People who bite the hand that feeds them usually lick the boot that kicks them.
Interpretation
This quote suggests that ungrateful individuals often show loyalty to their oppressors instead of those who help them.
Eric Hoffer's quote highlights a paradox of human behavior where those who receive kindness and support may turn against their benefactors in favor of oppressive figures. It reflects on the nature of ingratitude and the surprising tendencies of individuals to align themselves with authority rather than loyalty to those who provide for them.
In practice
This quote could be used in a discussion about workplace dynamics where employees show ingratitude.
Language was invented to ask questions. Answers may be given by grunts and gestures, but questions must be spoken. Humanness came of age when man asked the first question. Social stagnation results not from a lack of answers but from the absence of the impulse to ask questions.
Faith in humanity, in posterity, in the destiny of one's religion, nation, race, party or family-what is it but the visualization of that eternal something to which we attach the self that is about to be annihilated?
You can discover what your enemy fears most by observing the means he uses to frighten you.
Our frustration is greater when we have much and want more than when we have nothing and want some. We are less dissatisfied when we lack many things than when we seem to lack but one thing.
Our credulity is greatest concerning the things we know least about.
Perhaps a modern society can remain stable only by eliminating adolescence, by giving its young, from the age of ten, the skills, responsibilities, and rewards of grownups, and opportunities for action in all spheres of life. Adolescence should be a time of useful action, while book learning and scholarship should be a preoccupation of adults.
Remember, loving them is the powerful foundation for influencing those you want to help. ... As a companion to that love, trust them. In some cases it may seem difficult to trust, but find some way to trust them. The children of Father in Heaven can do amazing things when they feel trusted. Every child of God in mortality chose the Saviorβs plan. Trust that given the opportunity, they will do so again.
I've never had a dislike for men. I've been badly treated by some. But I've been loved greatly by some. I married a lot of them.
When any society says that I cannot marry a certain person, that society has cut off a segment of my freedom.
Like Jesus, we can decide, daily or instantly, to give no heed to temptation (see D&C 20:22). We can respond to irritation with a smile instead of scowl, or by giving warm praise instead of icy indifference. By our being understanding instead of abrupt, others, in turn, may decide to hold on a little longer rather than to give way. Love, patience, and meekness can be just as contagious as rudeness and crudeness.
We know that all interracial groups in South Africa are relationships in which whites are superior, blacks inferior. So as a prelude, whites must be made to realize that they are only human, not superior. Same with blacks. They must be made to realize that they are also human, not inferior.
God will always bring the right people into your life, but you have to let the wrong people walk away.
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