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Lack of power and opportunity passes off too often for virtue.
Zora Neale Hurston
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Interpretation

What this quote means

The absence of power or opportunity is frequently mistaken for moral integrity.

In this quote, Zora Neale Hurston suggests that those who lack the means or chances to act may be viewed as virtuous or morally superior, even though their situation may simply stem from a lack of opportunity rather than a conscious choice of virtue. This highlights the complex relationship between power, opportunity, and moral judgment, suggesting that we often misinterpret circumstances as character traits.

Themes

PowerOpportunityVirtueCharacterMorality

In practice

Example use cases

In a discussion about social justice, this quote can emphasize the importance of providing equitable opportunities to all individuals.

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From barren brown stems to glistening leaf-buds; from the leaf-buds to snowy virginity of bloom…It was like a flute song forgotten in another existence and remembered again. What? How? Why? This singing she heard that had nothing to do with her ears. The rose of the world was breathing out smell. It followed her through all her waking moments and caressed her in her sleep.
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Someone is always at my elbow reminding me that I am the granddaughter of slaves. It fails to register depression with me.
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Two things everybody's got tuh do fuh theyselves. They got tuh go tuh God, and they got tuh find out about livin' fuh theyselves.
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There is no single face in nature, because every eye that looks upon it, sees it from its own angle. So every man's spice-box seasons his own food.
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