--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In point of fact I was a perfectly…" description: "\"In point of fact I was a perfectly devoted and dutiful little Catholic—until the day I learned that animals have no souls.\" — Susan Kay" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38e/susan-kay-23526_animal_in-point-of-fact-i-was-a-perfectly-devot_2555299.jpg" --- # In point of fact I was a perfectly devoted and dutiful… ![“In point of fact I was a perfectly devoted and dutiful little Catholic—until the day I learned that animals have no souls.” quote by Susan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38e/susan-kay-23526_animal_in-point-of-fact-i-was-a-perfectly-devot_2555299.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38e/susan-kay-23526_animal_in-point-of-fact-i-was-a-perfectly-devot_2555299.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38e/susan-kay-23526_animal_in-point-of-fact-i-was-a-perfectly-devot_2555299.jpg) > “In point of fact I was a perfectly devoted and dutiful little Catholic—until the day I learned that animals have no souls.” [Susan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-kay/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator discovers a belief that conflicts with her religious upbringing, causing a crisis of faith. **In simple terms:** Realizing a conflict between belief and doctrine. Key Takeaway Question your assumptions. Themes faith conflict identity religion dogma Mood conflicted reflective Type philosophical personal When to use this quote - religious upbringing - education - personal revelation Key Concepts existential crisis spiritual doubt personal growth Questions to Reflect On - How does new information reshape faith? - Can belief evolve without losing identity? A Different Perspective Challenges of reconciling personal belief with institutional doctrine ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Catholic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/catholic/) [Dutiful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dutiful/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) [Spirituality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirituality/) ## Related quotes > [“To me, animals have all the traits indicative of soul. For soul is not something we can see or measure...No one can prove that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-kowalski/to-me-animals-have-all-the-traits-indicative-of-soul-for-soul-is-not/) Gary Kowalski > [“Sister Carmelita says animals don't have souls" "Of course animals have souls, where did she get that idea?" "She said the Pope says." "The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/audrey-niffenegger/sister-carmelita-says-animals-don-t-have-souls-of-course-animals-have/) [Audrey Niffenegger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/audrey-niffenegger/) > [“Her one drink had Cecilia giggling and talking and she was explaining that animals had souls too. Nobody challenged her opinion. It was possible,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/her-one-drink-had-cecilia-giggling-and-talking-and-she-was-explaining/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [To have a dutiful family, the father's principle of rule must be love, not fear. His sway must be gentle, or he will have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cobbett/to-have-a-dutiful-family-the-father-s-principle-of-rule-must-be-love/) [William Cobbett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cobbett/) > [When I have loving parents, it is not difficult to be dutiful to them. But if I can be dutiful to parents who hate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-low/when-i-have-loving-parents-it-is-not-difficult-to-be-dutiful-to-them/) [Alex Low](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-low/) > [I have too much work on my hands and I would not be a dutiful husband.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecil-rhodes/i-have-too-much-work-on-my-hands-and-i-would-not-be-a-dutiful-husband/) [Cecil Rhodes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecil-rhodes/) > [“I know. I know. Me? Dutiful daughter? All-round good girl? Owner of an up-and-coming event-planning company? Killer of plants and unwed at thirty? Pulling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-desai/i-know-i-know-me-dutiful-daughter-all-round-good-girl-owner-of-an-up/) [Sara Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-desai/) > [It becomes us, therefore, to be contented, and dutiful subjects.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-mayhew/it-becomes-us-therefore-to-be-contented-and-dutiful-subjects/) [Jonathan Mayhew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-mayhew/) > [“Responsibility and duty are different things, you can sacrifice your responsibility for your duty but you cannot sacrifice your duty for your responsibility.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/responsibility-and-duty-are-different-things-you-can-sacrifice-your/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [whatever devotion to something else there was in him had been made impure by church taken as a weekly, dutiful thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-boyle/whatever-devotion-to-something-else-there-was-in-him-had-been-made/) [Kay Boyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-boyle/) > [Being faithful and dutiful is a precious quality of human beings but it creates disasters if the master is a devil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/senoraroy/being-faithful-and-dutiful-is-a-precious-quality-of-human-beings-but/) Senoraroy > [All my life, even as an actor, I felt like I was really trying to be dutiful, which sometimes got in my way of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fala-chen/all-my-life-even-as-an-actor-i-felt-like-i-was-really-trying-to-be/) [Fala Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fala-chen/) > [We would often rather seem dutiful to others than to succeed in our duties; and often we would rather tell our friends that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-de-souvre-marquise-de-sable/we-would-often-rather-seem-dutiful-to-others-than-to-succeed-in-our/) [Madeleine de Souvre, marquise de Sable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-de-souvre-marquise-de-sable/) > [“Ordinary men earns responsibility towards their family, extraordinary men earns duty towards their nation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/ordinary-men-earns-responsibility-towards-their-family-extraordinary/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [A dutiful mother is someone who follows every step her child makes...And a good mother is someone whose child wants to follow her.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/a-dutiful-mother-is-someone-who-follows-every-step-her-child-makes/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) ## More by Susan Kay > [“None of us can chose where we will love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/none-of-us-can-chose-where-we-will-love/) [Susan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-kay/) > [Happiness is like the first blissful intoxication of morphine.It doesn't last very long.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/happiness-is-like-the-first-blissful-intoxication-of-morphine-it/) [Susan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-kay/) > [Killing is like riding, you see. One never really loses the knack.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/killing-is-like-riding-you-see-one-never-really-loses-the-knack/) [Susan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-kay/) > [Death was the ultimate power and I his eager, willing apprentice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/death-was-the-ultimate-power-and-i-his-eager-willing-apprentice/) [Susan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-kay/) > [Hell is not a place, it's a state of mind and body; hell is obsession with a voice, a face, a name.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/hell-is-not-a-place-it-s-a-state-of-mind-and-body-hell-is-obsession/) [Susan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-kay/) > [“He saw the Queen and saw her for the first time with the mask of friendship removed, a figure suddenly as ruthless and terrible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/he-saw-the-queen-and-saw-her-for-the-first-time-with-the-mask-of/) [Susan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-kay/) > [And it's really very difficult to kill someone when all your inner instincts would oblige you to take off your hat first!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/and-it-s-really-very-difficult-to-kill-someone-when-all-your-inner/) [Susan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-kay/) > [“I want you to take off the mask, Erik, do you hear me? I want you to take it off right now. -Luciana”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/i-want-you-to-take-off-the-mask-erik-do-you-hear-me-i-want-you-to/) [Susan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-kay/) > [I had reached up and pulled the castle of dreams down around him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/i-had-reached-up-and-pulled-the-castle-of-dreams-down-around-him/) [Susan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-kay/) > [I can make anything disappear, if I really want to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/i-can-make-anything-disappear-if-i-really-want-to/) [Susan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-kay/) > [“Flower and bird, two species never meant to mate. Yet at length the rose overcame her fear and from that single, forbidden union was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/flower-and-bird-two-species-never-meant-to-mate-yet-at-length-the/) [Susan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-kay/) > [“Men like Robin were never content, and men like Robin were all she would ever love, grasping, ambitious reflections of herself... He would begin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/men-like-robin-were-never-content-and-men-like-robin-were-all-she/) [Susan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-kay/) > [“To Renard's suspicious eye, Elizabeth's nebulous role at court had taken on a new and sinister signifiance. This unspoken Protestant heir presumptive was suddenly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/to-renard-s-suspicious-eye-elizabeth-s-nebulous-role-at-court-had/) [Susan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-kay/) > [“Is the mask magic?" he demanded with sudden, passionate interest. "Yes." I bowed my head, so that our eyes no longer met. "I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/is-the-mask-magic-he-demanded-with-sudden-passionate-interest-yes-i/) [Susan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-kay/) > [Memories are like fireflies darting across the surface of my mind, showing me here and there images so sharp and vivid that I catch…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/memories-are-like-fireflies-darting-across-the-surface-of-my-mind/) [Susan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-kay/) [Explore all 25 Susan Kay quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-kay/) ## More Animal quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [Animals know nothing of themselves, and they also know nothing of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/animals-know-nothing-of-themselves-and-they-also-know-nothing-of-the/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Humans are animals too, but some do not like to work from expectations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/humans-are-animals-too-but-some-do-not-like-to-work-from-expectations/) Mak\_786 > [When grubbing for necessities man is still an animal. He becomes uniquely human when he reaches out for the superfluous and extravagant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/when-grubbing-for-necessities-man-is-still-an-animal-he-becomes/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [I'm 38 and I'm single, and I'm having my most intense and gratifying relationship with a dog. But we all learn about love in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-knapp/i-m-38-and-i-m-single-and-i-m-having-my-most-intense-and-gratifying/) [Caroline Knapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-knapp/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/a-horse-a-horse-my-kingdom-for-a-horse/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“it is a federal system of sadistic torture, vivisection, and animal genocide, which has been carried on for decades under the fraudulent guise of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tobias/it-is-a-federal-system-of-sadistic-torture-vivisection-and-animal/) [Michael Tobias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tobias/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [We must love animals in such a powerful way that we should reject to eat them!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/we-must-love-animals-in-such-a-powerful-way-that-we-should-reject-to/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“The universe contains any amount of horrible ways to be woken up, such as the noise of the mob breaking down the front door,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/the-universe-contains-any-amount-of-horrible-ways-to-be-woken-up-such/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [This brings me back to the image of Kafka standing before a fish in the Berlin aquarium, a fish on which his gaze fell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/this-brings-me-back-to-the-image-of-kafka-standing-before-a-fish-in/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [That dog, I say that dog is lower than a snake full of buckshot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foghorn-leghorn/that-dog-i-say-that-dog-is-lower-than-a-snake-full-of-buckshot/) [Foghorn Leghorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foghorn-leghorn/) > [I bet plants go like 'Weeeeeeeee!' whenever they're swallowed by a giraffe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-bet-plants-go-like-weeeeeeeee-whenever-they-re-swallowed-by-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Animal rights without veganism is like human rights with slavery. It makes no sense. None whatsoever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/animal-rights-without-veganism-is-like-human-rights-with-slavery-it/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) [Browse all 13,456 Animal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In point of fact I was a perfectly devoted and dutiful little Catholic—until the day I learned that animals have no souls.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Susan Kay" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/in-point-of-fact-i-was-a-perfectly-devoted-and-dutiful-little/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Animal" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/in-point-of-fact-i-was-a-perfectly-devoted-and-dutiful-little/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38e/susan-kay-23526_animal_in-point-of-fact-i-was-a-perfectly-devot_2555299.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38e/susan-kay-23526_animal_in-point-of-fact-i-was-a-perfectly-devot_2555299.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38e/susan-kay-23526_animal_in-point-of-fact-i-was-a-perfectly-devot_2555299.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In point of fact I was a perfectly devoted and dutiful little Catholic—until the day I learned that animals…” — Susan Kay", "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": "Susan Kay", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-kay/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "In point of fact I was...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/in-point-of-fact-i-was-a-perfectly-devoted-and-dutiful-little/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-kay/in-point-of-fact-i-was-a-perfectly-devoted-and-dutiful-little/#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 } } ] } ```