--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: While we ourselves are the living graves…" description: "\"“While we ourselves are the living graves of murdered beasts, how can we expect any ideal conditions on this earth?”\" — George Bernard Shaw" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e5/george-bernard-shaw-68_ethics_while-we-ourselves-are-the-living-graves_2660477.png" --- # While we ourselves are the living graves of murdered… ![“While we ourselves are the living graves of murdered beasts, how can we expect any ideal conditions on this earth?” quote by George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e5/george-bernard-shaw-68_ethics_while-we-ourselves-are-the-living-graves_2660477.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e5/george-bernard-shaw-68_ethics_while-we-ourselves-are-the-living-graves_2660477.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e5/george-bernard-shaw-68_ethics_while-we-ourselves-are-the-living-graves_2660477.png) > ““While we ourselves are the living graves of murdered beasts, how can we expect any ideal conditions on this earth?”” [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. Human beings are the remnants of violent acts, yet we still hope for ideal conditions, highlighting a paradox between our violent past and utopian aspirations. **In simple terms:** Violence vs. idealism paradox. Key Takeaway Question our aspirations. Themes violence idealism humanity ethics paradox Mood reflective critical Type philosophical political When to use this quote - political activism - environmentalism - personal growth - education Key Concepts moral philosophy social critique Questions to Reflect On - Can we reconcile past violence with future ideals? - What defines an ideal condition? A Different Perspective It may ignore progress made toward better conditions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ethics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethics/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Vegetarianism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vegetarianism/) ## Related quotes > [We are the living graves of murdered beasts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/we-are-the-living-graves-of-murdered-beasts/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [While we ourselves are the living graves of murdered animals, how can we expect any ideal living conditions on this earth?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/while-we-ourselves-are-the-living-graves-of-murdered-animals-how-can/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [We are the living graves of murdered beasts, slaughtered to satisfy our appetites. How can we hope in this world to attain the peace…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/we-are-the-living-graves-of-murdered-beasts-slaughtered-to-satisfy/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“The ideal conditions that you are looking for don’t exist. We shall never be able to get rid of certain defects. The trick lies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-ideal-conditions-that-you-are-looking-for-don-t-exist-we-shall/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [It is a very naive view to think that the resources and conditions on earth would last forever. Our race has to take necessary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anousheh-ansari/it-is-a-very-naive-view-to-think-that-the-resources-and-conditions-on/) [Anousheh Ansari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anousheh-ansari/) > [With a firm and steadfast mind one should hold under all conditions, that everywhere the earth is below and the sky above, and to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tycho-brahe/with-a-firm-and-steadfast-mind-one-should-hold-under-all-conditions/) [Tycho Brahe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tycho-brahe/) > [To modify the conditions of the Earth's movement is beyond the powers of man. It is not given to mankind to change the order…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jules-verne/to-modify-the-conditions-of-the-earth-s-movement-is-beyond-the-powers/) [Jules Verne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jules-verne/) > [ And when statesmen or others worry him \[the scientist\] too much, then he should leave with his possessions. With a firm and steadfast mind… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tycho-brahe/and-when-statesmen-or-others-worry-him-the-scientist-too-much-then-he/) [Tycho Brahe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tycho-brahe/) > [It is a strange fact, characteristic of the incomplete state of our current knowledge, that totally opposite conclusions are drawn about prehistoric conditions on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-wegener/it-is-a-strange-fact-characteristic-of-the-incomplete-state-of-our/) Alfred Wegener > [We are sick of war, we don't want to fight, And yet we gorge ourselves upon the dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/we-are-sick-of-war-we-don-t-want-to-fight-and-yet-we-gorge-ourselves/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Oh, come! That boot is on the other leg. Why should you call me to account for eating decently? If I battened on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/oh-come-that-boot-is-on-the-other-leg-why-should-you-call-me-to/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [I do not want to make my stomach a graveyard of dead animals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/i-do-not-want-to-make-my-stomach-a-graveyard-of-dead-animals/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [I choose not to make a graveyard of my body for the rotting corpses of dead animals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/i-choose-not-to-make-a-graveyard-of-my-body-for-the-rotting-corpses/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [A vegetarian is not a person who lives on vegetables, any more than a Catholic is a person who lives on cats.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/a-vegetarian-is-not-a-person-who-lives-on-vegetables-any-more-than-a/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [I am oppressed with a dread of living forever. That is the only disadvantage of vegetarianism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/i-am-oppressed-with-a-dread-of-living-forever-that-is-the-only/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## 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 Ethics quotes > [Self-respect and a clear conscience are powerful components of integrity and are the basis for enriching your relationships with others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-waitley/self-respect-and-a-clear-conscience-are-powerful-components-of/) [Denis Waitley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-waitley/) > [“Knowledge without conscience is but the ruin of the soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabelaise/knowledge-without-conscience-is-but-the-ruin-of-the-soul/) Rabelaise > [He who mistrusts most should be trusted least.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theognis-of-megara/he-who-mistrusts-most-should-be-trusted-least/) [Theognis of Megara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theognis-of-megara/) > [Writing adds up to the conscience of our times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-firrell/writing-adds-up-to-the-conscience-of-our-times/) [Martin Firrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-firrell/) > [Ethics is the activity of man directed to secure the inner perfection of his own personality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/ethics-is-the-activity-of-man-directed-to-secure-the-inner-perfection/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) > [My conscience is really active. So I feel bad about spending excess amount of money on things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/syd/my-conscience-is-really-active-so-i-feel-bad-about-spending-excess/) [Syd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/syd/) > [Records, radio, television, movies, magazines-all are monopolized by the money managers who are guided by one ethic, the words wealth and power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-taft-benson/records-radio-television-movies-magazines-all-are-monopolized-by-the/) [Ezra Taft Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-taft-benson/) > [Let us be thankful for health and competence, and, above all, for a quiet conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/izaak-walton/let-us-be-thankful-for-health-and-competence-and-above-all-for-a/) [Izaak Walton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/izaak-walton/) > [Making money doesn't oblige people to forfeit their honor or their conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-de-rothschild/making-money-doesn-t-oblige-people-to-forfeit-their-honor-or-their/) [Guy de Rothschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-de-rothschild/) > [“If we cannot be happy and powerful and prey on others, we invent conscience and prey on ourselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/if-we-cannot-be-happy-and-powerful-and-prey-on-others-we-invent/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [There is no perfect justice, just as there is no absolute in ethics. But there is perfect injustice, and we know it when we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-dershowitz/there-is-no-perfect-justice-just-as-there-is-no-absolute-in-ethics/) [Alan Dershowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-dershowitz/) > [I think the ethics and morals of genetic engineering are very complicated. It intrigues me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-spottiswoode/i-think-the-ethics-and-morals-of-genetic-engineering-are-very/) [Roger Spottiswoode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-spottiswoode/) > [What our species needs, above all else, is a generally accepted ethical system that is compatible with the scientific knowledge we now possess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-our-species-needs-above-all-else-is-a-generally-accepted-ethical/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Ethics is not definable, is not implementable, because it is not conscious; it involves not only our thinking, but also our feeling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valdemar-w-setzer/ethics-is-not-definable-is-not-implementable-because-it-is-not/) Valdemar W Setzer > [Any time you give a man something he doesn't earn, you cheapen him. Our kids earn what they get, and that includes respect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-hayes/any-time-you-give-a-man-something-he-doesn-t-earn-you-cheapen-him-our/) [Woody Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-hayes/) [Browse all 4,548 Ethics quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethics/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“While we ourselves are the living graves of murdered beasts, how can we expect any ideal conditions on this earth?”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "George Bernard Shaw" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/while-we-ourselves-are-the-living-graves-of-murdered-beasts-how-can/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ethics" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/while-we-ourselves-are-the-living-graves-of-murdered-beasts-how-can/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e5/george-bernard-shaw-68_ethics_while-we-ourselves-are-the-living-graves_2660477.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e5/george-bernard-shaw-68_ethics_while-we-ourselves-are-the-living-graves_2660477.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e5/george-bernard-shaw-68_ethics_while-we-ourselves-are-the-living-graves_2660477.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“While we ourselves are the living graves of murdered beasts, how can we expect any ideal conditions on this…” — 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": "“While we ourselves are the living...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/while-we-ourselves-are-the-living-graves-of-murdered-beasts-how-can/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/while-we-ourselves-are-the-living-graves-of-murdered-beasts-how-can/#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 } } ] } ```