The world is a kind of spiritual kindergarten where millions of bewildered infants are trying to spell "God" with the wrong blocks.
Edwin Arlington RobinsonRead
Pity is like a knife, sometimes, and it may pierce one who employs it more shrewdly than the victim it would save.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Pity can often harm both the one who feels it and the one it is directed towards.
This quote by Edwin Arlington Robinson suggests that pity, while intended to be a compassionate response, can act like a sharp knife. It implies that in expressing pity, the person giving it can unintentionally cause more harm or reveal their own vulnerabilities, making them more affected by the emotions involved than the person they feel pity for.
Themes
PityEmpathyCompassionHarmHuman Emotion
In practice
Example use cases
In a conversation about compassion, I referenced the quote to illustrate the complexities of pity.
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And thus we all are nighing The truth we fear to know: Death will end our crying For friends that come and go.
Edwin Arlington RobinsonRead
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