Depravity Quote by Thomas Jefferson
![“New York, like London, seems to be a cloacina [toilet] of all the depravities of human nature.” quote by Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/42a/thomas-jefferson-43_depravity_new-york-like-london-seems-to-be-a-cloac_727910.jpg)
“New York, like London, seems to be a cloacina [toilet] of all the depravities of human nature.”
About This Quote
Source Essay: Notes on the State of Virginia, 1785
Jefferson criticizes urban decay, seeing cities as repositories of moral corruption and human vice.
In simple terms: Cities can embody human vices.
Key Takeaway
Recognize and address societal flaws.
Themes
urban decay
morality
social critique
Mood
cynical
critical
Type
observational
social commentary
When to use this quote
- policy planning
- urban renewal
- social reform
Key Concepts
human nature
corruption
public health
Questions to Reflect On
- How can urban design mitigate moral decay?
- What responsibilities do citizens have to improve their cities?
A Different Perspective
Cities also foster culture and progress, not only vice.
![“[States and the Federal government are] coordinate departments of one simple and integral whole... The one is the domestic, the other the foreign branch of the same government.” quote by Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/401/thomas-jefferson-43_branches_states-and-the-federal-government-are-co_2619.jpg)
![“Single acts of tyranny may be ascribed to the accidental opinion of a day; but a series of oppressions, begun at a distinguished period and pursued unalterably through every change of ministers, too plainly prove a deliberate, systematic plan of reducing [a people] to slavery.” quote by Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/00c/thomas-jefferson-43_change_single-acts-of-tyranny-may-be-ascribed-t_5515.jpg)
![“Though you cannot see, when you take one step, what will be the next, yet follow truth, justice, and plain dealing, and never fear their leading you out of [any difficult situation] in the easiest manner possible...” quote by Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/ebe/thomas-jefferson-43_difficult_though-you-cannot-see-when-you-take-one_9828.jpg)
![“All these institutions [prisons] seemed purposely invented for the production of depravity and vice, condensed to such a degree that no other conditions could produce it, and for the spreading of this condensed depravity and vice broadcast among the whole population.” quote by Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/f71/leo-tolstoy-55_depravity_all-these-institutions-prisons-seemed-pu_254289.jpg)
