--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A society struggles to fulfill its best…" description: "\"A society struggles to fulfill its best instincts, even as an individual does, and generally makes just as hard going of it. The fight against prejudic..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d50/margaret-halsey-6554_battle_a-society-struggles-to-fulfill-its-best_1324689.jpg" --- # A society struggles to fulfill its best instincts, even as… ![“A society struggles to fulfill its best instincts, even as an individual does, and generally makes just as hard going of it. The fight against prejudice is an inevitable process. Man has been warring against his own lower nature ever since he found out he had one, and the battle against…” quote by Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d50/margaret-halsey-6554_battle_a-society-struggles-to-fulfill-its-best_1324689.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d50/margaret-halsey-6554_battle_a-society-struggles-to-fulfill-its-best_1324689.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d50/margaret-halsey-6554_battle_a-society-struggles-to-fulfill-its-best_1324689.jpg) > “A society struggles to fulfill its best instincts, even as an individual does, and generally makes just as hard going of it. The fight against prejudice is an inevitable process. Man has been warring against his own lower nature ever since he found out he had one, and the battle against intolerance is part of the same old struggle between good and evil that has preoccupied us ever since we gave up swinging from trees.” [Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human societies often fail to realize their highest potentials while individuals succeed, and prejudice persists as an ongoing struggle against innate lower impulses. **In simple terms:** Societies lag behind individuals; prejudice is a constant battle. Key Takeaway Recognize and confront personal and collective biases. Themes prejudice human nature societal struggle good vs evil Mood reflective determined critical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - education reform - workplace diversity training - community dialogue - personal self‑reflection Key Concepts psychology ethics social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How can individuals inspire societal change? - What personal biases are hardest to acknowledge? A Different Perspective Prejudice can be deeply entrenched, making change slow and resistant. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Battle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/battle/) [Doe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doe/) [Evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil/) [Fight Prejudice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fight-prejudice-2933208/) [Fighting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fighting/) [Found](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/found/) [Gave up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gave-up/) [Good and evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-and-evil/) [Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard/) [Has beens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/has-beens/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Inevitable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inevitable/) [Instinct](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instinct/) [Intolerance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intolerance/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Prejudice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prejudice/) [Prejudice Inevitable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prejudice-inevitable-4424968/) [Process](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/process/) [Racism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racism/) [Society Struggles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/society-struggles-4424969/) [Struggle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/struggle/) [Struggle between good and evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/struggle-between-good-and-evil-179283/) [Tree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tree/) ## Related quotes > [All the Freudian system is impregnated with the prejudice which it makes it its mission to fight -- the prejudice that everything sexual is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-weil/all-the-freudian-system-is-impregnated-with-the-prejudice-which-it/) [Simone Weil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-weil/) > [We cannot change what happened anymore. The only thing we can do is to learn from the past and to realize what discrimination and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-frank/we-cannot-change-what-happened-anymore-the-only-thing-we-can-do-is-to/) [Otto Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-frank/) > [If you are not honorable enough to fight without prejudice, go home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lady-gaga/if-you-are-not-honorable-enough-to-fight-without-prejudice-go-home/) [Lady Gaga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lady-gaga/) > [The triumph of anything is a matter of organization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/the-triumph-of-anything-is-a-matter-of-organization/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [If you want to realize the truth, don't be for or against. The struggle between good and evil is the primal disease of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sengcan/if-you-want-to-realize-the-truth-don-t-be-for-or-against-the-struggle/) [Sengcan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sengcan/) > [As the world grapples with more efficient ways of managing time, it lures us into more and more earthly pursuits. But life is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-b-mcmullin/as-the-world-grapples-with-more-efficient-ways-of-managing-time-it/) [Keith B. McMullin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-b-mcmullin/) > [The history of mankind, the history of salvation, passes by way of the family... The family is placed at the center of the great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-john-paul-ii/the-history-of-mankind-the-history-of-salvation-passes-by-way-of-the/) [Pope John Paul II](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-john-paul-ii/) > [Unconditional love will have the final word in reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/unconditional-love-will-have-the-final-word-in-reality/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [I sort of gave up on this whole human adventure a long time ago, divorced myself from it emotionally. It gives me an artistic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/i-sort-of-gave-up-on-this-whole-human-adventure-a-long-time-ago/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) > [What would happen if you were to allow everything to be exactly as it is? If you gave up the need for control, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adyashanti/what-would-happen-if-you-were-to-allow-everything-to-be-exactly-as-it/) [Adyashanti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adyashanti/) > [Even in my really bad, drugged-out days, I didn't go away. I still toured, still did interviews. I never gave up the fight. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stevie-nicks/even-in-my-really-bad-drugged-out-days-i-didn-t-go-away-i-still/) [Stevie Nicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stevie-nicks/) > [Declaring victory without war .. the belief that India gave up the option of war under American pressure is totally wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/atal-bihari-vajpayee/declaring-victory-without-war-the-belief-that-india-gave-up-the/) [Atal Bihari Vajpayee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/atal-bihari-vajpayee/) > [In 1969, I gave up women and alcohol - it was the worst 20 minutes of my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-best/in-1969-i-gave-up-women-and-alcohol-it-was-the-worst-20-minutes-of-my/) [George Best](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-best/) > [I think that at a certain age, say fifteen or sixteen, poetry is like masturbation. But later in life good poets burn their early…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/i-think-that-at-a-certain-age-say-fifteen-or-sixteen-poetry-is-like/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [If we gave up our freedom as the price of security, we would no longer be the great nation that we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-bader-ginsburg/if-we-gave-up-our-freedom-as-the-price-of-security-we-would-no-longer/) [Ruth Bader Ginsburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-bader-ginsburg/) ## More by Margaret Halsey > [Life itself, however, flows and is sequential and punishes those who try to compartmentalize it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/life-itself-however-flows-and-is-sequential-and-punishes-those-who/) [Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/) > [the crucial disadvantage of aggression, competitiveness and skepticism as national characteristics is that these qualities cannot be turned off at five o'clock.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/the-crucial-disadvantage-of-aggression-competitiveness-and-skepticism/) [Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/) > [Englishwomen's shoes look as if they had been made by someone who had often heard shoes described, but had never seen any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/englishwomen-s-shoes-look-as-if-they-had-been-made-by-someone-who-had/) [Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/) > [it is a waste of time to ask more of people than they have to give.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/it-is-a-waste-of-time-to-ask-more-of-people-than-they-have-to-give/) [Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/) > [I would have felt more comfortable on a girder fifty floors above the street, catching white-hot rivets in a pail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/i-would-have-felt-more-comfortable-on-a-girder-fifty-floors-above-the/) [Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/) > [The position of children as a group, in a commercial society, is not wholly advantageous. A commercial society urges its citizens to be responsible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/the-position-of-children-as-a-group-in-a-commercial-society-is-not/) [Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/) > [Money does not corrupt people. What corrupts people is lack of affection ... Money is simply the bandage which wounded people put over their wounds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/money-does-not-corrupt-people-what-corrupts-people-is-lack-of/) [Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/) > [Identity is not found, the way Pharaoh's daughter found Moses in the bulrushes. Identity is built.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/identity-is-not-found-the-way-pharaoh-s-daughter-found-moses-in-the/) [Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/) > [I am living with a rising generation which talks like people coming out of ether.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/i-am-living-with-a-rising-generation-which-talks-like-people-coming/) [Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/) > [children are an embarrassment to a business civilization. A business society needs children for the same reason that a nomadic or a pastoral society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/children-are-an-embarrassment-to-a-business-civilization-a-business/) [Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/) > [The only way not to worry about the race problem is to be doing something about it yourself. When you are, natural human vanity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/the-only-way-not-to-worry-about-the-race-problem-is-to-be-doing/) [Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/) > [Employed as I had been employing it, liquor is a fixative of old patterns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/employed-as-i-had-been-employing-it-liquor-is-a-fixative-of-old/) [Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/) > [in the comparatively short time between my childhood and my daughter's, the business society has ceased urging people to produce and is now exerting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/in-the-comparatively-short-time-between-my-childhood-and-my-daughter/) [Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/) > [A person may be totally unimaginative and have the social vision of a mole, and we still call him a decent man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/a-person-may-be-totally-unimaginative-and-have-the-social-vision-of-a/) [Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/) > [Infants, I note with envy, are receptive to enjoyment in a degree not attained by adults this side of the new Jerusalem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/infants-i-note-with-envy-are-receptive-to-enjoyment-in-a-degree-not/) [Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/) [Explore all 98 Margaret Halsey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/) ## More Battle quotes > [In the battle for police reform, accountability and justice, Americans don't have to re-invent the wheel. We just have to revoke the thing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/in-the-battle-for-police-reform-accountability-and-justice-americans/) [Jason Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/) > [This is, for an accomplished Latino, an accomplished African American, an accomplished anyone who disproves stereotypes, it's a constant battle in your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonia-sotomayor/this-is-for-an-accomplished-latino-an-accomplished-african-american/) [Sonia Sotomayor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonia-sotomayor/) > [“Which people take the time to care for their souls, these days? I reckon not many. But...hear this: I think that maybe in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-fletcher/which-people-take-the-time-to-care-for-their-souls-these-days-i/) [Susan Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-fletcher/) > [Only great and general battles can produce great results](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-von-clausewitz/only-great-and-general-battles-can-produce-great-results/) [Carl von Clausewitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-von-clausewitz/) > [Life is a battle of wits, and many people have to fight it unarmed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-esar/life-is-a-battle-of-wits-and-many-people-have-to-fight-it-unarmed/) [Evan Esar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-esar/) > [Pain held no terror for him. Pain was, if not friend, then family, something he had grown up with in his crèche, learning to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-bacigalupi/pain-held-no-terror-for-him-pain-was-if-not-friend-then-family/) [Paolo Bacigalupi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-bacigalupi/) > [There's little in taking or giving, There's little in water or wine: This living, this living, this living, Was never a project of mine.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-parker/there-s-little-in-taking-or-giving-there-s-little-in-water-or-wine/) [Dorothy Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-parker/) > [When I step into the batters box. The fans, the noise, the cheers, they all disappear. For that moment, the world is just a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-wollstonecraft-shelley/when-i-step-into-the-batters-box-the-fans-the-noise-the-cheers-they/) [Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-wollstonecraft-shelley/) > [I knew Jimmy Dean. He tested for 'Battle Cry'. Paul Newman tested for 'Battle Cry'. I did nine tests to finally get that role.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tab-hunter/i-knew-jimmy-dean-he-tested-for-battle-cry-paul-newman-tested-for/) [Tab Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tab-hunter/) > [“When we let go of our battles and open our heart to things as they are, then we come to rest in the present…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/when-we-let-go-of-our-battles-and-open-our-heart-to-things-as-they/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [Love is a battle," said Marie-Claude, still smiling. "And I plan to go on fighting. To the end." Love is a battle?" said Franz.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/love-is-a-battle-said-marie-claude-still-smiling-and-i-plan-to-go-on/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [It's almost ironic sitting here watching stories about Norm's courageous 'battle' with cancer. He actually did a bit on stage about how stupid that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-macdonald/it-s-almost-ironic-sitting-here-watching-stories-about-norm-s/) [Neil Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-macdonald/) > [“Other folk thought the Rage was simple bloodlust, a berserk savagery that neither knew nor cared what its target was, and so it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-weber/other-folk-thought-the-rage-was-simple-bloodlust-a-berserk-savagery/) [David Weber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-weber/) > [The rationale which accompanies that imposition of male authority euphemistically referred to as 'the battle of the sexes' bears a certain resemblance to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-millett/the-rationale-which-accompanies-that-imposition-of-male-authority/) [Kate Millett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-millett/) > [For many people it's Facebook, or sports on TV, whatever it is. I have my own demons that I battle. But whatever they are,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jess-walter/for-many-people-it-s-facebook-or-sports-on-tv-whatever-it-is-i-have/) [Jess Walter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jess-walter/) [Browse all 4,526 Battle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/battle/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A society struggles to fulfill its best instincts, even as an individual does, and generally makes just as hard going of it. The fight against prejudice is an inevitable process. Man has been warring against his own lower nature ever since he found out he had one, and the battle against intolerance is part of the same old struggle between good and evil that has preoccupied us ever since we gave up swinging from trees.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Margaret Halsey" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/a-society-struggles-to-fulfill-its-best-instincts-even-as-an/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Battle" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/a-society-struggles-to-fulfill-its-best-instincts-even-as-an/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d50/margaret-halsey-6554_battle_a-society-struggles-to-fulfill-its-best_1324689.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d50/margaret-halsey-6554_battle_a-society-struggles-to-fulfill-its-best_1324689.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d50/margaret-halsey-6554_battle_a-society-struggles-to-fulfill-its-best_1324689.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A society struggles to fulfill its best instincts, even as an individual does, and generally makes just as…” — Margaret Halsey", "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": "Margaret Halsey", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "A society struggles to fulfill its...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/a-society-struggles-to-fulfill-its-best-instincts-even-as-an/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/a-society-struggles-to-fulfill-its-best-instincts-even-as-an/#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 } } ] } ```