Like the collector, the photographer is animated by a passion that, even when it appears to be for the present, is linked to a sense of the past.
Susan SontagRead
No 'we' should be taken for granted when the subject is looking at other people's pain.
Interpretation
What this quote means
It emphasizes the importance of empathy and awareness regarding others' suffering.
Susan Sontag's quote urges us not to overlook the collective experience of pain that others endure. It highlights the necessity of acknowledging and addressing the suffering around us, rather than becoming indifferent or detached from it, thereby reinforcing our shared humanity.
Themes
EmpathySufferingPainAwarenessHumanity
In practice
Example use cases
During a discussion on social justice, this quote could be used to highlight the importance of empathy.
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Gide and I have attained such perfect intellectual communion that I experience the appropriate labor pains for every thought he gives birth to!
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Volume depends precisely on the writer's having been able to sit in a room every day, year after year, alone.
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It hurts to love. It's like giving yourself to be flayed and knowing that at any moment the other person may just walk off with your skin.
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