--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Men are more moral than they think and…" description: "\"“Men are more moral than they think and far more immoral than they can imagine. —Sigmund Freud I’M”\" — Peter Gilboy" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37c/peter-gilboy-54288_sigmund-freud_men-are-more-moral-than-they-think-and-f_1581368.jpg" --- # Men are more moral than they think and far more immoral… ![“Men are more moral than they think and far more immoral than they can imagine. —Sigmund Freud I’M” quote by Peter Gilboy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37c/peter-gilboy-54288_sigmund-freud_men-are-more-moral-than-they-think-and-f_1581368.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37c/peter-gilboy-54288_sigmund-freud_men-are-more-moral-than-they-think-and-f_1581368.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37c/peter-gilboy-54288_sigmund-freud_men-are-more-moral-than-they-think-and-f_1581368.jpg) > ““Men are more moral than they think and far more immoral than they can imagine. —Sigmund Freud I’M”” [Peter Gilboy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-gilboy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Freud suggested humans possess both higher moral instincts and deeper immoral impulses. **In simple terms:** People are both moral and immoral. Key Takeaway Acknowledge inner moral conflict. Themes psychology ethics human nature Mood thoughtful introspective Type philosophical psychological When to use this quote - therapy sessions - ethical decision making - personal reflection Key Concepts Freudian theory moral psychology self‑awareness Questions to Reflect On - What drives our moral choices? - How do we reconcile conflicting impulses? A Different Perspective Freud’s view may oversimplify complex morality. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Far Immoral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/far-immoral-5396429/) [Immoral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/immoral/) [Immoral Imagine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/immoral-imagine-5396430/) [Men Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-moral-325526/) [Moral Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral-think-4324266/) [Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sigmund-freud/) ## Related quotes > [Men are more moral than they think and far more immoral than they can imagine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/men-are-more-moral-than-they-think-and-far-more-immoral-than-they-can-2/) [Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/) > [If you're in favour of any policy - reform, revolution, stability, regression, whatever - if you're at least minimally moral, it's because you think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/if-you-re-in-favour-of-any-policy-reform-revolution-stability/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“No psychologist who deals with the half-tamed demons that inhabit the human beast can expect to come through the struggle unscathed. —Sigmund Freud I’M”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-gilboy/no-psychologist-who-deals-with-the-half-tamed-demons-that-inhabit-the/) [Peter Gilboy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-gilboy/) > [“In matters of sexuality we are at present—every one of us—nothing but hypocrites. —Sigmund Freud IN”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-gilboy/in-matters-of-sexuality-we-are-at-present-every-one-of-us-nothing-but/) [Peter Gilboy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-gilboy/) > [“The madman lives out his dreams when awake. —Sigmund Freud I”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-gilboy/the-madman-lives-out-his-dreams-when-awake-sigmund-freud-i/) [Peter Gilboy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-gilboy/) > [All men are moral. Only their neighbors are not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/all-men-are-moral-only-their-neighbors-are-not/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [The men can have a moral compass that is just unshakeable, they can have ethics that run to the core.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lupe-fiasco/the-men-can-have-a-moral-compass-that-is-just-unshakeable-they-can/) [Lupe Fiasco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lupe-fiasco/) > [Unless education promotes character making, unless it helps men to be more moral, more just to their fellows, more law abiding, more discriminatingly patriotic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-howard-taft/unless-education-promotes-character-making-unless-it-helps-men-to-be/) [William Howard Taft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-howard-taft/) > [Atheists would teach men to be moral now, not because God offers as an inducement reward by and by, but because in the virtuous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bradlaugh/atheists-would-teach-men-to-be-moral-now-not-because-god-offers-as-an/) [Charles Bradlaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bradlaugh/) > [Human beings have rights, because they are moral beings: the rights of all men grow out of their moral nature; and as all men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angelina-grimke/human-beings-have-rights-because-they-are-moral-beings-the-rights-of/) [Angelina Grimke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angelina-grimke/) > [“For good or ill, the law always educates, even when it is silent. And although the law can never “make men moral,” it can,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-good-or-ill-the-law-always-educates-even-when-it-is-silent-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“If we promoted justice and charity among men, we should be playing directly into the Enemy's hands; but if we guide them to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/if-we-promoted-justice-and-charity-among-men-we-should-be-playing/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“we know that men find themselves under a moral law, which they did not make, and cannot quite forget even when they try, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/we-know-that-men-find-themselves-under-a-moral-law-which-they-did-not/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“Men are moral beings in their untrammelled nature. If constraint and coercion can once be removed they will be happy and if they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-unsworth/men-are-moral-beings-in-their-untrammelled-nature-if-constraint-and/) [Barry Unsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-unsworth/) > [It clearly follows that to make men moral it is necessary to make their social environment moral. And that can be done in only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bakunin/it-clearly-follows-that-to-make-men-moral-it-is-necessary-to-make/) [Mikhail Bakunin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bakunin/) ## More by Peter Gilboy > [“beauty can teach us much more than facts. I”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-gilboy/beauty-can-teach-us-much-more-than-facts-i/) [Peter Gilboy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-gilboy/) > [“Freud says that imagination is driven by primal and potentially savage desires.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-gilboy/freud-says-that-imagination-is-driven-by-primal-and-potentially/) [Peter Gilboy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-gilboy/) > [“The madman lives out his dreams when awake. —Sigmund Freud I”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-gilboy/the-madman-lives-out-his-dreams-when-awake-sigmund-freud-i/) [Peter Gilboy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-gilboy/) > [“In matters of sexuality we are at present—every one of us—nothing but hypocrites. —Sigmund Freud IN”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-gilboy/in-matters-of-sexuality-we-are-at-present-every-one-of-us-nothing-but/) [Peter Gilboy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-gilboy/) > [“No psychologist who deals with the half-tamed demons that inhabit the human beast can expect to come through the struggle unscathed. —Sigmund Freud I’M”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-gilboy/no-psychologist-who-deals-with-the-half-tamed-demons-that-inhabit-the/) [Peter Gilboy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-gilboy/) [Explore all 6 Peter Gilboy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-gilboy/) ## More Immoral quotes > [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/) > [IMMORAL, adj. Inexpedient. Whatever in the long run and with regard to the greater number of instances men find to be generally inexpedient comes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/immoral-adj-inexpedient-whatever-in-the-long-run-and-with-regard-to/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [We must remember that intelligence is not enough. Intelligence plus character--that is the goal of true education. The complete education gives one not only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/we-must-remember-that-intelligence-is-not-enough-intelligence-plus/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [I do not think homosexuality is immoral.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-do-not-think-homosexuality-is-immoral/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [Americans have always had an ambivalent attitude toward intelligence. When they feel threatened, they want a lot of it, and when they don't, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernon-a-walters/americans-have-always-had-an-ambivalent-attitude-toward-intelligence/) [Vernon A. Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernon-a-walters/) > [What is moral is what you feel good after, and what is immoral is what you feel bad after.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/what-is-moral-is-what-you-feel-good-after-and-what-is-immoral-is-what/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [Food is being purposefully formulated to addict you.Then it is purposefully marketed, targeted to young children to addict them at an early age. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-david/food-is-being-purposefully-formulated-to-addict-you-then-it-is/) [Laurie David](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-david/) > [Consumer wants can have bizarre, frivolous, or even immoral origins, and an admirable case can still be made for a society that seeks to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/consumer-wants-can-have-bizarre-frivolous-or-even-immoral-origins-and/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [I am calling on all citizens with access to unreleased records pertaining to illegal, unconstitutional, or immoral government activities to return those records to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-shapiro/i-am-calling-on-all-citizens-with-access-to-unreleased-records/) [Ryan Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-shapiro/) > [Give up money, give up fame, give up science, give the earth itself and all it contains rather than do an immoral act. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/give-up-money-give-up-fame-give-up-science-give-the-earth-itself-and/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [“I've put men to death-men with supposedly immoral souls-that looked dumber than that mouse.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/i-ve-put-men-to-death-men-with-supposedly-immoral-souls-that-looked/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [One of two things when the guy you're dating isn't really ready to commit. He's an a\*\*hole and he's cheating on you; bottom line…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-catherwood/one-of-two-things-when-the-guy-you-re-dating-isn-t-really-ready-to/) [Michael Catherwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-catherwood/) > [I believe that homosexual acts between individuals are immoral and that we should not condone immoral acts. I do not believe that the Armed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-pace/i-believe-that-homosexual-acts-between-individuals-are-immoral-and/) [Peter Pace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-pace/) > [When it comes to explaining human thought and behavior, the possibility that heredity plays any role at all still has the power to shock.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pinker/when-it-comes-to-explaining-human-thought-and-behavior-the/) [Steven Pinker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pinker/) > [ \[General Curtis\] LeMay recognized that what he was doing would be thought immoral if his side has lost. But what makes it immoral if… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-mcnamara/general-curtis-lemay-recognized-that-what-he-was-doing-would-be/) [Robert McNamara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-mcnamara/) [Browse all 677 Immoral quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/immoral/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Men are more moral than they think and far more immoral than they can imagine. —Sigmund Freud I’M”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Peter Gilboy" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-gilboy/men-are-more-moral-than-they-think-and-far-more-immoral-than-they-can/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Immoral" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-gilboy/men-are-more-moral-than-they-think-and-far-more-immoral-than-they-can/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37c/peter-gilboy-54288_sigmund-freud_men-are-more-moral-than-they-think-and-f_1581368.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37c/peter-gilboy-54288_sigmund-freud_men-are-more-moral-than-they-think-and-f_1581368.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37c/peter-gilboy-54288_sigmund-freud_men-are-more-moral-than-they-think-and-f_1581368.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Men are more moral than they think and far more immoral than they can imagine. —Sigmund Freud I’M” — Peter Gilboy", "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": "Peter Gilboy", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-gilboy/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Men are more moral than they...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-gilboy/men-are-more-moral-than-they-think-and-far-more-immoral-than-they-can/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-gilboy/men-are-more-moral-than-they-think-and-far-more-immoral-than-they-can/#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 } } ] } ```