--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If we cannot live entirely like human…" description: "\"If we cannot live entirely like human beings, at least let us do everything in our power not to live entirely like animals.\" — Jose Saramago" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c8/jos-saramago-208_animal_if-we-cannot-live-entirely-like-human-be_375843.png" --- # If we cannot live entirely like human beings, at least let… ![“If we cannot live entirely like human beings, at least let us do everything in our power not to live entirely like animals.” quote by Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c8/jos-saramago-208_animal_if-we-cannot-live-entirely-like-human-be_375843.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c8/jos-saramago-208_animal_if-we-cannot-live-entirely-like-human-be_375843.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c8/jos-saramago-208_animal_if-we-cannot-live-entirely-like-human-be_375843.png) > “If we cannot live entirely like human beings, at least let us do everything in our power not to live entirely like animals.” [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We should strive to retain humanity, avoiding base animalistic behavior even when circumstances are harsh. **In simple terms:** Maintain humanity over animal instincts. Key Takeaway Choose humane actions. Themes ethics humanity behavior Mood thoughtful serious Type ethical philosophical When to use this quote - conflict zones - daily interactions - leadership Key Concepts moral philosophy social responsibility Questions to Reflect On - In what ways do you rise above base impulses? - How can societies promote humane conduct? A Different Perspective Idealism can clash with survival instincts. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Human beings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-beings/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Let Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/let-power-380878/) [Like Animals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-animals-344440/) [Like Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-human-236111/) [Live Entirely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/live-entirely-259861/) ## Related quotes > [Every single ancient wisdom and religion will tell you the same thing - don't live entirely for yourself, live for other people. 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Christians have experiences and they have feelings, but, if they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-spurgeon/the-true-way-for-a-christian-to-live-is-to-live-entirely-upon-christ/) [Charles Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-spurgeon/) > [Ignore fact and reason, live entirely in the world of your own fantastic and myth-producing passions; do this whole-heartedly and with conviction, and you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/ignore-fact-and-reason-live-entirely-in-the-world-of-your-own/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [You can't live entirely alone. You have to have some kind of a support system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/you-can-t-live-entirely-alone-you-have-to-have-some-kind-of-a-support/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [I know what it is to live entirely for and with what I love best on earth. I hold myself supremely blest -- blest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/i-know-what-it-is-to-live-entirely-for-and-with-what-i-love-best-on/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [We have no choice, we must all die. How we live, however, is entirely of our choosing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-sinek/we-have-no-choice-we-must-all-die-how-we-live-however-is-entirely-of/) [Simon Sinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-sinek/) > [No one can live entirely on their own, nor can any country or society exist in isolation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/no-one-can-live-entirely-on-their-own-nor-can-any-country-or-society/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [“Well, my dear father, in the shipwreck of life--for life is an eternal shipwreck of our hopes--I throw all my useless baggage in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas-p-re-2/well-my-dear-father-in-the-shipwreck-of-life-for-life-is-an-eternal/) [Alexandre Dumas, père](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas-p-re-2/) > [And in your new lives you'll have to live entirely for that one sensation-that of imminent truth. And you're going to have to holler…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/and-in-your-new-lives-you-ll-have-to-live-entirely-for-that-one/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [All we want is to be treated like human beings, and not to be patronized, or experimented on like guinea pigs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winona-ryder/all-we-want-is-to-be-treated-like-human-beings-and-not-to-be/) [Winona Ryder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winona-ryder/) > [“Is there any holy beings like human beings?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/is-there-any-holy-beings-like-human-beings/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [Houses are like the human beings that inhabit them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/houses-are-like-the-human-beings-that-inhabit-them/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [No one runs your life unless you let them. And you have more power than you think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-hyatt/no-one-runs-your-life-unless-you-let-them-and-you-have-more-power/) [Michael Hyatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-hyatt/) ## More by Jose Saramago > [“We are born, and at that moment, it is as if we had signed a pact for the rest of our life, but a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/we-are-born-and-at-that-moment-it-is-as-if-we-had-signed-a-pact-for/) [José Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [It takes little or nothing to undo reputations, the merest trifle makes and remakes them, it is simply a question of finding the best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/it-takes-little-or-nothing-to-undo-reputations-the-merest-trifle/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [One can show no greater respect than to weep for a stranger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/one-can-show-no-greater-respect-than-to-weep-for-a-stranger/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [I am not a prophet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/i-am-not-a-prophet/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [With the passage of time, as well as the social evolution and genetic exchange, we ended up putting our conscience in the color of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/with-the-passage-of-time-as-well-as-the-social-evolution-and-genetic/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [“Al día siguiente no murió nadie.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/al-d-a-siguiente-no-muri-nadie/) [José Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [“E se as histórias para crianças passassem a ser de leitura obrigatória para os adultos? Seriam eles capazes de aprender realmente o que há…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/e-se-as-hist-rias-para-crian-as-passassem-a-ser-de-leitura-obrigat/) [José Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [In a king, modesty would be a sign of weakness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/in-a-king-modesty-would-be-a-sign-of-weakness/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [“the inmates of the second ward in the right wing have decided, at long last, to bury their dead, at least we shall be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/the-inmates-of-the-second-ward-in-the-right-wing-have-decided-at-long/) [José Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [“Stretching one arm behind him, the man passed his hand over the horse's coat, his own skin transformed, or skin which had transformed into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/stretching-one-arm-behind-him-the-man-passed-his-hand-over-the-horse/) [José Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [I think we are blind. Blind people who can see, but do not see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/i-think-we-are-blind-blind-people-who-can-see-but-do-not-see/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [...you have to leave the island in order to see the island, that we can't see ourselves unless we become free of ourselves, Unless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/you-have-to-leave-the-island-in-order-to-see-the-island-that-we-can-t/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [anyone who gets up early by inclination or has been forced to rise early out of necessity finds it intolerable that others should go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/anyone-who-gets-up-early-by-inclination-or-has-been-forced-to-rise/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [Society has to change, but the political powers we have at the moment are not enough to effect this change. The whole democratic system…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/society-has-to-change-but-the-political-powers-we-have-at-the-moment/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [“... aborrece os odores nocturnos, aquelas expansões do corpo a que nem poetas escapam".”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/aborrece-os-odores-nocturnos-aquelas-expans-es-do-corpo-a-que-nem/) [José Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) [Explore all 487 Jose Saramago quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) ## More Animal quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [Animals know nothing of themselves, and they also know nothing of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/animals-know-nothing-of-themselves-and-they-also-know-nothing-of-the/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [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/) > [When grubbing for necessities man is still an animal. He becomes uniquely human when he reaches out for the superfluous and extravagant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/when-grubbing-for-necessities-man-is-still-an-animal-he-becomes/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [I'm 38 and I'm single, and I'm having my most intense and gratifying relationship with a dog. But we all learn about love in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-knapp/i-m-38-and-i-m-single-and-i-m-having-my-most-intense-and-gratifying/) [Caroline Knapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-knapp/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/a-horse-a-horse-my-kingdom-for-a-horse/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“it is a federal system of sadistic torture, vivisection, and animal genocide, which has been carried on for decades under the fraudulent guise of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tobias/it-is-a-federal-system-of-sadistic-torture-vivisection-and-animal/) [Michael Tobias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tobias/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [We must love animals in such a powerful way that we should reject to eat them!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/we-must-love-animals-in-such-a-powerful-way-that-we-should-reject-to/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“The universe contains any amount of horrible ways to be woken up, such as the noise of the mob breaking down the front door,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/the-universe-contains-any-amount-of-horrible-ways-to-be-woken-up-such/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [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/) > [That dog, I say that dog is lower than a snake full of buckshot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foghorn-leghorn/that-dog-i-say-that-dog-is-lower-than-a-snake-full-of-buckshot/) [Foghorn Leghorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foghorn-leghorn/) > [I bet plants go like 'Weeeeeeeee!' whenever they're swallowed by a giraffe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-bet-plants-go-like-weeeeeeeee-whenever-they-re-swallowed-by-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Animal rights without veganism is like human rights with slavery. It makes no sense. None whatsoever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/animal-rights-without-veganism-is-like-human-rights-with-slavery-it/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) [Browse all 13,456 Animal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If we cannot live entirely like human beings, at least let us do everything in our power not to live entirely like animals.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jose Saramago" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/if-we-cannot-live-entirely-like-human-beings-at-least-let-us-do/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Animal" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/if-we-cannot-live-entirely-like-human-beings-at-least-let-us-do/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c8/jos-saramago-208_animal_if-we-cannot-live-entirely-like-human-be_375843.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c8/jos-saramago-208_animal_if-we-cannot-live-entirely-like-human-be_375843.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c8/jos-saramago-208_animal_if-we-cannot-live-entirely-like-human-be_375843.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If we cannot live entirely like human beings, at least let us do everything in our power not to live…” — Jose Saramago", "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": "Jose Saramago", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If we cannot live entirely like...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/if-we-cannot-live-entirely-like-human-beings-at-least-let-us-do/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/if-we-cannot-live-entirely-like-human-beings-at-least-let-us-do/#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 } } ] } ```