When Man evolved Pity, he did a queer thing - deprived himself of the power of living life as it is without wishing it to become something different.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Pity changes human nature by making us desire life to be different from how it actually is.
- In plain terms
- Pity makes us wish life were other than it is.
- What can you take from it?
- Compassion can make accepting reality harder.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Does feeling pity help or hinder acceptance?
- How does desire shape your view of life?
Another view
Pity can also motivate positive change rather than just desire.
More from John Galsworthy
Justice is a machine that, when someone has once given it the starting push, rolls on of itself.
Permalink to quote #4 Life was to be lived - not torpidly dozed through in this queer cultured place, where age was in the blood! Life was for love - to be enjoyed!
Permalink to quote #6 'To take life,' went on the old man in a voice which, though charged with strong emotion, seemed to be speaking to itself, 'was the chief mark of the insensate…
Permalink to quote #3
Related quotes
Things we are accustomed to regard as myth or fairy story are very much present in people's lives. Nice people behave like wicked stepmothers. Every day.-'Abou…
Diana Wynne JonesDiana Wynne Jones quote #1 You're a victim of collision on the open sea / And Buddy no one said life was free.
DevoDevo quote #3 In the fight between you and the world, back the world.
Paul DiracPaul Dirac quote #10