Cesare Beccaria

By 'justice', I understand nothing more than that bond which is necessary to keep the interest of individuals united, without which men would return to their original state of barbarity. All punishments which exceed the necessity of preserving this bond are, in their nature, unjust.

Italian Judge

Ida B. Wells

Although lynchings have steadily increased in number and barbarity during the last twenty years, there has been no single effort put forth by the many moral and philanthropic forces of the country to put a stop to this wholesale slaughter.

American Activist

Ellen Key

Everything, everything in war is barbaric... But the worst barbarity of war is that it forces men collectively to commit acts against which individually they would revolt with their whole being.

Swedish Writer

Mahmoud Darwish

Against barbarity, poetry can resist only by confirming its attachment to human fragility like a blade of grass growing on a wall while armies march by.

Palestinian Poet

Pierre Schaeffer

The only hope is that our civilization will collapse at a certain point, as always happens in history. Then, out of barbarity, a renaissance.

French Composer

William Tecumseh Sherman

If the people raise a great howl against my barbarity and cruelty, I will answer that war is war, and not popularity seeking.

American Soldier

Michael Gove

Hanging may seem barbarous, but the greater barbarity lies in the slow abandonment of our common law traditions.

British Politician

Richard Hughes

Do your bit to save humanity from lapsing back into barbarity by reading all the novels you can.

British Writer

Mary Beard

One person's barbarity is another person's civilisation.

Theophile Gautier

French Poet

Barbarity often implies a deep negative emotional response to cruel actions or behaviors.

Negative Emotion

Using 'barbarity' suggests strong moral condemnation and is not used lightly.

Severe Judgment

'Barbarity' connects to historical events known for cruelty, like slavery or genocide.

Historical Context

Barbarity in this sense often refers to outdated social customs seen as uncultured.

Primitive Associations

Using 'barbarity' can imply a negative opinion about another's culture.

Cultural Implications

Even in modern society, behaviors can be criticized as 'barbarity' when viewed as primal.