Literary notes about Morality (AI summary)
Literature employs the term "morality" in diverse ways that reflect both individual conscience and societal norms. At times it is presented as the very essence of personal identity and creative expression—sometimes even a badge of honor for those whose lives are defined by high ethical standards [1, 2]—while in other passages it is scrutinized as a social construct, shaped by historical forces and even instinct itself [3, 4]. Morality is also depicted as intertwined with religious belief and metaphysical ideals, serving as both a guiding principle for human conduct and a subject of philosophical critique where its rational basis and ultimate function in life are questioned [5, 6, 7]. This multifaceted use reveals literature’s preoccupation with exploring how ethical codes define, restrain, or liberate the human spirit.
- I am the poet whose morality was presented this morning in the grand hall of the Courts.”
— from Notre-Dame de Paris by Victor Hugo - His morality is all sympathy, just what morality should be.
— from De Profundis by Oscar Wilde - The metamorphoses of slavery ; its disguise in the cloak of religion; its transfiguration through morality.
— from The Will to Power: An Attempted Transvaluation of All Values. Book I and II by Nietzsche - (Morality is located in instinct and the rest is [Pg 99] despised.
— from The Will to Power: An Attempted Transvaluation of All Values. Book I and II by Nietzsche - Religion and morality are one and indivisible to him.
— from Laws by Plato - Every morality and every religion is this Imperative—I call it the great original sin of reason,— immortal unreason.
— from The Twilight of the Idols; or, How to Philosophize with the Hammer. The Antichrist by Nietzsche - Beyond Good and Evil,—certainly; but we insist upon the unconditional and strict preservation of herd-morality.
— from The Will to Power: An Attempted Transvaluation of All Values. Book I and II by Nietzsche
