George Jean Nathan Quote - Liberty Quotes Blog

"The artist and the censor differ in this wise:
that the first is a decent mind in an indecent body and
that the second is an indecent mind in a decent body."

by:	George Jean Nathan (1882-1958)
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Categories:	Art, Censorship, Free Thought, Speech
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Reader comments about this quote:

-- Mike, Norwalk
The two measures are orthogonal and either can exist in either... -- Anonymous, Reston, VA US
Playing with words that mean nothing. Unlike some quotes that do this and can at first seem profound this one does not even hold up on first reading. -- EGL, LA
I think it is right on. -- E Archer, NYC
What does it mean to you? -- David L. Rosenthal
I agree with the second half of the quote. The censor is indecent whether the artist was decent or not. Censorship is wrong. Expression is wrong only if libelous -- Jack, Green, OH
Censorship is necessary in a world where indecent people refuse to respect others, assault and corrupt children, and take delight in evil. -- David L. Rosenthal
My experience with artists is that often both the mind and the body are indecent and addled with pot smoke, tattooed and pierced with various pieces of hardware. Fortunately, I've never had much experience with a censor. -- Ken, Allyn, WA
Limiting speech to a time or place is not censorship. Censorship is prohibiting speech. -- Jack, Green, OH
Sodomy laws have been replaced by hate crime laws. People are arrested for making public statements that correctly classify homosexual practice as perversion. Good is called evil and evil is called good. Gays are proud, of what? Of inserting a reproductive organ into the excretory canal, over and over? That is something to be proud of? And perverts push for laws that would allow men to have sex with boys. I support censorship. -- David L Rosenthal
Those of you who rate this quote with no stars have indecent minds. -- Joe, Rochester, MI
I am often amazed at the responses of professed Christians who claim to be defenders of Liberty one minute and then espouse censorship, uniformity, government subsidies and indoctrination the next. Truth be told, they are the products of the very indoctrination they preach and are completely unaware of it. Arguments against Individualism, Reason, and Conscience have no substance and are rooted in superstition and, most of all, fear of most everything that challenges their view that they are going to Heaven and the rest of us are going to Hell if they don't save us from ourselves. Muslim or Christian, the premise is to censor all that exposes their beliefs (that is all they are) to the light of Reason. The religionists never cease to impose their 'puritanical' judgements about what people are allowed to say, the music that may be played, the photographs that may be taken, the drawings that may be made, the sexual positions that may be performed between consenting adults, what people may wear in public, what foods or medicines people may ingest, what subjects they may be allowed to study, ad infinitum -- and anything less is a highway to Hell. Phooey! -- E Archer, NYC

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