Animal love Quote by William S. Burroughs
““A Nazi initiation into the upper reaches of the SS was to gouge out the eye of a pet cat after feeding the cat and cuddling it for a month. This exercise was designed to eliminate all traces of pity-poison and mold a full Übermensch. There is a very sound magical postulate involved: the practitioner achieves superhuman status by performing some atrocious, revolting, subhuman act. In Morocco, magic men gain power by eating their own excrement. But dig out Ruski’s eyes? Stack bribes to the radioactive sky. What does it profit a man? I could not occupy a body that could dig out Ruski’s eyes. So WHO gained the whole world? I didn’t. Any bargain involving exchange of qualitative values like animal love for quantitative advantage is not only dishonorable, as wrong as a man can get, it is also foolish. Because YOU get nothing. You have sold your YOU.””
About This Quote
Source Interview: William S. Burroughs, 1970s (recorded conversation)
The passage argues that extreme cruelty is used to erase empathy and create a self‑perceived superior being, but such exchanges are morally bankrupt and ultimately self‑destructive.
In simple terms: Violence is falsely seen as a path to power, but it destroys humanity.
Key Takeaway
Reject cruelty as a means to power.
Themes
morality
power
violence
humanity
psychology
Mood
disturbed
critical
Type
ethical
philosophical
When to use this quote
- military training
- cult indoctrination
- extreme rituals
- historical atrocities
Key Concepts
dehumanization
ethical paradox
psychological conditioning
Questions to Reflect On
- Can true strength arise without harming others?
- What are the costs of abandoning empathy?
A Different Perspective
The claim that cruelty creates superiority is historically and ethically flawed.
![“I had bought two male chimps from a primate colony in Holland. They lived next to each other in separate cages for several months before I used one as a [heart] donor. When we put him to sleep in his cage in preparation for the operation, he chattered and cried incessantly. We attached no…” quote by Christiaan Barnard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/3b9/christiaan-barnard-39607_animal_i-had-bought-two-male-chimps-from-a-prim_126559.jpg)
