If the same punishment is prescribed for two crimes that injure society in different degrees, then men will face no stronger deterrent from committing the greater crime if they find it in their advantage to do so.
Cesare BeccariaRead
I myself owe everything to French books. They developed in my soul the sentiments of humanity which had been stifled by eight years of fanatical and servile education.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Education through literature can nurture our humanity and critical thinking.
In this quote, Cesare Beccaria expresses how French literature played a crucial role in awakening and cultivating his sense of humanity, which had been suppressed by a restrictive and dogmatic education. He highlights the transformative power of books to foster empathy and understanding, suggesting that true education goes beyond mere information and includes the development of our moral and emotional capacities.
Themes
EducationLiteratureHumanityTransformationBooks
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about the importance of reading, this quote could illustrate how literature shapes our values.
More from Cesare Beccaria
All quotes βEasy, simple and great laws, which await nothing but a sign from the lawgiver to spread prosperity and vigour throughout the nation, laws which would earn him immortal hymns of gratitude down the generations, are those which are least considered or least wanted.
Cesare BeccariaRead
In order that punishment should not be an act of violence perpetrated by one or many upon a private citizen, it is essential that it should be public, speedy, necessary, the minimum possible in the given circumstances, proportionate to the crime, and determined by the law.
Cesare BeccariaRead
No man ever freely surrendered a portion of his own liberty for the sake of the public good; such a chimera appears only in fiction. If it were possible, we would each prefer that the pacts binding others did not bind us; every man sees himself as the centre of all the world's affairs.
Cesare BeccariaRead
The lawgiver ought to be gentle, lenient and humane. The lawgiver ought to be a skilled architect who raises his building on the foundation of self-love, and the interest of all ought to be the product of the interests of each.
Cesare BeccariaRead
Unless some other factor is operative, in large, weak and underpopulated states, the luxury of ostentation prevails over that of comfort; but in countries which are more populous than extensive, the luxury of comfort always diminishes ostentation.
Cesare BeccariaRead
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The main force pushing toward reduction in inequality has always been the diffusion of knowledge and the diffusion of education.
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There is no substitute for knowledge.
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