--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When our passive feelings are almost…" description: "\"“When our passive feelings are almost always so sordid and so selfish, how comes it that our active principles should often be so generous and so noble..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/873/adam-smith-1040_selfish_when-our-passive-feelings-are-almost-alw_541401.jpg" --- # When our passive feelings are almost always so sordid and… ![“When our passive feelings are almost always so sordid and so selfish, how comes it that our active principles should often be so generous and so noble?” quote by Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/873/adam-smith-1040_selfish_when-our-passive-feelings-are-almost-alw_541401.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/873/adam-smith-1040_selfish_when-our-passive-feelings-are-almost-alw_541401.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/873/adam-smith-1040_selfish_when-our-passive-feelings-are-almost-alw_541401.jpg) > ““When our passive feelings are almost always so sordid and so selfish, how comes it that our active principles should often be so generous and so noble?”” [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote contrasts selfish passive feelings with generous active principles, highlighting a tension between inner motives and outward actions. **In simple terms:** Passive selfishness vs. active generosity. Key Takeaway Align actions with values. Themes ethics human nature motivation Mood thoughtful inquisitive Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - leadership - personal development - conflict resolution Key Concepts selfishness generosity principles Questions to Reflect On - What drives your generosity? - Can you reconcile inner feelings with actions? A Different Perspective Active generosity can be insincere if not reflected internally. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Active Principles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/active-principles-4527093/) [Passive Feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passive-feelings-4527091/) [Principles Generous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/principles-generous-4527092/) [Selfish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/selfish/) [Sordid Selfish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sordid-selfish-3344508/) ## Related quotes > [Drop this mean and sordid and selfish devotion to the saving of your shabby little souls, and hunt up something to do that's got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/drop-this-mean-and-sordid-and-selfish-devotion-to-the-saving-of-your/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Old Mr. Rarx was not a pleasant man to look at, nor yet to talk to, or to be with, for no one could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/old-mr-rarx-was-not-a-pleasant-man-to-look-at-nor-yet-to-talk-to-or/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [How selfish soever man may be supposed, there are evidently some principles in his nature, which interest him in the fortune of others, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/how-selfish-soever-man-may-be-supposed-there-are-evidently-some/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [A love to Christ which is so cowardly and selfish that it is unwilling to proclaim by a public confession its faith in Him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abbott-eliot-kittredge/a-love-to-christ-which-is-so-cowardly-and-selfish-that-it-is/) [Abbott Eliot Kittredge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abbott-eliot-kittredge/) > [Selfish people make me sick to my stomach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/selfish-people-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“They say we all die alone, but I say we die together as one, with every selfish act, piece by piece, smack by smack...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-erlandson/they-say-we-all-die-alone-but-i-say-we-die-together-as-one-with-every/) [Eric Erlandson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-erlandson/) > [It amazes me how selfish some people are and how rude people can be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-amazes-me-how-selfish-some-people-are-and-how-rude-people-can-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“THE UNFORGIVEN Tell me if you've ever had to deal with these kinds of people: The kind who take and don't give. 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Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [“I now know that deep within the human concept is something dark, selfish, and completely willing to do whatever is necessary to support the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-west/i-now-know-that-deep-within-the-human-concept-is-something-dark/) [Melissa West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-west/) > [I don't try to be something I'm not, I don't try to pretend that I'm something I'm not, I don't try to present myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-capuano/i-don-t-try-to-be-something-i-m-not-i-don-t-try-to-pretend-that-i-m/) [Michael Capuano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-capuano/) > [Eternal Trinity... mystery deep as the sea, You could give me no greater gift than the gift of Yourself. For You are a fire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-catherine-of-siena/eternal-trinity-mystery-deep-as-the-sea-you-could-give-me-no-greater/) [St. Catherine of Siena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-catherine-of-siena/) > [“ever day Maureen is Selfish To her friend and Family One she get mad at her friend and family and She need to Grad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-andeson/ever-day-maureen-is-selfish-to-her-friend-and-family-one-she-get-mad/) [Maureen Andeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-andeson/) ## More by Adam Smith > [Poor David Hume is dying fast, but with more real cheerfulness and good humor and with more real resignation to the necessary course of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/poor-david-hume-is-dying-fast-but-with-more-real-cheerfulness-and/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [“The effects of the division of labour, in the general business of society, will be more easily understood by considering in what manner it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/the-effects-of-the-division-of-labour-in-the-general-business-of/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [Defense is superior to opulence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/defense-is-superior-to-opulence/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [“There is a great deal of ruin in a nation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/there-is-a-great-deal-of-ruin-in-a-nation/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [“The profligacy of a man of fashion is looked upon with much less contempt and aversion, than that of a man of meaner condition.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/the-profligacy-of-a-man-of-fashion-is-looked-upon-with-much-less/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [Great ambition, the desire of real superiority, of leading and directing, seems to be altogether peculiar to man, and speech is the great instrument…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/great-ambition-the-desire-of-real-superiority-of-leading-and/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and diversion, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/people-of-the-same-trade-seldom-meet-together-even-for-merriment-and/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [Nobody but a beggar chooses to depend chiefly upon the benevolence of his fellow-citizens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/nobody-but-a-beggar-chooses-to-depend-chiefly-upon-the-benevolence-of/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [How selfish soever man may be supposed, there are evidently some principles in his nature, which interest him in the fortune of others, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/how-selfish-soever-man-may-be-supposed-there-are-evidently-some/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [The liberal reward of labour, therefore, as it is the affect of increasing wealth, so it is the cause of increasing population. To complain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/the-liberal-reward-of-labour-therefore-as-it-is-the-affect-of/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [A sketch of a man facing to the right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/a-sketch-of-a-man-facing-to-the-right/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [What can be added to the happiness of a man who is in health, out of debt, and has a clear conscience?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/what-can-be-added-to-the-happiness-of-a-man-who-is-in-health-out-of/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer, or the baker that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/it-is-not-from-the-benevolence-of-the-butcher-the-brewer-or-the-baker/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [When we have read a book or poem so often that we can no longer find any amusement in reading it by ourselves, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/when-we-have-read-a-book-or-poem-so-often-that-we-can-no-longer-find/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [We are but one of the multitude, in no respect better than any other in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/we-are-but-one-of-the-multitude-in-no-respect-better-than-any-other/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) [Explore all 267 Adam Smith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) ## More Selfish quotes > [“ever day Maureen is Selfish To her friend and Family One she get mad at her friend and family and She need to Grad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-andeson/ever-day-maureen-is-selfish-to-her-friend-and-family-one-she-get-mad/) [Maureen Andeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-andeson/) > [Eternal Trinity... mystery deep as the sea, You could give me no greater gift than the gift of Yourself. For You are a fire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-catherine-of-siena/eternal-trinity-mystery-deep-as-the-sea-you-could-give-me-no-greater/) [St. Catherine of Siena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-catherine-of-siena/) > [I don't try to be something I'm not, I don't try to pretend that I'm something I'm not, I don't try to present myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-capuano/i-don-t-try-to-be-something-i-m-not-i-don-t-try-to-pretend-that-i-m/) [Michael Capuano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-capuano/) > [“I now know that deep within the human concept is something dark, selfish, and completely willing to do whatever is necessary to support the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-west/i-now-know-that-deep-within-the-human-concept-is-something-dark/) [Melissa West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-west/) > [So often do you see collegians enter life with high resolve and lofty purpose and then watch them shrink and shrink to sordid, selfish,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/so-often-do-you-see-collegians-enter-life-with-high-resolve-and-lofty/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [I don't surround myself with a lower quality of human.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoe-bell/i-don-t-surround-myself-with-a-lower-quality-of-human/) [Zoe Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoe-bell/) > [Our thoughts are either focused on what's eternal, life-changing, and true, or lost in the details of our temporary, selfish, false beliefs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-groeschel/our-thoughts-are-either-focused-on-what-s-eternal-life-changing-and/) [Craig Groeschel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-groeschel/) > [“THE UNFORGIVEN Tell me if you've ever had to deal with these kinds of people: The kind who take and don't give. The kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzy-kassem/the-unforgiven-tell-me-if-you-ve-ever-had-to-deal-with-these-kinds-of/) [Suzy Kassem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzy-kassem/) > [It amazes me how selfish some people are and how rude people can be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-amazes-me-how-selfish-some-people-are-and-how-rude-people-can-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“They say we all die alone, but I say we die together as one, with every selfish act, piece by piece, smack by smack...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-erlandson/they-say-we-all-die-alone-but-i-say-we-die-together-as-one-with-every/) [Eric Erlandson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-erlandson/) > [Selfish people make me sick to my stomach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/selfish-people-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A love to Christ which is so cowardly and selfish that it is unwilling to proclaim by a public confession its faith in Him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abbott-eliot-kittredge/a-love-to-christ-which-is-so-cowardly-and-selfish-that-it-is/) [Abbott Eliot Kittredge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abbott-eliot-kittredge/) > [I'm not a selfish guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/romelu-lukaku/i-m-not-a-selfish-guy/) [Romelu Lukaku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/romelu-lukaku/) > [There is no man at once so unselfish and selfish as a man in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/there-is-no-man-at-once-so-unselfish-and-selfish-as-a-man-in-love/) [Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) > [I will no longer surround myself around selfish people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-will-no-longer-surround-myself-around-selfish-people/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 2,822 Selfish quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/selfish/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“When our passive feelings are almost always so sordid and so selfish, how comes it that our active principles should often be so generous and so noble?”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Adam Smith" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/when-our-passive-feelings-are-almost-always-so-sordid-and-so-selfish/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Selfish" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/when-our-passive-feelings-are-almost-always-so-sordid-and-so-selfish/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/873/adam-smith-1040_selfish_when-our-passive-feelings-are-almost-alw_541401.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/873/adam-smith-1040_selfish_when-our-passive-feelings-are-almost-alw_541401.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/873/adam-smith-1040_selfish_when-our-passive-feelings-are-almost-alw_541401.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When our passive feelings are almost always so sordid and so selfish, how comes it that our active…” — Adam Smith", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Adam Smith", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“When our passive feelings are almost...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/when-our-passive-feelings-are-almost-always-so-sordid-and-so-selfish/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/when-our-passive-feelings-are-almost-always-so-sordid-and-so-selfish/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```