---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Its avowed purpose is to excite sexual…"
description: "\"Its avowed purpose is to excite sexual desire, which, I should have thought, is unnecessary in the case of the young, inconvenient in the case of the m..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/388/malcolm-muggeridge-2370_cases_its-avowed-purpose-is-to-excite-sexual-d_1536020.png"
---

#  Its avowed purpose is to excite sexual desire, which, I…

![“Its avowed purpose is to excite sexual desire, which, I should have thought, is unnecessary in the case of the young, inconvenient in the case of the middle aged, and unseemly in the old.” quote by Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/388/malcolm-muggeridge-2370_cases_its-avowed-purpose-is-to-excite-sexual-d_1536020.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/388/malcolm-muggeridge-2370_cases_its-avowed-purpose-is-to-excite-sexual-d_1536020.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/388/malcolm-muggeridge-2370_cases_its-avowed-purpose-is-to-excite-sexual-d_1536020.png)

> “Its avowed purpose is to excite sexual desire, which, I should have thought, is unnecessary in the case of the young, inconvenient in the case of the middle aged, and unseemly in the old.”

[Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/)

## About This Quote

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

Sexual desire is portrayed as unnecessary for youth, inconvenient for middle age, and inappropriate for the elderly, highlighting societal double standards.

**In simple terms:** Desire is seen as unnecessary or improper at certain ages.

Key Takeaway

Question how age norms shape sexual expectations.

Themes

society sexuality age norms

Mood

critical reflective

Type

analytical commentary

When to use this quote

- relationships
- health counseling
- media representation

Key Concepts

double standards desire social expectations

Questions to Reflect On

- How do cultural attitudes affect sexual expression across ages?
- Are these norms based on biology or social constructs?

A Different Perspective

Age‑based judgments can limit personal fulfillment.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) [Middle aged](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-aged/) [Middle ages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-ages/) [Purpose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purpose/) [Sex](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sex/) [Sexual desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sexual-desire/)

## Related quotes

> [People who have car collections - I never understood that. I always thought that was unnecessary. It's not beautiful, it's not creative. It's just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-radcliffe/people-who-have-car-collections-i-never-understood-that-i-always/)

[Daniel Radcliffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-radcliffe/)

> [We got a lot of letters of people who didn't like them, like my own family who thought they were unnecessary and unpleasant and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-wang/we-got-a-lot-of-letters-of-people-who-didn-t-like-them-like-my-own/)

[Vera Wang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-wang/)

> [“They were born, they grew up in the gutters, they went to work at twelve, they passed through a brief blossoming period of beauty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/they-were-born-they-grew-up-in-the-gutters-they-went-to-work-at/)

[George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/)

> [ I occasionally feel contempt for that attitude \[degree of sexual desire towards me\] when I perceive it, but maybe that's not fair. By our… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cris-mazza/i-occasionally-feel-contempt-for-that-attitude-degree-of-sexual/)

[Cris Mazza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cris-mazza/)

> [“Dallas Willard notes, “The two main errors in the area of human sexuality are these: (1) assuming that all sexual desire is good, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-bryan-smith/dallas-willard-notes-the-two-main-errors-in-the-area-of-human/)

[James Bryan Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-bryan-smith/)

> [“Sense yearnings sap your inner peace; they are like openings in a reservoir that permit vital waters to be wasted in the desert soil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/sense-yearnings-sap-your-inner-peace-they-are-like-openings-in-a/)

[Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/)

> [We don't have a clue what it is to be male or female, or if there are intermediate genders. Male and female might be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-acker/we-don-t-have-a-clue-what-it-is-to-be-male-or-female-or-if-there-are/)

[Kathy Acker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-acker/)

> [ “\[A\]ll gastronomic pleasure \[is\] a co-opted form of sexual desire. We interrupt the organic process of a plant or animal in order to eat… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luis-fernando-verissimo/a-ll-gastronomic-pleasure-is-a-co-opted-form-of-sexual-desire-we/)

[Luis Fernando Veríssimo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luis-fernando-verissimo/)

> [Darwin theorized that mankind (both male and female) evolved alongside each other over millions of years, both reproducing after their own kind before the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-comfort/darwin-theorized-that-mankind-both-male-and-female-evolved-alongside-2/)

[Ray Comfort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-comfort/)

> [“The ego defense of conversion transforms developmental needs into the need for something else. This could be food, money or excessive attention. In Max’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bradshaw/the-ego-defense-of-conversion-transforms-developmental-needs-into-the/)

[John Bradshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bradshaw/)

> [“Friendship is no ideal state of mind; it is a law, and a strict one, on which the entire legal systems of great cultures…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-ndor-m-rai/friendship-is-no-ideal-state-of-mind-it-is-a-law-and-a-strict-one-on/)

[Sándor Márai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-ndor-m-rai/)

> [“Darwin theorized that mankind (both male and female) evolved alongside each other over millions of years, both reproducing after their own kind before the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-comfort/darwin-theorized-that-mankind-both-male-and-female-evolved-alongside/)

[Ray Comfort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-comfort/)

> [“Sexuality is not meant to be this way - an honest, consensual expression in which a girl might take an active role when she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/sexuality-is-not-meant-to-be-this-way-an-honest-consensual-expression/)

[Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/)

> [“On some level he hopes that his ability to transport you sexually will tie you to him, so that he can have power over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lundy-bancroft/on-some-level-he-hopes-that-his-ability-to-transport-you-sexually/)

[Lundy Bancroft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lundy-bancroft/)

> [“I wrote it because I am done living in a world where women are lied to about their bodies; where women are objects of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-nagoski/i-wrote-it-because-i-am-done-living-in-a-world-where-women-are-lied/)

[Emily Nagoski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-nagoski/)

## More by Malcolm Muggeridge

> [It is only possible to succeed at second-rate pursuitslikebecoming a millionaire or a prime minister, winning a war, seducing beautiful women, flying thought the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/it-is-only-possible-to-succeed-at-second-rate-pursuitslikebecoming-a/)

[Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/)

> [He was not only a bore; he bored for England.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/he-was-not-only-a-bore-he-bored-for-england/)

[Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/)

> [The orgasm has replaced the Cross as the focus of longing and the image of fulfillment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/the-orgasm-has-replaced-the-cross-as-the-focus-of-longing-and-the/)

[Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/)

> [Posterity will surely be amazed, and I hope vastly amused, that such slipshod and unconvincing theorizing should have so easily captivated twentieth-century minds and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/posterity-will-surely-be-amazed-and-i-hope-vastly-amused-that-such/)

[Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/)

> [In politics, as in womanizing, failure is decisive. It sheds its retrospective gloom on earlier endeavor which at the time seemed full of promise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/in-politics-as-in-womanizing-failure-is-decisive-it-sheds-its/)

[Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/)

> [Marx and Freud are the two great destroyers of Christian civilization, the first replacing the gospel of love by the gospel of hate, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/marx-and-freud-are-the-two-great-destroyers-of-christian-civilization/)

[Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/)

> [I wouldn't have said that Anthony Eden was equipped by nature to deal with the situation in the world today. I would have said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/i-wouldn-t-have-said-that-anthony-eden-was-equipped-by-nature-to-deal/)

[Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/)

> [God, stay with me, let no word cross my lips that is not your word, no thoughts enter my mind that are not your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/god-stay-with-me-let-no-word-cross-my-lips-that-is-not-your-word-no/)

[Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/)

> [The monarchical institution in England is immensely valuable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/the-monarchical-institution-in-england-is-immensely-valuable/)

[Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/)

> [Education, the great mumbo jumbo and fraud of the age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/education-the-great-mumbo-jumbo-and-fraud-of-the-age/)

[Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/)

> [This life in us; however low it flickers or fiercely burns, is still a divine flame which no man dare presume to put out,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/this-life-in-us-however-low-it-flickers-or-fiercely-burns-is-still-a/)

[Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/)

> [As Man alone, Jesus could not have saved us; As God alone, He would not; Made flesh, He could and did.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/as-man-alone-jesus-could-not-have-saved-us-as-god-alone-he-would-not/)

[Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/)

> [ I think it \[presidency of Dwight Eisenhower\] came too late and I think that he is not on the wavelength of this dreadful time… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/i-think-it-presidency-of-dwight-eisenhower-came-too-late-and-i-think/)

[Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/)

> [Future historians will surely see us as having created in the media a Frankenstein monster whom no one knows how to control ordirect, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/future-historians-will-surely-see-us-as-having-created-in-the-media-a/)

[Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/)

> [ I think that President \[Dwight\] Eisenhower was... did the most marvelous job in the war, not really a military job: a public relations job,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/i-think-that-president-dwight-eisenhower-was-did-the-most-marvelous/)

[Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/)

[Explore all 168 Malcolm Muggeridge quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/)

## More Cases quotes

> [The time that one gains cannot be accumulated in a storehouse; it is contradictory to want to save up existence, which, the fact is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/the-time-that-one-gains-cannot-be-accumulated-in-a-storehouse-it-is/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

> [It can sometimes make people fold into themselves and kind of run away, but I think in this case these characters are being forced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-deschanel/it-can-sometimes-make-people-fold-into-themselves-and-kind-of-run/)

[Emily Deschanel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-deschanel/)

> [I'd always have grease in at least two places, in case the umpires would ask me to wipe one off. I never wanted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaylord-perry/i-d-always-have-grease-in-at-least-two-places-in-case-the-umpires/)

[Gaylord Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaylord-perry/)

> [Islam never differentiates between men and women as regards political rights and puts them on an equal footing. However, even if a woman is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yusuf-al-qaradawi/islam-never-differentiates-between-men-and-women-as-regards-political/)

[Yusuf al-Qaradawi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yusuf-al-qaradawi/)

> [You gonna take the case?" It's not a case. It's a missing person. Sort of." You're gonna have a devil of a time finding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-evanovich/you-gonna-take-the-case-it-s-not-a-case-it-s-a-missing-person-sort-of/)

[Janet Evanovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-evanovich/)

> [I think we've all had enough of Coltrane saxophonists. There's a case of someone ruining a generation of saxophonists, as Louis Armstrong may have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-bley/i-think-we-ve-all-had-enough-of-coltrane-saxophonists-there-s-a-case/)

[Paul Bley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-bley/)

> [Every wife ought to answer for her man. If the husband be engaged in a seditious club, or drinks mysterious healths, or be frugal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/every-wife-ought-to-answer-for-her-man-if-the-husband-be-engaged-in-a/)

[Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/)

> [The world around us is an increasingly hostile and sinful place. Occasionally that splashes onto us, and perhaps, in the case of a few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-world-around-us-is-an-increasingly-hostile-and-sinful-place/)

[Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/)

> [If you followed the media you'd think that everybody in Africa was starving to death, and that's not the case; so it's important to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/if-you-followed-the-media-you-d-think-that-everybody-in-africa-was/)

[Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/)

> [ \[As in the case of\] alcohol prohibition, illegality has driven organized crime, sent countless people to jail, and killed many thousands. Repression does not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-branson/as-in-the-case-of-alcohol-prohibition-illegality-has-driven-organized/)

[Sam Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-branson/)

> [He emphasised basic truths: you are not dying yet, you have to live your life until you are. Underpinning them was the belief that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irvine-welsh/he-emphasised-basic-truths-you-are-not-dying-yet-you-have-to-live/)

[Irvine Welsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irvine-welsh/)

> [Athletes at all ages are bigger and stronger than ever before. And they are being encouraged - sometimes even incentivized, as we recently learned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naveen-jain/athletes-at-all-ages-are-bigger-and-stronger-than-ever-before-and/)

[Naveen Jain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naveen-jain/)

> [Each Act of Parliament intended to address harassment and discrimination has faced objections on the basis of 'you'll never be able to prove...' and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-field/each-act-of-parliament-intended-to-address-harassment-and/)

[Tim Field](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-field/)

> [The Cheney team had, for example, technological supremacy over the National Security Council staff. That is to say, they could read their e-mails. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-wilkerson/the-cheney-team-had-for-example-technological-supremacy-over-the/)

[Lawrence Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-wilkerson/)

> [If you want good behavior, don't pay on a commission basis. Our judges aren't paid so much a case. We keep them pretty well…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/if-you-want-good-behavior-don-t-pay-on-a-commission-basis-our-judges/)

[Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/)

Browse all 6,420 Cases quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Its avowed purpose is to excite sexual desire, which, I should have thought, is unnecessary in the case of the young, inconvenient in the case of the middle aged, and unseemly in the old.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Malcolm Muggeridge"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/its-avowed-purpose-is-to-excite-sexual-desire-which-i-should-have/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Cases"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/its-avowed-purpose-is-to-excite-sexual-desire-which-i-should-have/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/388/malcolm-muggeridge-2370_cases_its-avowed-purpose-is-to-excite-sexual-d_1536020.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/388/malcolm-muggeridge-2370_cases_its-avowed-purpose-is-to-excite-sexual-d_1536020.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/388/malcolm-muggeridge-2370_cases_its-avowed-purpose-is-to-excite-sexual-d_1536020.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Its avowed purpose is to excite sexual desire, which, I should have thought, is unnecessary in the case of…” — Malcolm Muggeridge",
                "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": "Malcolm Muggeridge",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Its avowed purpose is to excite...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/its-avowed-purpose-is-to-excite-sexual-desire-which-i-should-have/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/its-avowed-purpose-is-to-excite-sexual-desire-which-i-should-have/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
