--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Great and good men and women stirred…" description: "\"Great and good men and women stirred sugar into their coffee knowing that it had been picked by slaves. Kind, good ancestors of all of us never questio..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39d/stephen-fry-573_ancestor_great-and-good-men-and-women-stirred-sug_2387111.jpg" --- # Great and good men and women stirred sugar into their… ![“Great and good men and women stirred sugar into their coffee knowing that it had been picked by slaves. Kind, good ancestors of all of us never questioned hangings, burnings, tortures, inequality, suffering and injustice that today revolt us. If we dare to presume to damn them with our fleeting…” quote by Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39d/stephen-fry-573_ancestor_great-and-good-men-and-women-stirred-sug_2387111.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39d/stephen-fry-573_ancestor_great-and-good-men-and-women-stirred-sug_2387111.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39d/stephen-fry-573_ancestor_great-and-good-men-and-women-stirred-sug_2387111.jpg) > “Great and good men and women stirred sugar into their coffee knowing that it had been picked by slaves. Kind, good ancestors of all of us never questioned hangings, burnings, tortures, inequality, suffering and injustice that today revolt us. If we dare to presume to damn them with our fleeting ideas of morality, then we risk damnation from our descendants for whatever it is that we are doing that future history will judge as intolerable and wicked: eating meat, driving cars, appearing on TV, visiting zoos, who knows?” [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage reflects on moral hypocrisy, noting that ancestors who benefited from slavery are judged by modern standards, and warns that future generations may judge our current practices harshly. **In simple terms:** It highlights the danger of judging past actions by today's morals and the possibility that future people will judge us similarly. Key Takeaway Consider how present actions may be judged by future generations. Themes morality history hypocrisy legacy ethics Mood reflective concerned thoughtful Type philosophical ethical When to use this quote - diet choices - transportation habits - media consumption - entertainment choices - animal welfare activism Key Concepts moral relativism historical accountability generational judgment Questions to Reflect On - What everyday habits might be condemned by future societies? - How can we balance present convenience with long‑term ethical considerations? A Different Perspective Future judgments may be unpredictable and context‑dependent. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ancestor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ancestor/) [Appearing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appearing/) [Burning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/burning/) [Car](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/car/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Coffee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coffee/) [Damn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/damn/) [Damnation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/damnation/) [Dare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dare/) [Descendants](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/descendants/) [Driving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/driving/) [Driving cars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/driving-cars/) [Eating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eating/) [Eating meat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eating-meat/) [Fleeting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fleeting/) [Good Ancestors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-ancestors-592473/) [Good man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-man/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Ideas Morality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas-morality-2777377/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Inequality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inequality/) [Injustice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/injustice/) [Judging](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judging/) [Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind/) [Knowing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowing/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Meat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meat/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Men and women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-and-women/) [Morality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morality/) [Revolt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revolt/) [Risk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/risk/) [Slave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slave/) [Slaves Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slaves-kind-5932399/) [Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering/) [Suffering Injustice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering-injustice-257803/) [Sugar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sugar/) [Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/today/) [Torture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/torture/) [Tvs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tvs/) [Visiting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/visiting/) [Wicked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wicked/) [Zoos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/zoos/) ## Related quotes > [“This ability of the body is a source of never-ending wonder to me. It fights against lies with a tenacity and a shrewdness that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/this-ability-of-the-body-is-a-source-of-never-ending-wonder-to-me-it/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [All thoughtful persons perceive that the ideas of the morality of sexual relations upheld by the religions and laws of the Western nations are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-key/all-thoughtful-persons-perceive-that-the-ideas-of-the-morality-of/) [Ellen Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-key/) > [Christianity is neither a system of ideas nor of morality but a way, a way of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-vanhoozer/christianity-is-neither-a-system-of-ideas-nor-of-morality-but-a-way-a/) [Kevin Vanhoozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-vanhoozer/) > [Are we being good ancestors?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonas-salk/are-we-being-good-ancestors/) [Jonas Salk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonas-salk/) > [The most important question we must ask ourselves is, 'Are we being good ancestors?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonas-salk/the-most-important-question-we-must-ask-ourselves-is-are-we-being/) [Jonas Salk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonas-salk/) > [We must strive to become good ancestors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-nader/we-must-strive-to-become-good-ancestors/) [Ralph Nader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-nader/) > [There is beauty in our roots. Sometimes we think our roots are shameful, and people tell you that you're no good or your ancestors…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luis-alberto-urrea/there-is-beauty-in-our-roots-sometimes-we-think-our-roots-are/) [Luis Alberto Urrea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luis-alberto-urrea/) > [Our greatest responsibility is to be good ancestors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonas-salk/our-greatest-responsibility-is-to-be-good-ancestors/) [Jonas Salk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonas-salk/) > [The personal stories of disabled people suffering injustice, cruelty and ignorance are heart-breaking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penny-mordaunt/the-personal-stories-of-disabled-people-suffering-injustice-cruelty/) [Penny Mordaunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penny-mordaunt/) > [If you look at any other group of people suffering injustice, women are always in the worst situation within that group.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salma-hayek/if-you-look-at-any-other-group-of-people-suffering-injustice-women/) [Salma Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salma-hayek/) > [For most men the love of justice is only the fear of suffering injustice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-most-men-the-love-of-justice-is-only-the-fear-of-suffering/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We have more than enough programs, organisations, parties, and strategies in the world for the alleviation of suffering and injustice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sulak-sivaraksa/we-have-more-than-enough-programs-organisations-parties-and/) [Sulak Sivaraksa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sulak-sivaraksa/) > [The British people have a global outlook, they are generous, and when they see suffering and injustice they are motivated to act.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penny-mordaunt/the-british-people-have-a-global-outlook-they-are-generous-and-when/) [Penny Mordaunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penny-mordaunt/) > [“Sometimes I would like to ask God why He allows poverty, suffering, and injustice when He could do something about it. 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It's not right, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/how-dare-you-how-dare-you-create-a-world-in-which-there-is-such/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [“Look at the kind of people who most object to the childishness and cheapness of celebrity culture. Does one really want to side with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/look-at-the-kind-of-people-who-most-object-to-the-childishness-and/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [“The object of love should feel honoured or flattered, responsible in some way. Instead he felt insulted, degraded and revolted. More than that, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/the-object-of-love-should-feel-honoured-or-flattered-responsible-in/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [The only people who are obsessed with food are anorexics and the morbidly obese. That, in erotic terms, is the Catholic church, in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/the-only-people-who-are-obsessed-with-food-are-anorexics-and-the/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [To me, reason is as spiritual as anything else, the beauty of reason seems to me indelible and ineffable and numinous... the spirit is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/to-me-reason-is-as-spiritual-as-anything-else-the-beauty-of-reason/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [The stranger might laugh and seem to enjoy the writing, but you hug to yourself the thought that they didn't quite understand its force…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/the-stranger-might-laugh-and-seem-to-enjoy-the-writing-but-you-hug-to/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [“The future is a much bigger deal than the past,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/the-future-is-a-much-bigger-deal-than-the-past/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [I gather a repulsive nobody writing in a paper no one of any decency would be seen dead with has written something loathesome and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/i-gather-a-repulsive-nobody-writing-in-a-paper-no-one-of-any-decency/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [I've never had any illusions about being a lead actor in films, because lead actors have to be of a certain kind. Apart from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/i-ve-never-had-any-illusions-about-being-a-lead-actor-in-films/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [Because, let's face it, I do not get offered the parts that Brad Pitt has just turned down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/because-let-s-face-it-i-do-not-get-offered-the-parts-that-brad-pitt/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [I will defend the absolute value of Mozart over Miley Cyrus, of course I will, but we should be wary of false dichotomies. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/i-will-defend-the-absolute-value-of-mozart-over-miley-cyrus-of-course/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [You can't just say there is a god because the world is beautiful. You have to account for bone cancer in children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/you-can-t-just-say-there-is-a-god-because-the-world-is-beautiful-you/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [If you know someone who's depressed, please resolve never to ask them why. Depression isn't a straightforward response to a bad situation; depression just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/if-you-know-someone-who-s-depressed-please-resolve-never-to-ask-them/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [It's as if scientists exert every effort of will they possess deliberately to find the least significant problems in the world and explain them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/it-s-as-if-scientists-exert-every-effort-of-will-they-possess/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) [Explore all 466 Stephen Fry quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) ## More Ancestor quotes > [A lot of indigenous cultures are deeply involved in working with ancestor spirits, elemental spirits, and demons. Many of these cultures feel that, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/a-lot-of-indigenous-cultures-are-deeply-involved-in-working-with/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [Food binds us to our roots as strongly as any song or poem. Many of us have learned more about our ancestors in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-thomas/food-binds-us-to-our-roots-as-strongly-as-any-song-or-poem-many-of-us/) [Anna Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-thomas/) > [Whereas our ancestors (not of choice) were the first successful cultivators of the wilds of America, we their descendants feel ourselves entitled to participate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-allen/whereas-our-ancestors-not-of-choice-were-the-first-successful/) [Richard Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-allen/) > [Going where no man has gone before is more difficult than it sounds. 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If we use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-schroeder/there-is-an-ancient-indian-saying-we-do-not-inherit-the-earth-from/) [Patricia Schroeder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-schroeder/) > [It is how it has always been. We will accept the legacy of our ancestors,' Asha says, smiling, and in her smile I do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/it-is-how-it-has-always-been-we-will-accept-the-legacy-of-our/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) > [My ancestors came over from Germany about the time of the Civil War and one of them lost a leg and went back to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/my-ancestors-came-over-from-germany-about-the-time-of-the-civil-war/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [ Now they \[the Powers\] have started the aggression, and the extinction of our nation is imminent. 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