--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Heaven knows insanity was disreputable…" description: "\"Heaven knows insanity was disreputable enough, long ago; but now that the lawyers have got to cutting every gallows rope and picking every prison lock ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f13/mark-twain-22_claims_heaven-knows-insanity-was-disreputable-e_497581.jpg" --- # Heaven knows insanity was disreputable enough, long ago… ![“Heaven knows insanity was disreputable enough, long ago; but now that the lawyers have got to cutting every gallows rope and picking every prison lock with it, it is become a sneaking villainy that ought to hang and keep on hanging its sudden possessors until evil-doers should conclude that the…” quote by Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f13/mark-twain-22_claims_heaven-knows-insanity-was-disreputable-e_497581.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f13/mark-twain-22_claims_heaven-knows-insanity-was-disreputable-e_497581.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f13/mark-twain-22_claims_heaven-knows-insanity-was-disreputable-e_497581.jpg) > “Heaven knows insanity was disreputable enough, long ago; but now that the lawyers have got to cutting every gallows rope and picking every prison lock with it, it is become a sneaking villainy that ought to hang and keep on hanging its sudden possessors until evil-doers should conclude that the safest plan was to never claim to have it until they came by it legitimately. The very calibre of the people the lawyers most frequently try to save by the insanity subterfuge ought to laugh the plea out of the courts, one would think.” [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Society uses legal loopholes to protect the guilty, turning justice into a farce. **In simple terms:** Lawyers exploit insanity defenses to shield wrongdoers. Key Takeaway Beware of legal tricks that undermine true justice. Themes justice law morality hypocrisy Mood cynical critical reflective Type satirical commentary When to use this quote - courtroom battles - political reform - public policy - legal education Key Concepts legal loopholes ethical decay social critique Questions to Reflect On - How do we balance protecting the mentally ill with preventing abuse? - What safeguards can prevent legal manipulation? A Different Perspective The quote may exaggerate the prevalence of such abuse, ignoring genuine mental health considerations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Claims](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/claims/) [Court](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/court/) [Cutting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cutting/) [Doers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doers/) [Enough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enough/) [Evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil/) [Evil doers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil-doers/) [Gallows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gallows/) [Heaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heaven/) [Insanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/insanity/) [Insanity Disreputable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/insanity-disreputable-4244353/) [Insanity Subterfuge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/insanity-subterfuge-4244354/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Knows Insanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows-insanity-3411150/) [Laughing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laughing/) [Lawyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lawyer/) [Locks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/locks/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Long ago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-ago/) [Ought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ought/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Plans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plans/) [Prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prison/) [Rope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rope/) [Save Insanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/save-insanity-4244355/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Subterfuge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/subterfuge/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) [Villainy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/villainy/) ## Related quotes > [But he who knows what insanity is, is sane; whereas insanity can no more be sensible of its own existence, than blindness can see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/apuleius/but-he-who-knows-what-insanity-is-is-sane-whereas-insanity-can-no/) [Apuleius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/apuleius/) > [Belane, are you nuts?" 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Nothing is above its reach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/there-is-nothing-training-can-t-cannot-do-nothing-is-above-its-reach/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [I never write Metropolis for seven cents because I can get the same price for city. I never write policeman because I can get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/i-never-write-metropolis-for-seven-cents-because-i-can-get-the-same/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [The higher animals get their teeth without pain or inconvenience. 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