United Kingdom
G. E. M. Anscombe
said
Those who try to make room for sex as mere casual enjoyment pay the penalty: they become shallow. At any rate the talk that reflects and commends this attitude is always shallow.
— Contraception and Chastity (1975)
G. E. M. Anscombe
British analytic philosopher
- Fame53.9
- Momentum0.0
- United Kingdom rank#152
Source-basedStable
- Fame53.9
- Momentum0.0
- United Kingdom rank#152
- Academics rank#104
- Wikipedia7.3K
Lived 1919–2001, aged 82United Kingdom
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Summary
Updated 2026-06-09
She coined "consequentialism" in a single 1958 essay that redirected how philosophers argue about right and wrong, and her book on intention remains the starting point for anyone trying to explain what it means to act on purpose.
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About
Gertrude Elizabeth Margaret Anscombe was born 18 March 1919 and studied under Ludwig Wittgenstein at Cambridge, becoming the foremost authority on his work—she edited and translated Philosophical Investigations and much of what followed. A fellow at Somerville College, Oxford, and later a professor at Cambridge, she worked across philosophy of mind, action, language, logic, and ethics, anchoring her thought in analytical Thomism. In 1957 she published Intention, a monograph Donald Davidson called "the most important treatment of action since Aristotle" and now considered foundational to contem…
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Sourced, dated quotes from G. E. M. Anscombe
G. E. M. Anscombe
said
You can argue truly enough, for example, that general respect for the prohibition on murder makes life more commodious.
— Contraception and Chastity (1975)
G. E. M. Anscombe
said
The trouble about the Christian standard of chastity is that it isn't and never has been generally lived by; not that it would be profitless if it were.
— Contraception and Chastity (1975)
G. E. M. Anscombe
said
If a kind of love cannot be commanded, we can't build our moral theology of marriage on the presumption that it will be present.
— Contraception and Chastity (1975)
G. E. M. Anscombe
said
There is no such thing as a casual, non-significant sexual act; everyone knows this.
— Contraception and Chastity (1975)
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Fame
Stable53.9
Composite of search demand, mentions, audience & graph footprint.
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Historical22.7
Source confidence60.0
Completeness70.0
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