--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To explain our conventional ethical…" description: "\"“To explain our conventional ethical attitudes, is not to justify them.”\" — Peter Singer" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d91/peter-singer-1001_character_to-explain-our-conventional-ethical-atti_1290280.jpg" --- # To explain our conventional ethical attitudes, is not to… ![“To explain our conventional ethical attitudes, is not to justify them.” quote by Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d91/peter-singer-1001_character_to-explain-our-conventional-ethical-atti_1290280.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d91/peter-singer-1001_character_to-explain-our-conventional-ethical-atti_1290280.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d91/peter-singer-1001_character_to-explain-our-conventional-ethical-atti_1290280.jpg) > ““To explain our conventional ethical attitudes, is not to justify them.”” [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Explaining moral norms does not automatically justify them. **In simple terms:** Explanation ≠ justification. Key Takeaway Critically evaluate ethics. Themes ethics philosophy critical thinking Mood analytical skeptical Type philosophical academic When to use this quote - academic debate - policy development - personal decision‑making - public discourse Key Concepts normative theory moral reasoning Questions to Reflect On - What moral assumptions do you accept without question? - How can we test ethical claims? A Different Perspective Explanations can mask deeper biases. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attitudes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attitudes/) [Attitudes Justify](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attitudes-justify-4201680/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Conventional Ethical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conventional-ethical-4201679/) [Ethical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethical/) [Ethical Attitudes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethical-attitudes-4201678/) [Ethics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethics/) [Morality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morality/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) ## Related quotes > [When you look at food as an ethical issue in the Christian tradition, you don't find very much about it. You don't find, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/when-you-look-at-food-as-an-ethical-issue-in-the-christian-tradition/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [At the descriptive level, certainly, you would expect different cultures to develop different sorts of ethics and obviously they have; that doesn't mean that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/at-the-descriptive-level-certainly-you-would-expect-different/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“In an earlier stage of our development most human groups held to a tribal ethic. Members of the tribe were protected, but people of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/in-an-earlier-stage-of-our-development-most-human-groups-held-to-a/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“Your life is a trajectory. Every choice you make alters that trajectory, in a positive or negative way. Will you categorize that dinner with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-van-de-mark/your-life-is-a-trajectory-every-choice-you-make-alters-that/) [Donald Van de Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-van-de-mark/) > [All attempts to adapt our ethical code to our situation in the technological age have failed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-born/all-attempts-to-adapt-our-ethical-code-to-our-situation-in-the/) [Max Born](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-born/) > [No ethic is as ethical as the work ethic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/no-ethic-is-as-ethical-as-the-work-ethic/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [Man is an animal with primary instincts of survival. Consequently his ingenuity has developed first and his soul afterwards. The progress of science is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-chaplin/man-is-an-animal-with-primary-instincts-of-survival-consequently-his/) [Charlie Chaplin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-chaplin/) > [Out of our first century of national life we evolved the ethical principle that it was not right or just that an honest and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-perkins/out-of-our-first-century-of-national-life-we-evolved-the-ethical/) [Frances Perkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-perkins/) > [Science is important, but so is ethics, so is balancing life. To destroy life to save life - it's one of the real ethical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/science-is-important-but-so-is-ethics-so-is-balancing-life-to-destroy/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [A person who is fundamentally honest doesn't need a code of ethics. The Ten Commandments and the Sermon on the Mount are all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/a-person-who-is-fundamentally-honest-doesn-t-need-a-code-of-ethics/) [Harry S. 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I certainly wasn't an 'animal lover' when I became involved in the movement. I just came…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/i-have-never-really-been-fond-of-animals-i-certainly-wasn-t-an-animal/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [Knowledge is generally considered a good thing; so, presumably, knowing more about how the U.S. thinks and operates around the world is also good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/knowledge-is-generally-considered-a-good-thing-so-presumably-knowing/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [The price we are willing to pay for safety cannot be infinite. It is distasteful to put a price on human life, but the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/the-price-we-are-willing-to-pay-for-safety-cannot-be-infinite-it-is/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [The hope of Internet anarchists was that repressive governments would have only two options: accept the Internet with its limitless possibilities of spreading information,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/the-hope-of-internet-anarchists-was-that-repressive-governments-would/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [ Nineteen thousand children \[are\] dying every day. Does it really matter that we're not walking past them in the street? Does it really matter… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/nineteen-thousand-children-are-dying-every-day-does-it-really-matter/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“The unchallenged assumption is that humans may use animals for their own purposes, and they may raise and kill them to satisfy their preference…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/the-unchallenged-assumption-is-that-humans-may-use-animals-for-their/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [Beginning to reason is like stepping onto an escalator that leads upward and out of sight. Once we take the first step, the distance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/beginning-to-reason-is-like-stepping-onto-an-escalator-that-leads/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“Population growth is not a reason against giving aid but a reason for reconsidering the kind of aid to give.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/population-growth-is-not-a-reason-against-giving-aid-but-a-reason-for/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [Well the real concept of basic needs if you cut it right down are simply the physical needs that are unavoidable for all of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/well-the-real-concept-of-basic-needs-if-you-cut-it-right-down-are/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“Dairy farmers routinely remove calves from their mothers at an early age so that the milk will be available for humans; anyone who has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/dairy-farmers-routinely-remove-calves-from-their-mothers-at-an-early/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [Attempts to defend amusement parks and circuses on the grounds that they 'educate' people about animals should not be taken seriously. Such enterprises are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/attempts-to-defend-amusement-parks-and-circuses-on-the-grounds-that/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“A consequence of this alienation of humans from their own nature is that they are also alienated from each other. Productive activity becomes ‘activity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/a-consequence-of-this-alienation-of-humans-from-their-own-nature-is/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“I argued against the view that the only obligation we have to strangers is to avoid harming them; but even if we were to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/i-argued-against-the-view-that-the-only-obligation-we-have-to/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [I believe that in this new world that we live in, we often have a responsibility, you know, to actually go beyond the thou…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/i-believe-that-in-this-new-world-that-we-live-in-we-often-have-a/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [It may be thought justifiable to require tests on animals of potentially life-saving drugs, but the same kinds of tests are used for products…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/it-may-be-thought-justifiable-to-require-tests-on-animals-of/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) [Explore all 310 Peter Singer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) ## More Attitudes quotes > [Happy person is not a person in a certain set of circumstances, but rather a person with a certain set of attitudes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-downs/happy-person-is-not-a-person-in-a-certain-set-of-circumstances-but/) [Hugh Downs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-downs/) > [I think my attitudes about the past are very traditional. You can't ignore history; you can't escape it even if you want to. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gehry/i-think-my-attitudes-about-the-past-are-very-traditional-you-can-t/) [Frank Gehry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gehry/) > [The first principle of cognitive therapy is that all your moods are created by your 'cognitions,' or thoughts. A cognition refers to the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-d-burns/the-first-principle-of-cognitive-therapy-is-that-all-your-moods-are/) [David D. Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-d-burns/) > [People don't have great attitudes because of great success, they have great success largely because of great attitudes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-nightingale/people-don-t-have-great-attitudes-because-of-great-success-they-have/) [Earl Nightingale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-nightingale/) > [“Cock your hats, angles are attitudes”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-sinatra/cock-your-hats-angles-are-attitudes/) [Frank Sinatra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-sinatra/) > [Attitudes toward food have completely changed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giada-de-laurentiis/attitudes-toward-food-have-completely-changed/) [Giada De Laurentiis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giada-de-laurentiis/) > [I like to say that the greatest handicap of deafness does not lie in the ear, it lies in the mind. I hope that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlee-matlin/i-like-to-say-that-the-greatest-handicap-of-deafness-does-not-lie-in/) [Marlee Matlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlee-matlin/) > [That's the kind of musical freedom I like: jazz, rock, blues, anything. You adopt different attitudes when you play different music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-lee/that-s-the-kind-of-musical-freedom-i-like-jazz-rock-blues-anything/) [Alvin Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-lee/) > [When a woman cries it changes nothing or dews things.but when a man cries it changes alot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bakre-basit-babatunde/when-a-woman-cries-it-changes-nothing-or-dews-things-but-when-a-man/) [Bakre Basit Babatunde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bakre-basit-babatunde/) > [“The question I’m always asked when I tell our story about getting out and staying out of debt is “How did you do it?”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-rocha/the-question-i-m-always-asked-when-i-tell-our-story-about-getting-out/) [Carrie Rocha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-rocha/) > [Haiti is an amazing country. Even though the people there have so little, their attitudes resonate a crazy amount of love and joy. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-munck/haiti-is-an-amazing-country-even-though-the-people-there-have-so/) [Noah Munck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-munck/) > [Loving someone to a point of being crazy about that attitudes could ruin your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/loving-someone-to-a-point-of-being-crazy-about-that-attitudes-could/) [Mak\_786](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mak-786/) > [I intend to travel to Okinawa and to visit with Okinawa officials and the citizens of Okinawa at an early date. I will send…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-baker/i-intend-to-travel-to-okinawa-and-to-visit-with-okinawa-officials-and/) [Howard Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-baker/) > [Attitudes are more important than intelligence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-j-schwartz/attitudes-are-more-important-than-intelligence/) [David J. Schwartz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-j-schwartz/) > [Attitudes are caught, not taught.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-rogers/attitudes-are-caught-not-taught/) [Fred Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-rogers/) [Browse all 294 Attitudes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attitudes/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“To explain our conventional ethical attitudes, is not to justify them.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Peter Singer" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/to-explain-our-conventional-ethical-attitudes-is-not-to-justify-them/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Attitudes" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/to-explain-our-conventional-ethical-attitudes-is-not-to-justify-them/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d91/peter-singer-1001_character_to-explain-our-conventional-ethical-atti_1290280.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d91/peter-singer-1001_character_to-explain-our-conventional-ethical-atti_1290280.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d91/peter-singer-1001_character_to-explain-our-conventional-ethical-atti_1290280.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“To explain our conventional ethical attitudes, is not to justify them.” — Peter Singer", "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 Singer", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“To explain our conventional ethical attitudes,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/to-explain-our-conventional-ethical-attitudes-is-not-to-justify-them/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/to-explain-our-conventional-ethical-attitudes-is-not-to-justify-them/#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 } } ] } ```