“I am, as I have always been, of the opinion that while the niceties of normal moral constraints should be our guides, they must not be our masters.”

—  Iain Banks , Culture series

Source: Culture series, Excession (1996), Chapter 8 “Killing Time” section VII (p. 269).

Adopted from Wikiquote. Last update June 3, 2021. History

Help us to complete the source, original and additional information

Do you have more details about the quote "I am, as I have always been, of the opinion that while the niceties of normal moral constraints should be our guides, t…" by Iain Banks?
Iain Banks photo
Iain Banks 139
Scottish writer 1954–2013

Related quotes

Winston S. Churchill photo

“Many forms of Government have been tried and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time; but there is the broad feeling in our country that the people should rule, continuously rule, and that public opinion, expressed by all constitutional means, should shape, guide, and control the actions of Ministers who are their servants and not their masters.”

Winston S. Churchill (1874–1965) Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

Speech in the House of Commons (11 November 1947), published in 206–07 The Official Report, House of Commons (5th Series), 11 November 1947, vol. 444, cc. http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1947/nov/11/parliament-bill#column_206
Post-war years (1945–1955)

Oscar Wilde photo

“I have always been of opinion that a man who desires to get married should know either everything or nothing.”

Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) Irish writer and poet

Lady Bracknell, Act I
The Importance of Being Earnest (1895)
Source: The Importance of Being Earnest and Other Plays

Bram Stoker photo

“I have been so long master
that I would be master still, or at least that none other
should be master of me.”

Bram Stoker book Dracula

Source: Dracula

Jane Austen photo

“Every impulse of feeling should be guided by reason; and, in my opinion, exertion should always be in proportion to what is required.”

Jane Austen book Pride and Prejudice

Source: Pride and Prejudice

George Soros photo

“This is the most important election of my lifetime. I have never been heavily involved in partisan politics but these are not normal times. President Bush is endangering our safety, hurting our vital interests and undermining American values. That is why I am publishing this message. I have been demonized by the Bush campaign but I hope you will give me a hearing.”

George Soros (1930) Hungarian-American business magnate, investor, and philanthropist

Why We Must Not Reelect President Bush (2004)

Rachel Caine photo

“Survival," I said softly. "It's selfish, and it's dark, and we've always been a species willing to do anything to satisfy our needs. Individuals have morals. Mobs have appetites.”

Rachel Caine (1962) American writer

Source: Total Eclipse

Evelyn Baring, 1st Earl of Cromer photo

“An Imperial policy must, of course, be carried out with reasonable prudence, and the principles of government which guide our relations with whatsoever races are brought under our control must be politically and economically sound and morally defensible.”

Evelyn Baring, 1st Earl of Cromer (1841–1917) British diplomat

Political and Literary Essays, 1908-1913

Georg Brandes photo

“But what of the voice and judgment of conscience? The difficulty is that we have a conscience behind our conscience, an intellectual one behind the moral. … We can see quite well that our opinions of what is noble and good, our moral valuations, are powerful levers where action is concerned; but we must begin by refining these opinions and independently creating for ourselves new tables of values.”

Georg Brandes (1842–1927) Danish literature critic and scholar

Source: An Essay on Aristocratic Radicalism (1889), pp. 25-26

Ananda Mahidol photo

“One must know what is right and wrong and what is good and what is bad and what should be done and what should not be done. As well as manners, we must force our hearts to always be in good morals.”

Ananda Mahidol (1925–1946) eighth monarch of Siam from the Chakri dynasty as Rama VIII

Source: "Speech while conferring degree certificates to the graduating students of Chulalongkorn University" http://www.memohall.chula.ac.th/article/%E0%B8%81/ (13 April 1946)

Related topics