--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We shall therefore compare the concept of…" description: "\"We shall therefore compare the concept of homosexuality as heresy, prevalent in the days of the witch-hunts, with the concept of homosexuality as menta..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a29/thomas-szasz-3801_compare_we-shall-therefore-compare-the-concept-o_186945.jpg" --- # We shall therefore compare the concept of homosexuality as… ![“We shall therefore compare the concept of homosexuality as heresy, prevalent in the days of the witch-hunts, with the concept of homosexuality as mental illness, prevalent today.” quote by Thomas Szasz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a29/thomas-szasz-3801_compare_we-shall-therefore-compare-the-concept-o_186945.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a29/thomas-szasz-3801_compare_we-shall-therefore-compare-the-concept-o_186945.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a29/thomas-szasz-3801_compare_we-shall-therefore-compare-the-concept-o_186945.jpg) > “We shall therefore compare the concept of homosexuality as heresy, prevalent in the days of the witch-hunts, with the concept of homosexuality as mental illness, prevalent today.” [Thomas Szasz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-szasz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote draws a parallel between historic persecution of homosexuality as heresy and its modern classification as a mental illness, highlighting how societies label and marginalize groups as deviant. **In simple terms:** It compares past witch‑hunt heresy to modern mental‑illness labeling of homosexuality. Key Takeaway Question how labels shape stigma and policy. Themes stigma history mental health human rights social constructs Mood critical reflective concerned Type historical analytical social. When to use this quote - medical diagnosis - legal policy - public opinion - activism - education Key Concepts pathologization social control identity politics Questions to Reflect On - How do contemporary labels affect LGBTQ+ rights? - What lessons can we learn from past persecutions? A Different Perspective Labeling can reinforce discrimination and ignore scientific consensus. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Heresy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heresy/) [Homosexuality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/homosexuality/) [Illness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illness/) [Mental illness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mental-illness/) [Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/today/) [Witch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/witch/) [Witch hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/witch-hunt/) ## Related quotes > [The disease concept of homosexuality as with the disease concept of all so-called mental illnesses, such as alcoholism, drug addiction, or suicide conceals the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-szasz/the-disease-concept-of-homosexuality-as-with-the-disease-concept-of/) [Thomas Szasz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-szasz/) > [The building housing America's military brass is a five-sided pentagon, but somehow, the people in it still manage to make it the squarest place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-stewart/the-building-housing-america-s-military-brass-is-a-five-sided/) [Jon Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-stewart/) > [Homosexuality is a mental disorder that can be cured through counselling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stockwell-day/homosexuality-is-a-mental-disorder-that-can-be-cured-through/) [Stockwell Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stockwell-day/) > [In English-speaking countries, the connection between heresy and homosexuality is expressed through the use of a single word to denote both concepts: buggery. ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-szasz/in-english-speaking-countries-the-connection-between-heresy-and/) [Thomas Szasz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-szasz/) > [As the dominant social ethic changed from a religious to a secular one, the problem of heresy disappeared, and the problem of madness arose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-szasz/as-the-dominant-social-ethic-changed-from-a-religious-to-a-secular/) [Thomas Szasz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-szasz/) > [ \[A 2005 response to doping allegations\] Unfortunately, the witch hunt continues and tomorrow's article is nothing short of tabloid journalism. 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The vocabulary conforms to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-szasz/institutional-psychiatry-is-a-continuation-of-the-inquisition-all/) [Thomas Szasz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-szasz/) > [By pretending that convention is Nature, that disobeying a personal prohibition is a medical illness, they establish themselves as agents of social control and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-szasz/by-pretending-that-convention-is-nature-that-disobeying-a-personal/) [Thomas Szasz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-szasz/) > [The basic ingredients of psychotherapy are religion, rhetoric, and repression, which are themselves mutually overlapping categories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-szasz/the-basic-ingredients-of-psychotherapy-are-religion-rhetoric-and/) [Thomas Szasz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-szasz/) > [For Jews, the Messiah has never come; for Christians, He has come but once; for modern man, He appears and disappears with increasing rapidity.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-szasz/for-jews-the-messiah-has-never-come-for-christians-he-has-come-but/) [Thomas Szasz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-szasz/) > [I submit that the traditional definition of psychiatry, which is still vogue, places it alongside such things as alchemy and astrology, and commits it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-szasz/i-submit-that-the-traditional-definition-of-psychiatry-which-is-still/) [Thomas Szasz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-szasz/) > [I believe the time has come to acknowledge that the practice of routine circumcision rests on the absurd premise that the only mammal in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-szasz/i-believe-the-time-has-come-to-acknowledge-that-the-practice-of/) [Thomas Szasz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-szasz/) > [He who does not accept and respect those who want to reject life does not truly accept and respect life itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-szasz/he-who-does-not-accept-and-respect-those-who-want-to-reject-life-does/) [Thomas Szasz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-szasz/) > [The passion to interpret as madness that with which we disagree seems to have infected the best of contemporary minds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-szasz/the-passion-to-interpret-as-madness-that-with-which-we-disagree-seems/) [Thomas Szasz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-szasz/) > [We should pledge ourselves to the proposition that the irresponsible life is not worth living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-szasz/we-should-pledge-ourselves-to-the-proposition-that-the-irresponsible/) [Thomas Szasz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-szasz/) > [A child becomes an adult when he realizes that he has a right not only to be right but also to be wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-szasz/a-child-becomes-an-adult-when-he-realizes-that-he-has-a-right-not/) [Thomas Szasz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-szasz/) > [We have, in our day, witnessed the birth of the Therapeutic State. 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