Pain and suffering are always inevitable for a large intelligence and a deep heart. The really great men must, I think, have great sadness on earth.
Fyodor DostoevskyRead
He was one of the numerous and varied legion of dullards, of half-animated abortions, conceited, half-educated coxcombs, who attach themselves to the idea most in fashion only to vulgarize it and who caricature every cause they serve, however sincerely.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote critiques those who superficially engage with ideas without true understanding, leading to distortion and caricature.
In this quote, Dostoevsky emphasizes the dangers of shallow engagement with important ideas and causes. He describes a group of individuals who, despite their enthusiasm, lack the depth of understanding necessary to genuinely contribute. Their approach turns meaningful concepts into caricatures, ultimately undermining the very causes they claim to support. This commentary serves as a warning against the prevalence of mediocrity in intellectual discourse.
Themes
UnderstandingIdeasSuperficialityCritiqueIntellectualismMediocrity
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about the importance of critical thinking, one might reference this quote to highlight the need for deeper engagement with ideas.
More from Fyodor Dostoevsky
All quotes →What if, when this fog scatters and flies upward, the whole rotten, slimey city goes with it, rises with the fog and vanishes like smoke.
Fyodor DostoevskyRead
Love the animals: God has given them the rudiments of thought and joy untroubled.
Fyodor DostoevskyRead
Love the animals, love the plants, love everything. If you love everything, you will perceive the divine mystery in things. Once you perceive it, you will begin to comprehend it better every day. And you will come at last to love the whole world with an all-embracing love.
Fyodor DostoevskyRead
But do you understand, I cry to him, do you understand that if you have the guillotine in the forefront, and with such glee, it's for the sole reason that cutting heads off is the easiest thing, and having an idea is difficult!
Fyodor DostoevskyRead
...to return to their 'native soil,' as they say, to the bosom, so to speak, of their mother earth, like frightened children, yearning to fall asleep on the withered bosom of their decrepit mother, and to sleep there for ever, only to escape the horrors that terrify them.
Fyodor DostoevskyRead
Similar quotes
If truth is the main casualty in war, ambiguity is another.
Paul FussellRead
He realized now that a lot of the problem had been his own mind, which was usually moving at a speed ten or twenty times that of his classmates. They had thought him strange, weird, or even suicidal, depending on the escapade in question, but maybe it had been a simple case of mental overdrive-if anything about being in constant mental overdrive was simple. Anyway, it was the sort of thing you got under control after a while-you got it under control or you found outlets for it.
Stephen KingRead
Jesus Christ belonged to the true race of prophets. He saw with open eye the mystery of the soul. Drawn by its severe harmony, ravished with its beauty, he lived in it and had his being there. Alone in all history, he estimated the greatness of man.
Ralph Waldo EmersonRead
If you want to test cosmetics, why do it on some poor animal who hasn't done anything? They should use prisoners who have been convicted of murder or rape instead. So, rather than seeing if perfume irritates a bunny rabbit's eyes, they should throw it in Charles Manson's eyes and ask him if it hurts.
Ellen DegeneresRead
Increasingly, corporate nationality is whatever a corporation decides it is.
Robert ReichRead
Of all the animals, the boy is the most unmanageable.
PlatoRead