People do not always understand the motives of sublime conduct, and when they are astonished they are very apt to think they ought to be alarmed. The truth is none are fit judges of greatness but those who are capable of it.
Jane PorterRead
I never yet heard man or woman much abused that I was not inclined to think the better of them, and to transfer the suspicion or dislike to the one who found pleasure in pointing out the defects of another.
Interpretation
The quote suggests that criticism often reflects more on the critic than the subject being criticized.
Jane Porter’s quote emphasizes the idea that when someone speaks negatively about another person, it may reveal more about their own character than the faults of the individual being discussed. It suggests an inclination to sympathize with those who are criticized and to question the motives of those who point out others' shortcomings, highlighting a philosophical stance on human behavior and morality.
In practice
During a discussion on ethics, one might use this quote to illustrate the nature of human judgment.
People do not always understand the motives of sublime conduct, and when they are astonished they are very apt to think they ought to be alarmed. The truth is none are fit judges of greatness but those who are capable of it.
Happiness is a sunbeam which may pass through a thousand bosoms without losing a particle of its original ray; nay, when it strikes on a kindred heart, like the converged light on a mirror, it reflects itself with redoubled brightness. It is not perfected till it is shared.
He liked the fact that Venice had no cars. It made the city human. The streets were like veins, he thought, and the people were the blood, circulating everywhere.
How friendly all men would be one with another, if no regard were paid to honour and money! I believe it would be a remedy for everything.
Death threatens our speech with futility because death is not just a biological event - it is a reality we fear may rob our living of any significance.
The great gift of 'Incarceration Nations' is that, by introducing a wide range of approaches to crime, punishment, and questions of justice in diverse countries - Rwanda, South Africa, Brazil, Jamaica, Uganda, Singapore, Australia and Norway - it forces us to face the reality that American-style punishment has been chosen.
There is no doubt that life is given us, not to be enjoyed, but to be overcome; to be got over.
I only do this because I'm having fun. The day I stop having fun, I'll just walk away. I wasn't going to have fun doing a teen movie again. I don't want to do this for the rest of my life. I don't. I don't even want to spend the rest of my youth doing this in this industry. There's so much more I want to discover.
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