---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Murdering someone would surely prove that…"
description: "\"Murdering someone would surely prove that you are capable of killing, but it wouldn't be the most reasonable way to understand why you shouldn't do it...."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1d/jonathan-safran-foer-136_capable_murdering-someone-would-surely-prove-tha_3079707.png"
---

#  Murdering someone would surely prove that you are capable…

![“Murdering someone would surely prove that you are capable of killing, but it wouldn't be the most reasonable way to understand why you shouldn't do it.” quote by Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1d/jonathan-safran-foer-136_capable_murdering-someone-would-surely-prove-tha_3079707.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1d/jonathan-safran-foer-136_capable_murdering-someone-would-surely-prove-tha_3079707.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1d/jonathan-safran-foer-136_capable_murdering-someone-would-surely-prove-tha_3079707.png)

> “Murdering someone would surely prove that you are capable of killing, but it wouldn't be the most reasonable way to understand why you shouldn't do it.”

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Argues that moral reasoning should go beyond hypothetical scenarios to practical understanding.

**In simple terms:** Killing shows capability, not moral insight.

Key Takeaway

Seek deeper moral reasoning beyond acts.

Themes

ethics morality philosophy

Mood

thought‑provoking philosophical

Type

essay reflection

When to use this quote

- legal decisions
- medical ethics
- personal dilemmas
- education curricula

Key Concepts

consequentialism deontological ethics

Questions to Reflect On

- Why do we judge morality by actions?
- What alternative ways reveal moral character?

A Different Perspective

Might oversimplify complex moral psychology.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Killing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/killing/) [Murdering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/murdering/) [Vegan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vegan/)

## Related quotes

> [“But if they were capable of killing, wouldn't they just do it again?  It was something he'd never really understood.  It probably varied from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hollis-shiloh/but-if-they-were-capable-of-killing-wouldn-t-they-just-do-it-again-it/)

Hollis Shiloh

> [Cruelty...prefers abstraction. Some have tried to resolved this gap by hunting or butchering an animal themselves, as if those experiences might somehow legitimize the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/cruelty-prefers-abstraction-some-have-tried-to-resolved-this-gap-by/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [“We are killing, every one of us, every moment of the day - just by living. And if one realizes this, is this very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-x/we-are-killing-every-one-of-us-every-moment-of-the-day-just-by-living/)

[Mark X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-x/)

> [I never for a moment considered killing myself, because it wouldn't have achieved anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-faulks/i-never-for-a-moment-considered-killing-myself-because-it-wouldn-t/)

[Sebastian Faulks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-faulks/)

> [“You would have realized that it wasn't Mumtaz, a muslim, a friend of yours, but a human being you had killed. I mean, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saadat-hasan-manto/you-would-have-realized-that-it-wasn-t-mumtaz-a-muslim-a-friend-of/)

[Saadat Hasan Manto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saadat-hasan-manto/)

> [ \[..\] and there are tons of people I hate so much that I wouldn't mind taking them out. But killing them wouldn't get me… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natsuo-kirino/and-there-are-tons-of-people-i-hate-so-much-that-i-wouldn-t-mind/)

[Natsuo Kirino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natsuo-kirino/)

> [I don't ever want to take a part in order to prove that I'm capable of doing something. It's all based in doing stuff…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-carell/i-don-t-ever-want-to-take-a-part-in-order-to-prove-that-i-m-capable/)

[Steve Carell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-carell/)

> [Whatever one man is capable of imagining, other men will prove themselves capable of realizing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jules-verne/whatever-one-man-is-capable-of-imagining-other-men-will-prove/)

[Jules Verne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jules-verne/)

> [I'm not trying to prove that I'm capable of doing many things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angel-olsen/i-m-not-trying-to-prove-that-i-m-capable-of-doing-many-things/)

[Angel Olsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angel-olsen/)

> [I've always wanted to fight the best guys in the world and prove what I'm capable of.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belal-muhammad/i-ve-always-wanted-to-fight-the-best-guys-in-the-world-and-prove-what/)

[Belal Muhammad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belal-muhammad/)

> [There is lot of competition happening in the South and I'm incapable of being in the race, but I will be more than happy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shamna-kasim/there-is-lot-of-competition-happening-in-the-south-and-i-m-incapable/)

[Shamna Kasim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shamna-kasim/)

> [“When a child is forced to prove himself as capable, results are often disastrous. A child needs love, acceptance, and understanding. He is devastated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virgina-m-axline/when-a-child-is-forced-to-prove-himself-as-capable-results-are-often/)

Virgina M. Axline

> [“Let me tell you a little story. There was once a boy who wasn’t even old enough to shave. Beaten. Naked. He was sent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kinley-macgregor/let-me-tell-you-a-little-story-there-was-once-a-boy-who-wasn-t-even/)

[Kinley MacGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kinley-macgregor/)

> [“It was an ordinary spring day in Istanbul, a long and leaden afternoon like so many others, when she discovered, with a hollowness in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-shafak/it-was-an-ordinary-spring-day-in-istanbul-a-long-and-leaden-afternoon/)

[Elif Shafak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-shafak/)

> [We may anticipate a state of affairs in which two Great Powers will each be in a position to put an end to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-robert-oppenheimer/we-may-anticipate-a-state-of-affairs-in-which-two-great-powers-will/)

[J. Robert Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-robert-oppenheimer/)

## More by Jonathan Safran Foer

> [This brings me back to the image of Kafka standing before a fish in the Berlin aquarium, a fish on which his gaze fell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/this-brings-me-back-to-the-image-of-kafka-standing-before-a-fish-in/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [I try not to remember the life that I didn’t want to lose but lost and have to remember](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/i-try-not-to-remember-the-life-that-i-didn-t-want-to-lose-but-lost/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [“I have an aristocratic smile and like to punch people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/i-have-an-aristocratic-smile-and-like-to-punch-people/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [He removed several pages of death certificates, which were picked up by another breeze and sent into the trees. Some would fall with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/he-removed-several-pages-of-death-certificates-which-were-picked-up/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [I would have done anything for him. Maybe that was my sickness. We made love in nothing places and turned the lights off. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/i-would-have-done-anything-for-him-maybe-that-was-my-sickness-we-made/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [“One day I wandered away from her and hid. I liked the way it felt to have someone look for me, to hear my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/one-day-i-wandered-away-from-her-and-hid-i-liked-the-way-it-felt-to/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [If nothing matters, there's nothing to save.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/if-nothing-matters-there-s-nothing-to-save/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [“It was one of the best days of my life, a day during which I lived my life and didn't think about it at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/it-was-one-of-the-best-days-of-my-life-a-day-during-which-i-lived-my/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [“The appearance was misleading- human dreams; rubbish heaps abundant yet ephemeral sudden and splendid, only to wilt and perish”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/the-appearance-was-misleading-human-dreams-rubbish-heaps-abundant-yet/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [“the entirety of human society and moral progress represents an explicit transcendence of what’s “natural.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/the-entirety-of-human-society-and-moral-progress-represents-an/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [“Food is not so much a symbol of freedom as the first requirement of freedom. We eat foods that are native to America on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/food-is-not-so-much-a-symbol-of-freedom-as-the-first-requirement-of/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [“Rationally, factory farming is so obviously wrong, in so many ways. In all of my reading and conversations, I’ve yet to find a credible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/rationally-factory-farming-is-so-obviously-wrong-in-so-many-ways-in/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [Just because you're an atheist, that doesn't mean you wouldn't love for things to have reasons for why they are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/just-because-you-re-an-atheist-that-doesn-t-mean-you-wouldn-t-love/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [Do you think I'm wonderful? she asked him one day as they leaned against the trunk of a petrified maple. No, he said. Why?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/do-you-think-i-m-wonderful-she-asked-him-one-day-as-they-leaned/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [My insides don't match up with my outsides. -Do anyone's inside and outsides match up? -I don't know. I'm only me. -Maybe that's what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/my-insides-don-t-match-up-with-my-outsides-do-anyone-s-inside-and/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

[Explore all 1,117 Jonathan Safran Foer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

## More Capable quotes

> [When we are capable of living in the moment free from the tyranny of "shoulds," free from the nagging sensation that this moment isn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-z-borysenko/when-we-are-capable-of-living-in-the-moment-free-from-the-tyranny-of/)

[Joan Z. Borysenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-z-borysenko/)

> [Everybody is different. Some writers can write reams of great books and then J. D. Salinger wrote just a few. Beethoven wrote nine symphonies.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-joel/everybody-is-different-some-writers-can-write-reams-of-great-books/)

[Billy Joel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-joel/)

> [People are capable of great, great change during the span of one lifetime. And women even more than men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/people-are-capable-of-great-great-change-during-the-span-of-one/)

[Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/)

> [When you lived it for years and years and years and seen different characters just get pummeled and squashed because 'I said so,' it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arn-anderson/when-you-lived-it-for-years-and-years-and-years-and-seen-different/)

[Arn Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arn-anderson/)

> [Each man is capable of doing one thing well. If he attempts several, he will fail to achieve distinction in any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/each-man-is-capable-of-doing-one-thing-well-if-he-attempts-several-he/)

[Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/)

> [But, outside of being a sweet little girl, she was awfully dumb and capable of doing horrible things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/but-outside-of-being-a-sweet-little-girl-she-was-awfully-dumb-and/)

[Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/)

> [I was terrible student. I was capable, but I never like being told what to do, so I was always in the bottom class…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-lilley/i-was-terrible-student-i-was-capable-but-i-never-like-being-told-what/)

[Chris Lilley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-lilley/)

> [Not everyone is capable of madness; and of those lucky enough to be capable, not many have the courage for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-strindberg/not-everyone-is-capable-of-madness-and-of-those-lucky-enough-to-be/)

[August Strindberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/august-strindberg/)

> [ \[The Community's\] crosses and trials give me confidence. But I derive my hope above all, and most especially, from our utter incapacity, for it… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-guerin/the-community-s-crosses-and-trials-give-me-confidence-but-i-derive-my/)

[Theodore Guerin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-guerin/)

> [The mathematical facts worthy of being studied are those which, by their analogy with other facts, are capable of leading us to the knowledge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-poincare/the-mathematical-facts-worthy-of-being-studied-are-those-which-by/)

[Henri Poincare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-poincare/)

> [“If you not yet try How to know you can or not?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sopharat/if-you-not-yet-try-how-to-know-you-can-or-not/)

Sopharat

> [I'm attracted to the garden, without a doubt, but I always try and image the wolf that's there, too. And that wolf would be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-light/i-m-attracted-to-the-garden-without-a-doubt-but-i-always-try-and/)

[Michael Light](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-light/)

> [A man, as a man, could arrive at all the dignity that a man was capable of obtaining or receiving; but it needed a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-taylor/a-man-as-a-man-could-arrive-at-all-the-dignity-that-a-man-was-capable/)

[John Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-taylor/)

> [Playing is much, much harder than composing in my opinion, becoming a player. If you want to be a player for all your life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-powell/playing-is-much-much-harder-than-composing-in-my-opinion-becoming-a/)

[John Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-powell/)

> [How difficult the task to quench the fire and the pride of private ambition, and to sacrifice ourselves and all our hopes and expectations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-adams/how-difficult-the-task-to-quench-the-fire-and-the-pride-of-private/)

[Abigail Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-adams/)

Browse all 3,861 Capable quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Murdering someone would surely prove that you are capable of killing, but it wouldn't be the most reasonable way to understand why you shouldn't do it.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Jonathan Safran Foer"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/murdering-someone-would-surely-prove-that-you-are-capable-of-killing/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Capable"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/murdering-someone-would-surely-prove-that-you-are-capable-of-killing/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1d/jonathan-safran-foer-136_capable_murdering-someone-would-surely-prove-tha_3079707.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1d/jonathan-safran-foer-136_capable_murdering-someone-would-surely-prove-tha_3079707.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1d/jonathan-safran-foer-136_capable_murdering-someone-would-surely-prove-tha_3079707.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Murdering someone would surely prove that you are capable of killing, but it wouldn't be the most reasonable…” — Jonathan Safran Foer",
                "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": "Jonathan Safran Foer",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Murdering someone would surely prove that...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/murdering-someone-would-surely-prove-that-you-are-capable-of-killing/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/murdering-someone-would-surely-prove-that-you-are-capable-of-killing/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
