--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: man’s dignity consists in the following…" description: "\"“man’s dignity consists in the following facts which distinguish man from animals. First, that he has a playful curiosity and a natural genius for expl..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a3/lin-yutang-2491_dignity_man-s-dignity-consists-in-the-following_422702.jpg" --- # man’s dignity consists in the following facts which… ![“man’s dignity consists in the following facts which distinguish man from animals. First, that he has a playful curiosity and a natural genius for exploring knowledge; second, that he has dreams and a lofty idealism (often vague, or confused, or cocky, it is true, but nevertheless worthwhile)…” quote by Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a3/lin-yutang-2491_dignity_man-s-dignity-consists-in-the-following_422702.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a3/lin-yutang-2491_dignity_man-s-dignity-consists-in-the-following_422702.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a3/lin-yutang-2491_dignity_man-s-dignity-consists-in-the-following_422702.jpg) > ““man’s dignity consists in the following facts which distinguish man from animals. First, that he has a playful curiosity and a natural genius for exploring knowledge; second, that he has dreams and a lofty idealism (often vague, or confused, or cocky, it is true, but nevertheless worthwhile); third, and still more important, that he is able to correct his dreams by a sense of humor, and thus restrain his idealism by a more robust and healthy realism; and finally, that he does not react to surroundings mechanically and uniformly as animals do, but possesses the ability and the freedom to determine his own reactions and to change surroundings at his will.”” [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human dignity lies in curiosity, idealism, humor, and the freedom to choose reactions, distinguishing us from animals. **In simple terms:** Human worth comes from curiosity, dreams, humor, and free choice. Key Takeaway Cultivate curiosity, humor, and intentional response. Themes humanity creativity freedom self‑determination Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - Education - personal growth - creative work - conflict resolution Key Concepts Existentialism humanism psychology Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance idealism with realism? - In what ways does humor shape your choices? A Different Perspective Humor can mask deeper anxieties and limit serious engagement. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dignity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dignity/) [Dignity Consists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dignity-consists-243397/) [Distinguish Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distinguish-man-354354/) [Humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humor/) [Man Animals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-animals-699046/) [Man Dignity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-dignity-595596/) [Respect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/respect/) [Sense of humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sense-of-humor/) ## Related quotes > [The happiness of man, as well as his dignity, consists in virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-adams/the-happiness-of-man-as-well-as-his-dignity-consists-in-virtue/) [John Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-adams/) > [My faith in human dignity consists in the belief that man is the greatest scamp on earth. Human dignity must be associated with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-yutang/my-faith-in-human-dignity-consists-in-the-belief-that-man-is-the/) [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) > [Her dignity consists in being unknown to the world; her glory is in the esteem of her husband; her pleasures in the happiness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/her-dignity-consists-in-being-unknown-to-the-world-her-glory-is-in/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [Every man's life ends the same way. It is only the details of how he lived and how he died that distinguish one man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/every-man-s-life-ends-the-same-way-it-is-only-the-details-of-how-he/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“In every author, let us distinguish the man from his work.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/in-every-author-let-us-distinguish-the-man-from-his-work/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [I demand of you, and of the whole world, that you show me a generic character... by which to distinguish between Man and Ape.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-linnaeus/i-demand-of-you-and-of-the-whole-world-that-you-show-me-a-generic-2/) [Carl Linnaeus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-linnaeus/) > [In every author let us distinguish the man from his works.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/in-every-author-let-us-distinguish-the-man-from-his-works/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [All sober inquirers after truth, ancient and modern, pagan and Christian, have declared that the happiness of man, as well as his dignity, consists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-adams/all-sober-inquirers-after-truth-ancient-and-modern-pagan-and/) [John Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-adams/) > [Our true dignity consists — in thought. Thence we must derive our elevation, not from space or duration. Let us endeavor then to think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/our-true-dignity-consists-in-thought-thence-we-must-derive-our/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [All of our dignity consists in thought. Let us endeavor then to think well; this is the principle of morality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/all-of-our-dignity-consists-in-thought-let-us-endeavor-then-to-think/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [Pride may be allowed to this or that degree, else a man cannot keep up his dignity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/pride-may-be-allowed-to-this-or-that-degree-else-a-man-cannot-keep-up/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [“-This plea contradicts itself; for to assert that because of man's freedom he can go on for ever choosing evil, is, in fact, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-allin/this-plea-contradicts-itself-for-to-assert-that-because-of-man-s/) [Thomas Allin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-allin/) > [“You are the man. You have to take your dignity and self respect to the pawnbrokers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mitchell/you-are-the-man-you-have-to-take-your-dignity-and-self-respect-to-the/) [David Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mitchell/) > [Religion in its humility restores man to his only dignity, the courage to live by grace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-santayana/religion-in-its-humility-restores-man-to-his-only-dignity-the-courage/) [George Santayana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-santayana/) > [Christ assigns as a duty to every man the dignity of every woman: and simultaneously... He also assigns to every woman the dignity of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-john-paul-ii/christ-assigns-as-a-duty-to-every-man-the-dignity-of-every-woman-and/) [Pope John Paul II](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-john-paul-ii/) ## More by Lin Yutang > [There are no books in this world that everybody must read, but only books that a person must read at a certain time in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-yutang/there-are-no-books-in-this-world-that-everybody-must-read-but-only/) [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) > [And if the reader has no taste for what he reads, all the time is wasted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-yutang/and-if-the-reader-has-no-taste-for-what-he-reads-all-the-time-is/) [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) > [“Much as I like reasonable persons, I hate completely rational beings. For that reason, I am always scared and ill at ease when I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-yutang/much-as-i-like-reasonable-persons-i-hate-completely-rational-beings/) [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) > [An educated man is one who has the loves and hatreds together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-yutang/an-educated-man-is-one-who-has-the-loves-and-hatreds-together/) [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) > [The best that we can hope for in this life is that we shall not have sons and grandsons of whom we need to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-yutang/the-best-that-we-can-hope-for-in-this-life-is-that-we-shall-not-have/) [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) > [By association with nature's enormities, a man's heart may truly grow big also.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-yutang/by-association-with-nature-s-enormities-a-man-s-heart-may-truly-grow/) [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) > [Art is both creation and recreation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-yutang/art-is-both-creation-and-recreation/) [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) > [Now it is characteristic of play that one plays without reason and there must be no reason for it. Play is its own good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-yutang/now-it-is-characteristic-of-play-that-one-plays-without-reason-and/) [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) > [The wise man reads both books and life itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-yutang/the-wise-man-reads-both-books-and-life-itself/) [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) > [I like spring, but it is too young. I like summer, but it is too proud. So I like best of all autumn, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-yutang/i-like-spring-but-it-is-too-young-i-like-summer-but-it-is-too-proud/) [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) > [Hope is like a road in the country; there was never a road, but when many people walk on it, the road comes into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-yutang/hope-is-like-a-road-in-the-country-there-was-never-a-road-but-when/) [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) > [Is it not tragic, for example, that while in the last World War almost everyone believed it was the war to end all wars…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-yutang/is-it-not-tragic-for-example-that-while-in-the-last-world-war-almost/) [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) > [All I know is that if God loves me only half as much as my mother does, he will not send me to Hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-yutang/all-i-know-is-that-if-god-loves-me-only-half-as-much-as-my-mother/) [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) > [Let him cry whoever feels like crying, for we were animals before we became reasoning beings, and the shedding of a tear, whether of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-yutang/let-him-cry-whoever-feels-like-crying-for-we-were-animals-before-we/) [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) > [There is a great probability that our loss of capacity for enjoying the positive joys of life is largely due to the decreased sensibility…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-yutang/there-is-a-great-probability-that-our-loss-of-capacity-for-enjoying/) [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) [Explore all 162 Lin Yutang quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) ## More Dignity quotes > [Her dignity consists in being unknown to the world; her glory is in the esteem of her husband; her pleasures in the happiness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/her-dignity-consists-in-being-unknown-to-the-world-her-glory-is-in/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [I take the responsibility of playing another ethnicity very, very seriously, and I promise myself and those people that I will represent them with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cliff-curtis/i-take-the-responsibility-of-playing-another-ethnicity-very-very/) [Cliff Curtis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cliff-curtis/) > [One achieves true human dignity only when one serves. Only he is great who subjects himself to taking part in the achievement of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-antonio-primo-de-rivera/one-achieves-true-human-dignity-only-when-one-serves-only-he-is-great/) [Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-antonio-primo-de-rivera/) > [I speak not for myself, but so those without a voice can be heard. Those who have fought for their rights. Their right to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malala-yousafzai/i-speak-not-for-myself-but-so-those-without-a-voice-can-be-heard/) [Malala Yousafzai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malala-yousafzai/) > [Use every man according to his desert and who should 'scape whipping? Use them after your own honor and dignity, the less they deserve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/use-every-man-according-to-his-desert-and-who-should-scape-whipping/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I started with the belief that every person who came to the laboratory was free to accept or to reject the dictates of authority.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/i-started-with-the-belief-that-every-person-who-came-to-the/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [The dignity of man is in free choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-frisch/the-dignity-of-man-is-in-free-choice/) [Max Frisch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-frisch/) > [One of the things I love about Africa is the amount of dignity and respect and humility you see all the time. You don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-scott/one-of-the-things-i-love-about-africa-is-the-amount-of-dignity-and/) [Jill Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-scott/) > [It is well for a man when he has learned to endure what he cannot change, and to give up with dignity what he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-schiller/it-is-well-for-a-man-when-he-has-learned-to-endure-what-he-cannot/) [Friedrich Schiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-schiller/) > [Daily contact with some teachers is itself all-sided ethical education for the child without a spoken precept. Here, too, the real advantage of male…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-stanley-hall/daily-contact-with-some-teachers-is-itself-all-sided-ethical/) [G. Stanley Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-stanley-hall/) > [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/) > [There is something to be said for anyone who sits alone with dignity and silently begs for God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/there-is-something-to-be-said-for-anyone-who-sits-alone-with-dignity/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [I just remember that disturbing feeling of walking into that prison, the complete loss of privacy, the complete loss of stimulation, dignity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cybill-shepherd/i-just-remember-that-disturbing-feeling-of-walking-into-that-prison/) [Cybill Shepherd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cybill-shepherd/) > [Henry Kissinger may have wished I had presented him as a combination of Charles DeGaulle and Disraeli, but I didn't…out of respect for DeGaulle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oriana-fallaci/henry-kissinger-may-have-wished-i-had-presented-him-as-a-combination/) [Oriana Fallaci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oriana-fallaci/) > [The dignity of a woman's life is infinite, her status immeasurable, her capacity unbounded, her role divine...In the fast changing world of today her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maharishi-mahesh-yogi/the-dignity-of-a-woman-s-life-is-infinite-her-status-immeasurable-her/) [Maharishi Mahesh Yogi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maharishi-mahesh-yogi/) [Browse all 3,116 Dignity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dignity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“man’s dignity consists in the following facts which distinguish man from animals. 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