--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is very wrong to kill any one[.]\" \"Oh…" description: "\"“It is very wrong to kill any one[.]\" \"Oh, I hate the cheap severity of abstract ethics!”\" — Oscar Wilde" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea7/oscar-wilde-16_ethics_it-is-very-wrong-to-kill-any-one-oh-i-ha_1139183.jpg" --- # It is very wrong to kill any one\[.\]" "Oh, I hate the cheap… ![“It is very wrong to kill any one[.]" "Oh, I hate the cheap severity of abstract ethics!” quote by Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea7/oscar-wilde-16_ethics_it-is-very-wrong-to-kill-any-one-oh-i-ha_1139183.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea7/oscar-wilde-16_ethics_it-is-very-wrong-to-kill-any-one-oh-i-ha_1139183.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea7/oscar-wilde-16_ethics_it-is-very-wrong-to-kill-any-one-oh-i-ha_1139183.jpg) > ““It is very wrong to kill any one\[.\]" "Oh, I hate the cheap severity of abstract ethics!”” [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. Criticizes rigid moral frameworks that ignore human complexity, urging empathy over abstract severity **In simple terms:** Abstract ethics can be harsh and unrealistic Key Takeaway Consider compassion over strict moral rules Themes ethics humanism philosophy Mood thoughtful critical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - moral decision making - education - philosophical debate - personal values Key Concepts moral relativism empathy critical thinking Questions to Reflect On - How can we balance moral principles with human empathy? - When is abstract ethics useful? A Different Perspective Strict moral codes can provide social order ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abstract Ethics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstract-ethics-3167943/) [Cheap Severity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cheap-severity-3167945/) [Ethics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethics/) [Hate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hate/) [Kill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kill/) [Murder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/murder/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Severity Abstract](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/severity-abstract-3167944/) ## Related quotes > [Oh, I hate the cheap severity of abstract ethics!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/oh-i-hate-the-cheap-severity-of-abstract-ethics/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Murder is always a mistake. One should never do anything that one cannot talk about after dinner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/murder-is-always-a-mistake-one-should-never-do-anything-that-one/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“Yet each man kills the thing he loves, By each let this be heard, Some do it with a bitter look, Some with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/yet-each-man-kills-the-thing-he-loves-by-each-let-this-be-heard-some/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“First she would try to kill him, but failing this give him food and her body, breast-feed him back to a state of childishness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-g-ballard-2/first-she-would-try-to-kill-him-but-failing-this-give-him-food-and/) [J.G. Ballard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-g-ballard-2/) > [“Pilots have an established history of committing mass murder during their suicides.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/pilots-have-an-established-history-of-committing-mass-murder-during/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [To kill time is not murder, it's suicide.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/to-kill-time-is-not-murder-it-s-suicide/) [William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/) > [“Killing depends on circumstances, as you'd expect, whether it's a cold, planned murder, or a hot death in a fight, or inspired by honor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mitchell/killing-depends-on-circumstances-as-you-d-expect-whether-it-s-a-cold/) [David Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mitchell/) > [To kill a man is not to defend a doctrine, but to kill a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-servetus/to-kill-a-man-is-not-to-defend-a-doctrine-but-to-kill-a-man/) [Michael Servetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-servetus/) > [“There is a point where, as a writer, you grow to hate your characters, their stupid motivations, and their whiny inner dialogues. The only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caris-o-malley/there-is-a-point-where-as-a-writer-you-grow-to-hate-your-characters/) [Caris O'Malley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caris-o-malley/) > [Let us kill all lawyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/let-us-kill-all-lawyers/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Those who murder fame Kill more than life destroyers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-savage/those-who-murder-fame-kill-more-than-life-destroyers/) [Richard Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-savage/) > [“Everyone is a potential murderer-in everyone there arises from time to time the wish to kill-though not the will to kill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agatha-christie/everyone-is-a-potential-murderer-in-everyone-there-arises-from-time/) [Agatha Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agatha-christie/) > [“By setting such strong, harsh dichotomies God taught Israel that any assimilation to pagan idolatry is intolerable. It was His way of preserving Israel’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-lane-craig/by-setting-such-strong-harsh-dichotomies-god-taught-israel-that-any/) [William Lane Craig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-lane-craig/) > [Listen to me, Frankenstein. You accuse me of murder; and yet you would, with a satisfied conscience, destroy your own creature. Oh, praise the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/listen-to-me-frankenstein-you-accuse-me-of-murder-and-yet-you-would/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A man who kills on his own is a murderer. A man who kills at his government's request is a national hero.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramman-kenoun/a-man-who-kills-on-his-own-is-a-murderer-a-man-who-kills-at-his/) [Ramman Kenoun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramman-kenoun/) ## 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 Ethics quotes > [Self-respect and a clear conscience are powerful components of integrity and are the basis for enriching your relationships with others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-waitley/self-respect-and-a-clear-conscience-are-powerful-components-of/) [Denis Waitley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-waitley/) > [“Knowledge without conscience is but the ruin of the soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabelaise/knowledge-without-conscience-is-but-the-ruin-of-the-soul/) [Rabelaise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabelaise/) > [He who mistrusts most should be trusted least.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theognis-of-megara/he-who-mistrusts-most-should-be-trusted-least/) [Theognis of Megara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theognis-of-megara/) > [Writing adds up to the conscience of our times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-firrell/writing-adds-up-to-the-conscience-of-our-times/) [Martin Firrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-firrell/) > [Ethics is the activity of man directed to secure the inner perfection of his own personality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/ethics-is-the-activity-of-man-directed-to-secure-the-inner-perfection/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) > [My conscience is really active. So I feel bad about spending excess amount of money on things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/syd/my-conscience-is-really-active-so-i-feel-bad-about-spending-excess/) [Syd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/syd/) > [Records, radio, television, movies, magazines-all are monopolized by the money managers who are guided by one ethic, the words wealth and power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-taft-benson/records-radio-television-movies-magazines-all-are-monopolized-by-the/) [Ezra Taft Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-taft-benson/) > [Let us be thankful for health and competence, and, above all, for a quiet conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/izaak-walton/let-us-be-thankful-for-health-and-competence-and-above-all-for-a/) [Izaak Walton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/izaak-walton/) > [Making money doesn't oblige people to forfeit their honor or their conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-de-rothschild/making-money-doesn-t-oblige-people-to-forfeit-their-honor-or-their/) [Guy de Rothschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-de-rothschild/) > [“If we cannot be happy and powerful and prey on others, we invent conscience and prey on ourselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/if-we-cannot-be-happy-and-powerful-and-prey-on-others-we-invent/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [There is no perfect justice, just as there is no absolute in ethics. But there is perfect injustice, and we know it when we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-dershowitz/there-is-no-perfect-justice-just-as-there-is-no-absolute-in-ethics/) [Alan Dershowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-dershowitz/) > [I think the ethics and morals of genetic engineering are very complicated. It intrigues me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-spottiswoode/i-think-the-ethics-and-morals-of-genetic-engineering-are-very/) [Roger Spottiswoode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-spottiswoode/) > [What our species needs, above all else, is a generally accepted ethical system that is compatible with the scientific knowledge we now possess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-our-species-needs-above-all-else-is-a-generally-accepted-ethical/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Ethics is not definable, is not implementable, because it is not conscious; it involves not only our thinking, but also our feeling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valdemar-w-setzer/ethics-is-not-definable-is-not-implementable-because-it-is-not/) [Valdemar W Setzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valdemar-w-setzer/) > [Any time you give a man something he doesn't earn, you cheapen him. Our kids earn what they get, and that includes respect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-hayes/any-time-you-give-a-man-something-he-doesn-t-earn-you-cheapen-him-our/) [Woody Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-hayes/) [Browse all 4,548 Ethics quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethics/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It is very wrong to kill any one[.]\" \"Oh, I hate the cheap severity of abstract ethics!”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Oscar Wilde" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/it-is-very-wrong-to-kill-any-one-oh-i-hate-the-cheap-severity-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ethics" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/it-is-very-wrong-to-kill-any-one-oh-i-hate-the-cheap-severity-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea7/oscar-wilde-16_ethics_it-is-very-wrong-to-kill-any-one-oh-i-ha_1139183.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea7/oscar-wilde-16_ethics_it-is-very-wrong-to-kill-any-one-oh-i-ha_1139183.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea7/oscar-wilde-16_ethics_it-is-very-wrong-to-kill-any-one-oh-i-ha_1139183.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It is very wrong to kill any one[.]\" \"Oh, I hate the cheap severity of abstract ethics!” — Oscar Wilde", "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": "Oscar Wilde", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“It is very wrong to kill...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/it-is-very-wrong-to-kill-any-one-oh-i-hate-the-cheap-severity-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/it-is-very-wrong-to-kill-any-one-oh-i-hate-the-cheap-severity-of/#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 } } ] } ```