--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For the various spiritual forms of the…" description: "\"“For the various spiritual forms of the imagination have a natural affinity with certain sensuous forms of art - and to discern the qualities of each a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b35/oscar-wilde-16_art_for-the-various-spiritual-forms-of-the-i_899314.jpg" --- # For the various spiritual forms of the imagination have a… ![“For the various spiritual forms of the imagination have a natural affinity with certain sensuous forms of art - and to discern the qualities of each art, to intensify as well its limitations as its powers of expression, is one of the aims that culture sets before us. It is not an increased moral…” quote by Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b35/oscar-wilde-16_art_for-the-various-spiritual-forms-of-the-i_899314.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b35/oscar-wilde-16_art_for-the-various-spiritual-forms-of-the-i_899314.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b35/oscar-wilde-16_art_for-the-various-spiritual-forms-of-the-i_899314.jpg) > ““For the various spiritual forms of the imagination have a natural affinity with certain sensuous forms of art - and to discern the qualities of each art, to intensify as well its limitations as its powers of expression, is one of the aims that culture sets before us. It is not an increased moral sense, an increased moral supervision that your literature needs. Indeed, one should never talk of a moral or an immoral poem - poems are either well written or badly written, that is all. And, indeed, any element of morals or implied reference to a standard of good or evil in art is often a sign of a certain incompleteness of vision, often a note of discord in the harmony of an imaginative creation; for all good work aims at a purely artistic effect. ‘We must be careful,’ said Goethe, ‘not to be always looking for culture merely in what is obviously moral. Everything that is great promotes civilisation as soon as we are aware of it.”” [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Art should be judged by its aesthetic power, not moral content; moral judgments can limit artistic vision. **In simple terms:** Judge art by beauty, not morals. Key Takeaway Focus on artistic quality over moralizing. Themes art aesthetics morality culture criticism Mood thoughtful analytical Type critical philosophical When to use this quote - literary criticism - visual arts - music composition - film analysis - creative writing Key Concepts aesthetic judgment artistic autonomy moral relativism Questions to Reflect On - How does moral judgment affect artistic creation? - Can art be truly moral or immoral? A Different Perspective Moral evaluation can distract from artistic merit. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Morals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morals/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) ## Related quotes > [There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book. Books are well written, or badly written.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/there-is-no-such-thing-as-a-moral-or-an-immoral-book-books-are-well/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“as a moral or an immoral book. Books are well written, or badly written. That is all. The nineteenth century”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/as-a-moral-or-an-immoral-book-books-are-well-written-or-badly-written/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“There is no such thing as a moral or immoral book. Books are well written, or badly written. That is all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/there-is-no-such-thing-as-a-moral-or-immoral-book-books-are-well/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [In the hands of a master, light and shade is one of the great qualities of art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-french-sloan/in-the-hands-of-a-master-light-and-shade-is-one-of-the-great/) [John French Sloan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-french-sloan/) > [But in every constitution some large degree of animal vigor is necessary as material foundation for the higher qualities of the art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/but-in-every-constitution-some-large-degree-of-animal-vigor-is/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [I never came across anyone in whom the moral sense was dominant who was not heartless, cruel, vindictive, log-stupid, and entirely lacking in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/i-never-came-across-anyone-in-whom-the-moral-sense-was-dominant-who/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“Thereis no such thing as amoral or an immoral book. Books are well written, or badly written. That is all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/thereis-no-such-thing-as-amoral-or-an-immoral-book-books-are-well/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Books are well written, or badly written. That is all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/books-are-well-written-or-badly-written-that-is-all/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“The artist is the creator of beautiful things. To reveal art and conceal the artist is art's aim. The critic is he who can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/the-artist-is-the-creator-of-beautiful-things-to-reveal-art-and/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Those who find ugly meanings in beautiful things are corrupt without being charming. This is a fault. Those who find beautiful meanings in beautiful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/those-who-find-ugly-meanings-in-beautiful-things-are-corrupt-without-2/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Liberty, according to my metaphysics, is an intellectual quality, an attribute that belongs not to fate nor chance. Neither possesses it, neither is capable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-adams/liberty-according-to-my-metaphysics-is-an-intellectual-quality-an/) [John Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-adams/) > [Why is it immoral for you to desire, but moral for others to do so? Why is it immoral to produce a value and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/why-is-it-immoral-for-you-to-desire-but-moral-for-others-to-do-so-why/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [“The common mantra of today is that ‘we can’t legislate morality,’ though, of course, every law is a statement of what that nation’s people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-price/the-common-mantra-of-today-is-that-we-can-t-legislate-morality-though/) [John Price](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-price/) > [the action we take in the name of love,those are moral or immoral.and normally it wouldn't matter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/the-action-we-take-in-the-name-of-love-those-are-moral-or-immoral-and/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [Have you ever asked yourself why one person is honorable and another dishonorable; why one is honest, another dishonest; why one is moral, another…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-taft-benson/have-you-ever-asked-yourself-why-one-person-is-honorable-and-another/) [Ezra Taft Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-taft-benson/) ## More by Oscar Wilde > [How else but through a broken heart may Lord Christ enter in?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/how-else-but-through-a-broken-heart-may-lord-christ-enter-in/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [The books that the world calls immoral are the books that show the world its own shame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/the-books-that-the-world-calls-immoral-are-the-books-that-show-the/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Bachelors should be heavily taxed. It is not fair that some men should be happier than others](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/bachelors-should-be-heavily-taxed-it-is-not-fair-that-some-men-should/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Who, being loved, is poor?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/who-being-loved-is-poor/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“Basil my dear boy puts everything that is charming in him into his work. The consequence is that he has nothing left for life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/basil-my-dear-boy-puts-everything-that-is-charming-in-him-into-his/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Anybody can be good in the country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/anybody-can-be-good-in-the-country/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [I don't at all like knowing what people say of me behind my back. It makes me far too conceited.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/i-don-t-at-all-like-knowing-what-people-say-of-me-behind-my-back-it/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“Alles Populäre ist falsch.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/alles-popul-re-ist-falsch/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“If these elements of beauty are real, the whole thing simply appeals to our sense of dramatic effect. Suddenly we find that we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/if-these-elements-of-beauty-are-real-the-whole-thing-simply-appeals/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [To love one's self is the beginning of a life-long romance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/to-love-one-s-self-is-the-beginning-of-a-life-long-romance/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“Those who find beautiful meanings in beautiful things are the cultivated. For these there is hope.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/those-who-find-beautiful-meanings-in-beautiful-things-are-the/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Men always want to be a womans first love. Women have a more subtle instinct: What they like is to be a mans last…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/men-always-want-to-be-a-womans-first-love-women-have-a-more-subtle/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Why is it that at a bachelor's establishment the servants invariably drink the champagne.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/why-is-it-that-at-a-bachelor-s-establishment-the-servants-invariably/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Moderation is a fatal thing. Enough is as bad as a meal. More than enough is as good as a feast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/moderation-is-a-fatal-thing-enough-is-as-bad-as-a-meal-more-than/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Beauty is the only thing that time cannot harm. Philosophies fall away like sand, creeds follow one another, but what is beautiful is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/beauty-is-the-only-thing-that-time-cannot-harm-philosophies-fall-away/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) [Explore all 3,343 Oscar Wilde quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) Taf Teh > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. 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