--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Modern morality consists in accepting the…" description: "\"“Modern morality consists in accepting the standard of one's age.”\" — Oscar Wilde" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6d/oscar-wilde-16_character_modern-morality-consists-in-accepting-th_2371036.jpg" --- # Modern morality consists in accepting the standard of… ![“Modern morality consists in accepting the standard of one's age.” quote by Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6d/oscar-wilde-16_character_modern-morality-consists-in-accepting-th_2371036.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6d/oscar-wilde-16_character_modern-morality-consists-in-accepting-th_2371036.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6d/oscar-wilde-16_character_modern-morality-consists-in-accepting-th_2371036.jpg) > ““Modern morality consists in accepting the standard of one's age.”” [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. Morality adapts to the prevailing values of its era, reflecting societal change rather than absolute standards. **In simple terms:** Morality changes with the times. Key Takeaway Question current moral standards. Themes ethics social change relativism Mood critical thoughtful Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - political debates - social reforms - personal values Key Concepts philosophy culture history Questions to Reflect On - Do you think any moral truths are timeless? - How does society shape your ethics? A Different Perspective Relativism can erode firm principles. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Accepting Standard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accepting-standard-5839289/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Modern Morality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modern-morality-1049878/) [Morality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morality/) [Morality Consists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morality-consists-701271/) [Standard Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/standard-age-5839288/) ## Related quotes > [Individualism has really the higher aim. Modern morality consists in accepting the standard of one's age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/individualism-has-really-the-higher-aim-modern-morality-consists-in/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [But then he told himself: What does it really mean to be useful? Today's world, just as it is, contains the sum of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/but-then-he-told-himself-what-does-it-really-mean-to-be-useful-today/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Modern morality is all about perception.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/modern-morality-is-all-about-perception/) [Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) > [It has become an article of the creed of modern morality that all labour is good in itself -- a convenient belief to those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-morris/it-has-become-an-article-of-the-creed-of-modern-morality-that-all/) [William Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-morris/) > [“Most morality, thought Mma Ramotswe, was about doing the right thing because it had been identified as such by a long process of acceptance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/most-morality-thought-mma-ramotswe-was-about-doing-the-right-thing/) [Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/) > [What little recognition the idea of obligation to the public obtains in modern morality, is derived from Greek and Roman sources, not from Christian;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-stuart-mill/what-little-recognition-the-idea-of-obligation-to-the-public-obtains/) [John Stuart Mill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-stuart-mill/) > [“Morality is for everybody, and this means that the views of more than one person are needed to create it. That was what made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/morality-is-for-everybody-and-this-means-that-the-views-of-more-than/) [Alexander Mccall smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/) > [Modern morality and manners suppress all natural instincts, keep people ignorant of the facts of nature and make them fighting drunk on bogey tales.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleister-crowley/modern-morality-and-manners-suppress-all-natural-instincts-keep/) [Aleister Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleister-crowley/) > [Morality consists of suspecting other people of not being legally married.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/morality-consists-of-suspecting-other-people-of-not-being-legally/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“Morality consists in this for each individual: to attempt each time to extend its region of clear expression, to try to augment its amplitude,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilles-deleuze/morality-consists-in-this-for-each-individual-to-attempt-each-time-to/) [Gilles Deleuze](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilles-deleuze/) > [The world of empirical morality consists for the most part of nothing but ill will and envy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/the-world-of-empirical-morality-consists-for-the-most-part-of-nothing/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Every society and religion has rules, for both have moral laws. And the essence of morality consists, as in art, of drawing the line…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/huston-smith/every-society-and-religion-has-rules-for-both-have-moral-laws-and-the/) [Huston Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/huston-smith/) > [Man is only a moral being because he lives in society, since morality consists in solidarity with the group, and varies according to that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-durkheim/man-is-only-a-moral-being-because-he-lives-in-society-since-morality/) [Emile Durkheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-durkheim/) > [Art, like morality, consists in drawing the line somewhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/art-like-morality-consists-in-drawing-the-line-somewhere/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) > [There is a perennial and unobtrusive view that morality consists in such things as telling the truth, paying one's debts, respecting one's parents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allan-bloom/there-is-a-perennial-and-unobtrusive-view-that-morality-consists-in/) [Allan Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allan-bloom/) ## 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 Character quotes > [This may sound strange, but although I feel like I know everything about my characters, the brand of shampoo they use, how many cavities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-honeyman/this-may-sound-strange-but-although-i-feel-like-i-know-everything/) [Gail Honeyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-honeyman/) > [I always like a character who makes me laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-stirling/i-always-like-a-character-who-makes-me-laugh/) [Rachael Stirling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachael-stirling/) > [Social responsibility above the level of family, or at most of tribe, requires imagination-- devotion, loyalty, all the higher virtues -- which a man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/social-responsibility-above-the-level-of-family-or-at-most-of-tribe/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I'm often moved by the circumstances around some of my characters, but I don't think I've actually cried watching myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-winslet/i-m-often-moved-by-the-circumstances-around-some-of-my-characters-but/) [Kate Winslet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-winslet/) > [When you're on a daytime drama you get one page, you better damn well know your character. You better know what she would do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hudgins/when-you-re-on-a-daytime-drama-you-get-one-page-you-better-damn-well/) [David Hudgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hudgins/) > [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/) > [If you are well-mannered towards those whose views are similar to yours, you may be said to exhibit a fairly good character. But, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-are-well-mannered-towards-those-whose-views-are-similar-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Democracy is based on the conviction that man has the moral and intellectual capacity, as well as the inalienable right, to govern himself with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/democracy-is-based-on-the-conviction-that-man-has-the-moral-and/) [Harry S. Truman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-s-truman/) > [In the fight between biology and morality, biology has commonly won in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/semir-zeki/in-the-fight-between-biology-and-morality-biology-has-commonly-won-in/) [Semir Zeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/semir-zeki/) > [Your looks don't make you pretty, it's the person inside who makes you pretty!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-chan/your-looks-don-t-make-you-pretty-it-s-the-person-inside-who-makes-you/) [Aaron Chan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-chan/) > [I'm not a huge social media kind of guy, so I don't really know, I don't really ever get... at least in real life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-stroma/i-m-not-a-huge-social-media-kind-of-guy-so-i-don-t-really-know-i-don/) [Freddie Stroma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-stroma/) > [If you stood me in a costume next to a computer graphic of the same-looking character, I think there would be a difference. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warwick-davis/if-you-stood-me-in-a-costume-next-to-a-computer-graphic-of-the-same/) [Warwick Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warwick-davis/) > [Courage: the most important of all the virtues because without courage, you can't practice any other virtue consistently](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/courage-the-most-important-of-all-the-virtues-because-without-courage/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [I'm a character actor - always have been, always will be - and historically, character actors don't come into their own until later in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-potts/i-m-a-character-actor-always-have-been-always-will-be-and/) [Annie Potts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-potts/) [Browse all 32,707 Character quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Modern morality consists in accepting the standard of one's age.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Oscar Wilde" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/modern-morality-consists-in-accepting-the-standard-of-one-s-age/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Character" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/modern-morality-consists-in-accepting-the-standard-of-one-s-age/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6d/oscar-wilde-16_character_modern-morality-consists-in-accepting-th_2371036.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6d/oscar-wilde-16_character_modern-morality-consists-in-accepting-th_2371036.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6d/oscar-wilde-16_character_modern-morality-consists-in-accepting-th_2371036.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Modern morality consists in accepting the standard of one's age.” — 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": "“Modern morality consists in accepting the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/modern-morality-consists-in-accepting-the-standard-of-one-s-age/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/modern-morality-consists-in-accepting-the-standard-of-one-s-age/#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 } } ] } ```