-for/) [Peter Adamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-adamson/) > [But there was also a little of that thing they say about New Englanders: Being from here doesn't prevent me from doing anything, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlton-fisk/but-there-was-also-a-little-of-that-thing-they-say-about-new/) [Carlton Fisk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlton-fisk/) > [“Don't let not knowing what to do prevent you from doing anything at all”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-alexander/don-t-let-not-knowing-what-to-do-prevent-you-from-doing-anything-at/) [Victoria Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-alexander/) > [I don't want that to prevent me from doing anything, because I can do everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janelle-james/i-don-t-want-that-to-prevent-me-from-doing-anything-because-i-can-do/) [Janelle James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janelle-james/) > [You should never let your fears prevent you from doing what you know is right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aung-san-suu-kyi/you-should-never-let-your-fears-prevent-you-from-doing-what-you-know/) [Aung San Suu Kyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aung-san-suu-kyi/) > [While expressing your desires, you would need to exercise control in order to prevent them from doing harm to you or to others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/while-expressing-your-desires-you-would-need-to-exercise-control-in/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [It is no natural for a man to pray that no theory can prevent him from doing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-freeman-clarke/it-is-no-natural-for-a-man-to-pray-that-no-theory-can-prevent-him/) [James Freeman Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-freeman-clarke/) > [Diabetes doesn't prevent me from doing anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nacho/diabetes-doesn-t-prevent-me-from-doing-anything/) [Nacho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nacho/) > [Learning from others can prevent you from doing a lot of dumb shit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/learning-from-others-can-prevent-you-from-doing-a-lot-of-dumb-shit/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Resistance cannot be seen, touched, heard, or smelled. But it can be felt. We experince it as an energy field radiating from a work-in-potential...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pressfield/resistance-cannot-be-seen-touched-heard-or-smelled-but-it-can-be-felt/) [Steven Pressfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pressfield/) > [Allow yourself to go and do it wrong. Don't expect to always get it right. It will prevent you from doing anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darren-hardy/allow-yourself-to-go-and-do-it-wrong-don-t-expect-to-always-get-it/) [Darren Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darren-hardy/) > [If you travel the earth, you will find it is largely divided into two classes of people-people who say 'I wonder why such and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/if-you-travel-the-earth-you-will-find-it-is-largely-divided-into-two/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) ## 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 Character quotes > [This may sound strange, but although I feel like I know everything about my characters, the brand of shampoo they use, how many cavities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-honeyman/this-may-sound-strange-but-although-i-feel-like-i-know-everything/) [Gail Honeyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-honeyman/) > [I always like a character who makes me laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-stirling/i-always-like-a-character-who-makes-me-laugh/) [Rachael Stirling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachael-stirling/) > [Social responsibility above the level of family, or at most of tribe, requires imagination-- devotion, loyalty, all the higher virtues -- which a man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/social-responsibility-above-the-level-of-family-or-at-most-of-tribe/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I'm often moved by the circumstances around some of my characters, but I don't think I've actually cried watching myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-winslet/i-m-often-moved-by-the-circumstances-around-some-of-my-characters-but/) [Kate Winslet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-winslet/) > [When you're on a daytime drama you get one page, you better damn well know your character. You better know what she would do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hudgins/when-you-re-on-a-daytime-drama-you-get-one-page-you-better-damn-well/) [David Hudgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hudgins/) > [It can sometimes make people fold into themselves and kind of run away, but I think in this case these characters are being forced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-deschanel/it-can-sometimes-make-people-fold-into-themselves-and-kind-of-run/) [Emily Deschanel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-deschanel/) > [If you are well-mannered towards those whose views are similar to yours, you may be said to exhibit a fairly good character. But, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-are-well-mannered-towards-those-whose-views-are-similar-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Democracy is based on the conviction that man has the moral and intellectual capacity, as well as the inalienable right, to govern himself with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/democracy-is-based-on-the-conviction-that-man-has-the-moral-and/) [Harry S. Truman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-s-truman/) > [In the fight between biology and morality, biology has commonly won in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/semir-zeki/in-the-fight-between-biology-and-morality-biology-has-commonly-won-in/) [Semir Zeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/semir-zeki/) > [Your looks don't make you pretty, it's the person inside who makes you pretty!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-chan/your-looks-don-t-make-you-pretty-it-s-the-person-inside-who-makes-you/) [Aaron Chan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-chan/) > [I'm not a huge social media kind of guy, so I don't really know, I don't really ever get... at least in real life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-stroma/i-m-not-a-huge-social-media-kind-of-guy-so-i-don-t-really-know-i-don/) [Freddie Stroma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-stroma/) > [If you stood me in a costume next to a computer graphic of the same-looking character, I think there would be a difference. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warwick-davis/if-you-stood-me-in-a-costume-next-to-a-computer-graphic-of-the-same/) [Warwick Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warwick-davis/) > [Courage: the most important of all the virtues because without courage, you can't practice any other virtue consistently](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/courage-the-most-important-of-all-the-virtues-because-without-courage/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [I'm a character actor - always have been, always will be - and historically, character actors don't come into their own until later in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-potts/i-m-a-character-actor-always-have-been-always-will-be-and/) [Annie Potts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-potts/) [Browse all 32,707 Character quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When you prevent me from doing anything I want to do, that is persecution; when I prevent you from doing anything you want to do, that is law, order, and morals.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "George Bernard Shaw" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/when-you-prevent-me-from-doing-anything-i-want-to-do-that-is/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Character" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/when-you-prevent-me-from-doing-anything-i-want-to-do-that-is/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52b/george-bernard-shaw-68_character_when-you-prevent-me-from-doing-anything_2677456.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52b/george-bernard-shaw-68_character_when-you-prevent-me-from-doing-anything_2677456.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52b/george-bernard-shaw-68_character_when-you-prevent-me-from-doing-anything_2677456.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When you prevent me from doing anything I want to do, that is persecution; when I prevent you from doing…” — George Bernard Shaw", "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": "George Bernard Shaw", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When you prevent me from doing...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/when-you-prevent-me-from-doing-anything-i-want-to-do-that-is/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/when-you-prevent-me-from-doing-anything-i-want-to-do-that-is/#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 } } ] } ```