--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The human being is an unequal creature…" description: "\"The human being is an unequal creature. That is a fact. And we start off with the proposition. All the great religions, all the great movements, all th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/420/lee-kuan-yew-3939_creatures_the-human-being-is-an-unequal-creature-t_2830519.jpg" --- # The human being is an unequal creature. That is a fact… ![“The human being is an unequal creature. That is a fact. And we start off with the proposition. All the great religions, all the great movements, all the great political ideology, say let us make the human being as equal as possible. In fact, he is not equal, never will be.” quote by Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/420/lee-kuan-yew-3939_creatures_the-human-being-is-an-unequal-creature-t_2830519.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/420/lee-kuan-yew-3939_creatures_the-human-being-is-an-unequal-creature-t_2830519.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/420/lee-kuan-yew-3939_creatures_the-human-being-is-an-unequal-creature-t_2830519.jpg) > “The human being is an unequal creature. That is a fact. And we start off with the proposition. All the great religions, all the great movements, all the great political ideology, say let us make the human being as equal as possible. In fact, he is not equal, never will be.” [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human inequality is inherent; attempts to equalize all aspects are unrealistic, though striving for fairness remains vital. **In simple terms:** People are inherently unequal; aim for fairness, not perfect equality. Key Takeaway Seek equitable systems, accept natural differences. Themes inequality realism social justice politics Mood analytical thoughtful Type political philosophical When to use this quote - policy design - education reform - economic planning - human resources Key Concepts philosophy political theory Questions to Reflect On - What aspects of society can be equalized? - How to balance fairness with inherent differences? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on equality can ignore merit and diversity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Creatures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creatures/) [Equal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/equal/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Great political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-political/) [Human beings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-beings/) [Human Equal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-equal-237663/) [Human Unequal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-unequal-3654855/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Ideology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideology/) [Movement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/movement/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Political ideology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-ideology/) [Propositions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/propositions/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Singapore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/singapore/) [Unequal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unequal/) [Unequal Creature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unequal-creature-3654856/) ## Related quotes > [My father's biggest achievement with us as children was that he taught us that everyone is human and equal, even your enemy has the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rula-jebreal/my-father-s-biggest-achievement-with-us-as-children-was-that-he/) [Rula Jebreal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rula-jebreal/) > [“Cosmopolitan theology affirms and radicalizes the belief that the Divine creates each and every human being as equal to every one else as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/namsoon-kang/cosmopolitan-theology-affirms-and-radicalizes-the-belief-that-the/) [Namsoon Kang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/namsoon-kang/) > [We people of the world need to find ways to get to know one another - for then we will recognize that our likenesses…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peace-pilgrim/we-people-of-the-world-need-to-find-ways-to-get-to-know-one-another/) [Peace Pilgrim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peace-pilgrim/) > [It's okay to have different views and beliefs. But when it's all said and done, we are all human. Everyone is equal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-okay-to-have-different-views-and-beliefs-but-when-it-s-all-said/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Every human is equal in terms of the laws of nature. No one, not even if they are a highly respected icon of society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-yager/every-human-is-equal-in-terms-of-the-laws-of-nature-no-one-not-even/) [David Yager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-yager/) > [I have one great political idea. . . . That idea is an old one. It is widely and generally assented to; nevertheless, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-one-great-political-idea-that-idea-is-an-old-one-it-is-widely/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [Al Gore seems to have found a great political ploy: Picking up whatever issue he is most vulnerable on and championing the cause. Perhaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-olson/al-gore-seems-to-have-found-a-great-political-ploy-picking-up/) [Barbara Olson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-olson/) > [Great political questions stir the deepest nature of one-half the nation, but they pass far above and over the heads of the other half.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-phillips/great-political-questions-stir-the-deepest-nature-of-one-half-the/) [Wendell Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-phillips/) > [If I wrote at all, I must throw myself headlong into the great political maelstrom, and would of course be swallowed up like a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-swisshelm/if-i-wrote-at-all-i-must-throw-myself-headlong-into-the-great/) [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) > [The great political questions are in their final analysis great moral questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-jennings-bryan/the-great-political-questions-are-in-their-final-analysis-great-moral/) [William Jennings Bryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-jennings-bryan/) > [I continue to believe when I said in Hanover, that the E.U. remains one of the world's great political and economic achievements, and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/i-continue-to-believe-when-i-said-in-hanover-that-the-e-u-remains-one/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [I can remember certain Manchester United defeats the way most people remember family bereavements or great political events. The four-nil drubbing by Barcelona, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-dunne/i-can-remember-certain-manchester-united-defeats-the-way-most-people/) [Tom Dunne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-dunne/) > [Upon my arrival in the United States the religious aspect of the country was the first thing that struck my attention; and the longer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/upon-my-arrival-in-the-united-states-the-religious-aspect-of-the/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [There was great political uncertainty in South Asia at the time of the Buddha. The older small tribal societies were cracking up and gave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/there-was-great-political-uncertainty-in-south-asia-at-the-time-of/) [Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/) > [The prime minister of Israel is welcome to speak in the United States, obviously. But we don't want to see this turned into some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-netanyahu/the-prime-minister-of-israel-is-welcome-to-speak-in-the-united-states/) [Benjamin Netanyahu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-netanyahu/) ## More by Lee Kuan Yew > [“You know, the cure for all this talk is really a good dose of incompetent government. You get that alternative and you'll never put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/you-know-the-cure-for-all-this-talk-is-really-a-good-dose-of/) [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) > [The Bell curve is a fact of life. The blacks on average score 85 per cent on IQ and it is accurate, nothing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/the-bell-curve-is-a-fact-of-life-the-blacks-on-average-score-85-per/) [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) > [I'm not saying that everything I did was right, but everything I did was for an honourable purpose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/i-m-not-saying-that-everything-i-did-was-right-but-everything-i-did/) [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) > [If, for instance, you put in a Malay officer who's very religious and who has family ties in Malaysia in charge of a machine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/if-for-instance-you-put-in-a-malay-officer-who-s-very-religious-and/) [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) > [Supposing Catherine Lim was writing about me and not the prime minister...She would not dare, right? Because my posture, my response has been such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/supposing-catherine-lim-was-writing-about-me-and-not-the-prime/) [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) > [You marry a non-graduate, then you are going to worry if your son or daughter is going to make it to the university.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/you-marry-a-non-graduate-then-you-are-going-to-worry-if-your-son-or/) [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) > [That was the year the British decided to get out and sell everything. So I immediately held an election. I knew the people will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/that-was-the-year-the-british-decided-to-get-out-and-sell-everything/) [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) > [A leader without the vision, to strive to improve things, is no good. Then you will just stay put, you won't progress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/a-leader-without-the-vision-to-strive-to-improve-things-is-no-good/) [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) > [India is scared of the competition... because Chinese goods will go into India and compete.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/india-is-scared-of-the-competition-because-chinese-goods-will-go-into/) [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) > [I was a product of the times, the war, the occupation, the reoccupation, my 4 years in Britain, admiring but at the same time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/i-was-a-product-of-the-times-the-war-the-occupation-the-reoccupation/) [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) > [Three women were brought to the Singapore General Hospital, each in the same condition and needing a blood transfusion. The first, a Southeast Asian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/three-women-were-brought-to-the-singapore-general-hospital-each-in/) [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) > [What I fear is complacency. When things always become better, people tend to want more for less work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/what-i-fear-is-complacency-when-things-always-become-better-people/) [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) > [I have said this on many a previous occasion: that had the mix in Singapore been different, had it been 75% Indians, 15% Malays…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/i-have-said-this-on-many-a-previous-occasion-that-had-the-mix-in/) [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) > [I have decided that we shall make and build and never give way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/i-have-decided-that-we-shall-make-and-build-and-never-give-way/) [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) > [Nine holes of golf will take you one-and-a-half, two hours. I run in 20 minutes, I feel better off. So the cost benefit made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/nine-holes-of-golf-will-take-you-one-and-a-half-two-hours-i-run-in-20/) [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) [Explore all 119 Lee Kuan Yew quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) ## More Creatures 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/) > [Almost everywhere we find . . . the use of various coercive measures, to rid ourselves as quickly as possible of the child withinus--i.e.,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/almost-everywhere-we-find-the-use-of-various-coercive-measures-to-rid/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [We need, in a special way, to work twice as hard to help people understand that animals are fellow creatures, that we must protect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-chavez/we-need-in-a-special-way-to-work-twice-as-hard-to-help-people/) [Cesar Chavez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesar-chavez/) > [Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this \[step by step, from humans to apes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us-with-so-extraordinary-a/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [I could not have slept tonight if I had left that helpless little creature to perish on the ground.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/i-could-not-have-slept-tonight-if-i-had-left-that-helpless-little/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [No creature can attain a higher grade of nature without ceasing to exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ananda-coomaraswamy/no-creature-can-attain-a-higher-grade-of-nature-without-ceasing-to/) [Ananda Coomaraswamy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ananda-coomaraswamy/) > [Most people are sensitized to animals through their cats and dogs, but for me it was a flounder. I used to go fishing with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-mathews/most-people-are-sensitized-to-animals-through-their-cats-and-dogs-but/) [Dan Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-mathews/) > [...it was a huge creature, luminous, ghastly, and spectral. I have cross-examined these men, one of them a hard-headed countryman, one a farrier, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/it-was-a-huge-creature-luminous-ghastly-and-spectral-i-have-cross/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [How do we know that we have a right to kill creatures that we are so little above, as dogs, for our curiosity or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/how-do-we-know-that-we-have-a-right-to-kill-creatures-that-we-are-so/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [My dad's family were political and he was always a theatrical creature, whereas my mum is really musical and her father was the touring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-jones/my-dad-s-family-were-political-and-he-was-always-a-theatrical/) [Grace Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-jones/) > [We are somehow the children of the planet, we are somehow its finest hour; we bind time, we bind the past, we anticipate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/we-are-somehow-the-children-of-the-planet-we-are-somehow-its-finest/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [What greater weakness can there be than not to know what is the source of one's being, of one's life, of one's senses, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-de-la-bruyere/what-greater-weakness-can-there-be-than-not-to-know-what-is-the/) [Jean de la Bruyere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-de-la-bruyere/) > [The love for all living creatures is the most noble attribute of man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/the-love-for-all-living-creatures-is-the-most-noble-attribute-of-man/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [Children are not a zoo of entertainingly exotic creatures, but an array of mirrors in which the human predicament leaps out at us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/children-are-not-a-zoo-of-entertainingly-exotic-creatures-but-an/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [When I was in my teens I had a series of intensely religious experiences. They deepened my sense of God as the creator of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-linzey/when-i-was-in-my-teens-i-had-a-series-of-intensely-religious/) [Andrew Linzey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-linzey/) [Browse all 3,703 Creatures quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creatures/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The human being is an unequal creature. That is a fact. And we start off with the proposition. All the great religions, all the great movements, all the great political ideology, say let us make the human being as equal as possible. In fact, he is not equal, never will be.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Lee Kuan Yew" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/the-human-being-is-an-unequal-creature-that-is-a-fact-and-we-start/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Creatures" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/the-human-being-is-an-unequal-creature-that-is-a-fact-and-we-start/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/420/lee-kuan-yew-3939_creatures_the-human-being-is-an-unequal-creature-t_2830519.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/420/lee-kuan-yew-3939_creatures_the-human-being-is-an-unequal-creature-t_2830519.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/420/lee-kuan-yew-3939_creatures_the-human-being-is-an-unequal-creature-t_2830519.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The human being is an unequal creature. That is a fact. And we start off with the proposition. All the great…” — Lee Kuan Yew", "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": "Lee Kuan Yew", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The human being is an unequal...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/the-human-being-is-an-unequal-creature-that-is-a-fact-and-we-start/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/the-human-being-is-an-unequal-creature-that-is-a-fact-and-we-start/#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 } } ] } ```