--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Guilt's a terrible thing." description: "\"Guilt's a terrible thing.\" — Ben Jonson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c4/ben-jonson-1371_guilt_guilt-s-a-terrible-thing-2357780_2357780.png" --- # Guilt's a terrible thing. ![“Guilt's a terrible thing.” quote by Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c4/ben-jonson-1371_guilt_guilt-s-a-terrible-thing-2357780_2357780.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c4/ben-jonson-1371_guilt_guilt-s-a-terrible-thing-2357780_2357780.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c4/ben-jonson-1371_guilt_guilt-s-a-terrible-thing-2357780_2357780.png) > “Guilt's a terrible thing.” [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Guilt is a powerful, oppressive feeling that can dominate thoughts and actions. **In simple terms:** Guilt feels heavy. Key Takeaway Address guilt directly to lessen its grip. Themes guilt psychology morality burden Mood somber introspective Type dramatic philosophical When to use this quote - courtroom - personal confession - therapy - creative writing Key Concepts ethical reflection emotional health self‑awareness Questions to Reflect On - What triggers your guilt? - How can you transform guilt into constructive action? A Different Perspective Guilt can motivate positive change if managed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Guilt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guilt/) [Terrible things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrible-things/) ## Related quotes > [Better guilt than the terrible burden of freedom and responsibility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/better-guilt-than-the-terrible-burden-of-freedom-and-responsibility/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [It's a terrible thing that your life turns into a good story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/it-s-a-terrible-thing-that-your-life-turns-into-a-good-story/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [Without publicity a terrible thing happens: nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-t-barnum/without-publicity-a-terrible-thing-happens-nothing/) [P. T. Barnum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-t-barnum/) > [This is the most terrible thing that can happen in a friendly country if Thai people have to escape from the backdoor of an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thaksin-shinawatra/this-is-the-most-terrible-thing-that-can-happen-in-a-friendly-country/) [Thaksin Shinawatra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thaksin-shinawatra/) > [Hearing loss is a terrible thing because it cannot be repaired.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-townshend/hearing-loss-is-a-terrible-thing-because-it-cannot-be-repaired/) [Pete Townshend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-townshend/) > [A terrible thing happened to me last night again—nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-diller/a-terrible-thing-happened-to-me-last-night-again-nothing/) [Phyllis Diller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-diller/) > [To teach superstitions as truth is a most terrible thing,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hypatia/to-teach-superstitions-as-truth-is-a-most-terrible-thing/) [Hypatia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hypatia/) > [I wanted to be cute. That's the terrible thing. I should have had more sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-parker/i-wanted-to-be-cute-that-s-the-terrible-thing-i-should-have-had-more/) [Dorothy Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-parker/) > [The terrible thing about acting is the stops and starts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anjelica-huston/the-terrible-thing-about-acting-is-the-stops-and-starts/) [Anjelica Huston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anjelica-huston/) > [My arms are up to the elbows in blood. That is the most terrible thing that lies in my soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikita-khrushchev/my-arms-are-up-to-the-elbows-in-blood-that-is-the-most-terrible-thing/) [Nikita Khrushchev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikita-khrushchev/) > [I know the most terrible thing that can happen to a woman. That is the gang-up. Men put you to sleep with their drops…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethel-waters/i-know-the-most-terrible-thing-that-can-happen-to-a-woman-that-is-the/) [Ethel Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethel-waters/) > [An ugly woman with a gun is a terrible thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-macdonald/an-ugly-woman-with-a-gun-is-a-terrible-thing/) [Ross Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-macdonald/) > [The terrible thing, the almost impossible thing, is the hand over your whole self--all your wishes and precautions--to Christ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/the-terrible-thing-the-almost-impossible-thing-is-the-hand-over-your/) [C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/) > [For the truth is a terrible thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-penn-warren/for-the-truth-is-a-terrible-thing/) [Robert Penn Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-penn-warren/) > [A mime is a terrible thing to waste.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-marceau/a-mime-is-a-terrible-thing-to-waste/) [Marcel Marceau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-marceau/) ## More by Ben Jonson > [Soul of the Age! The applause! delight! the wonder of our stage! My Shakespeare, rise; I will not lodge thee by Chaucer, or Spenser,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/soul-of-the-age-the-applause-delight-the-wonder-of-our-stage-my/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [Ambition, like a torrent, never looks back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/ambition-like-a-torrent-never-looks-back/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [Heaven prepares good men with crosses; but no ill can happen to a good man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/heaven-prepares-good-men-with-crosses-but-no-ill-can-happen-to-a-good/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [The dignity of truth is lost with much protesting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/the-dignity-of-truth-is-lost-with-much-protesting/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [True melancholy breeds your perfect fine wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/true-melancholy-breeds-your-perfect-fine-wit/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [Leave a kiss but in the cup, and I'll not look for wine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/leave-a-kiss-but-in-the-cup-and-i-ll-not-look-for-wine/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [All discourses but my own afflict me; they seem harsh, impertinent, and irksome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/all-discourses-but-my-own-afflict-me-they-seem-harsh-impertinent-and/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [“drink to the cause, and pure vapours”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/drink-to-the-cause-and-pure-vapours/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [Spread yourself upon his bosom publicly, whose heart you would eat in private.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/spread-yourself-upon-his-bosom-publicly-whose-heart-you-would-eat-in/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [That old bald cheater, Time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/that-old-bald-cheater-time/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [Rich apparel has strange virtues; it makes him that hath it without means esteemed for an excellent wit; he that enjoys it with means…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/rich-apparel-has-strange-virtues-it-makes-him-that-hath-it-without/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [Each petty hand Can steer a ship becalm'd; but he that will Govern and carry her to her ends, must know His tides, his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/each-petty-hand-can-steer-a-ship-becalm-d-but-he-that-will-govern-and/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [The way to rise is to obey and please.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/the-way-to-rise-is-to-obey-and-please/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [The covetous man never has money. The prodigal will have none shortly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/the-covetous-man-never-has-money-the-prodigal-will-have-none-shortly/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [Fortune, that favors fools.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/fortune-that-favors-fools/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) [Explore all 249 Ben Jonson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) ## More Guilt quotes > [Never fight on the wrong side; you might win but the burden of guilt is more than a loss.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lilian-salan/never-fight-on-the-wrong-side-you-might-win-but-the-burden-of-guilt/) [Lilian Salan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lilian-salan/) > [“As parents who make every effort we can to raise our children in loving security, we do not need to feel more guilt than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/as-parents-who-make-every-effort-we-can-to-raise-our-children-in/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [When the Lord Jesus Christ became my surety . . . He went to Calvary's cross, and all my guilt was charged against Him.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-allen-ironside/when-the-lord-jesus-christ-became-my-surety-he-went-to-calvary-s/) [Henry Allen Ironside](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-allen-ironside/) > [“Even in the miserable guilt we feel over our beastlike insensitivity, the glory of God shines. If God were not gloriously desirable, why would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-piper/even-in-the-miserable-guilt-we-feel-over-our-beastlike-insensitivity/) [John Piper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-piper/) > [“The sole reason I stand to open it up now is that lots of people who are in pain just like I was, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-dsouza/the-sole-reason-i-stand-to-open-it-up-now-is-that-lots-of-people-who/) [Patricia Dsouza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-dsouza/) > [But victimhood was seductive, a release from responsibility and caring. Fear would be transmuted into weary resignation; failure would no longer generate guilt but,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/but-victimhood-was-seductive-a-release-from-responsibility-and-caring/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [Regrets are just a way for the foolish and the guilty to pass the time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gensoumaden-saiyuki/regrets-are-just-a-way-for-the-foolish-and-the-guilty-to-pass-the-time/) Gensoumaden Saiyuki > [(I)f we are going to be kind, let it be out of simple generosity, not because we fear guilt or retribution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-f-we-are-going-to-be-kind-let-it-be-out-of-simple-generosity-not/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Money should not be in the hands of individuals; otherwise it will create this problem of being burdened with guilt. And money can make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/money-should-not-be-in-the-hands-of-individuals-otherwise-it-will/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [Food ... love ... mother ... career ... Live every day to the fullest. Partake of the four basic guilt groups.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathy-guisewite/food-love-mother-career-live-every-day-to-the-fullest-partake-of-the/) [Cathy Guisewite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathy-guisewite/) > [Anger was better than tears, better than grief, better than guilt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/anger-was-better-than-tears-better-than-grief-better-than-guilt/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Phil and Hannah had decided that Christian guilt was better than bad math”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhoda-janzen/phil-and-hannah-had-decided-that-christian-guilt-was-better-than-bad/) [rhoda janzen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhoda-janzen/) > [No amount of guilt can solve the past & No amount of anxiety can change the future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ananymous/no-amount-of-guilt-can-solve-the-past-no-amount-of-anxiety-can-change/) [Ananymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ananymous/) > [The essence of having fun is enjoying without guilt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-essence-of-having-fun-is-enjoying-without-guilt/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If all the world hated you and believed you wicked, while your own conscience approved of you and absolved you from guilt, you would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/if-all-the-world-hated-you-and-believed-you-wicked-while-your-own/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) [Browse all 2,943 Guilt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guilt/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Guilt's a terrible thing.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ben Jonson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/guilt-s-a-terrible-thing/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Guilt" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/guilt-s-a-terrible-thing/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c4/ben-jonson-1371_guilt_guilt-s-a-terrible-thing-2357780_2357780.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c4/ben-jonson-1371_guilt_guilt-s-a-terrible-thing-2357780_2357780.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c4/ben-jonson-1371_guilt_guilt-s-a-terrible-thing-2357780_2357780.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Guilt's a terrible thing.” — Ben Jonson", "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": "Ben Jonson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Guilt's a terrible thing.", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/guilt-s-a-terrible-thing/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/guilt-s-a-terrible-thing/#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 } } ] } ```