Can you make sense of this Quote?

Question

People say that what ever your answer will be depends on rather or not you are a man or woman. But here is the quote

"Let reason be your only sovereign...Faith and feelings are the warm marrow of evil. Unlike reason, faith and feelings provide no boundary to limit any delusion or any whim. They are a virulent poison, giving the numbing illusion of moral sanction to every depravity ever hatched. Faith and feelings are the darkness to reason’s light. Reason is the very substance of truth itself. The glory that is life is wholly embraced through reason, through this rule. In rejecting it, in rejecting reason, one embraces death."

If you can make sense of this quote please do. I understand it completely. But I would like to know how you interpret it as either a man or woman.

Answer 1

Let's put it this way.

If you were placed on a deserted island and used faith and feelings to survive, you would be dead in a week.

Reasoning says, the only way to survive is to find water, build a shelter and find food.

The faith and feeling person in the first example would have to rely completely on the one who uses reasoning in order to survive.

Such is the definition of both political parties. One works hard to create commerce and be self sufficient while the other survives by determining how the commerce is distributed equally among all. No matter who contributes.

Answer 2

The problem with the above perspective is it lacks balance.

If there were only reason in this world with no sense of emotional influence, then we would live in a rather twisted mess.

For example, if a child was drowning and I was not a strong swimmer, acting strictly on reason would cause me to sit and watch him/her drown rather than risk losing two lives.

Emotion would have me dive in nomatter what the result (even at the cost of my own life).

Idividuals vary on the level of reason versus emotion they apply to a situation, but a lack of one or the other would result in nothing short of chaos.

Answer 3

the only argument i have with the quote is that it's not realistic.  As human beings, we've evolved to have feelings, even animals (other than humans) express feelings.  Faith on the other hand, is optional.  reason = logical thinking; feelings = emotions.  I tend to abhor anything that tries to put me in a little box and stick a label on me.  I'm much more complex than that.  I possess both logic and feelings specifically because I am human and not a robot.

Answer 4

Feeling and emotions are subjective. Reason is objective. Subjectiveness is a perspective, an opinion. It can easily be invalid. Reason being objective is fact. It is valid.

Answer 5

As a man, I see it as a rant from an embittered person who would prefer people to behave like computers or robots devoid of human qualities.

Answer 6

If there is said to be a s*x difference in interpreting this quote it is based on the idea that men are rational and women are emotional. Emotional 'reasoning' can get you in a lot of trouble, because when you are emotional you are not really rational, so you might feel that it is right to either kill or sleep with someone without their being a good reason to e.g  if 'all men are rapists' then lets persecute all men. However rationality is just that i.e. in can't per se be unreasoning e.g. 'some men are rapists - lets persecute the ones who rape and leave the others alone'.

Answer 7

Wow. That's deep.

Answer 8

I think it means Don't Trust Whitey.

Albinos are ok....but not Whitey.

Answer 9

Whereas at times love and faith can lead to disappointment; especially when approached in the wrong way.  Reason will never let you down.

Answer 10

It means that what can be known is superior to what can be felt, since what can be felt is rarely true. Deviation from this rule poses a great risk to one's well-being, be it physically, intellectually, or emotionally. I think this quote is absolutist, and the speaker places too high expectations on people (even the most logical of people can't help feeling something once in a while). But it's still generally true.

EDIT: I don't really think they would save the little girl first, though. Most people know the rule of oxygen masks, after all.

Answer 11

Feelings tell me to be nicer to people. Reason tells me that if you don't like someone or think they have ugly in their family, tell everyone.

Answer 12

It means, don't let your glands do your thinking for you.

Answer 13

Let logic guide you, because religion and emotion are evil. They don't help you be reasonable about what you can or cannot accomplish. They make you stupid, but logic makes you smart. Not being logical will kill you.

Answer 14

Isn't that just praising objectivity (or empiricism)? Ironically, with quite subjective and emotional language, but there you go...

(There is not difference suggesting women are incapable of reasoning. There is one difference that men have a morality of justice and women have a morality of care, but that's not proven. Most reasoning actually comes from innate modules which is why men AND women make predicable errors in certain tasks, i.e. show confirmation bias)