--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: People who attack biography choose as…" description: "\"People who attack biography choose as their models vulgar and offensive biography. You could equally attack novels or poems by choosing bad poems or no..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b80/claire-tomalin-8837_attack_people-who-attack-biography-choose-as-th_3056128.jpg" --- # People who attack biography choose as their models vulgar… ![“People who attack biography choose as their models vulgar and offensive biography. You could equally attack novels or poems by choosing bad poems or novels.” quote by Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b80/claire-tomalin-8837_attack_people-who-attack-biography-choose-as-th_3056128.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b80/claire-tomalin-8837_attack_people-who-attack-biography-choose-as-th_3056128.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b80/claire-tomalin-8837_attack_people-who-attack-biography-choose-as-th_3056128.jpg) > “People who attack biography choose as their models vulgar and offensive biography. You could equally attack novels or poems by choosing bad poems or novels.” [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Criticizing biography is like attacking vulgar works; same applies to novels or poems. **In simple terms:** Attacking biography mirrors attacking bad literature. Key Takeaway Critique fairly, not indiscriminately. Themes criticism literature fairness Mood analytical thoughtful Type critical philosophical When to use this quote - book reviews - academic debates Key Concepts aesthetics ethics literary theory Questions to Reflect On - What standards guide literary criticism? - How to differentiate taste from quality? A Different Perspective Critique can be constructive. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Biography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/biography/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Novels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novels/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Poems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poems/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Vulgar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vulgar/) ## Related quotes > [Why do we read biography? Why do we choose to write it? Because we are human beings, programmed to be curious about other human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/why-do-we-read-biography-why-do-we-choose-to-write-it-because-we-are/) [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) > [Writing Charles Dickens' biography is like writing five biographies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/writing-charles-dickens-biography-is-like-writing-five-biographies/) [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) > [“I don't know enough to have any regrets”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-grabin/i-don-t-know-enough-to-have-any-regrets/) Vince Grabin > [History is neither more nor less than biography on a large scale.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alphonse-de-lamartine/history-is-neither-more-nor-less-than-biography-on-a-large-scale/) [Alphonse de Lamartine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alphonse-de-lamartine/) > [“The trouble with life (the novelist will feel) is its amorphousness, its ridiculous fluidity. Look at it: thinly plotted, largely themeless, sentimental and ineluctably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/the-trouble-with-life-the-novelist-will-feel-is-its-amorphousness-its/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [I think that I'm busy in the present, and I don't want to go back. Well, there's been an unauthorized biography, and you can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-finney/i-think-that-i-m-busy-in-the-present-and-i-don-t-want-to-go-back-well/) [Albert Finney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-finney/) > [“Pong had mutated into large stand-up Sega consoles by '82 and here was some extra revenue the guys were well up for. So the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-wilson/pong-had-mutated-into-large-stand-up-sega-consoles-by-82-and-here-was/) [Tony Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-wilson/) > [It's time for male leaders to not only ask for binders of qualified women, but to re-write the definition of 'qualified.' The best man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-m-kunin/it-s-time-for-male-leaders-to-not-only-ask-for-binders-of-qualified/) [Madeleine M. Kunin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-m-kunin/) > [“Maybe he'd never come acrross anybody as well versed at objectifying body parts as I was. In my defense, this was an occupational hazard;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-shaw/maybe-he-d-never-come-acrross-anybody-as-well-versed-at-objectifying/) [Aiden Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-shaw/) > [“What drove us crazy wasn't necessarily the sexual freedom his critic claimed he was unleashing, but freedom, period. Freedom to be yourself, to express…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-spector-larry-geller-patricia-romanowski/what-drove-us-crazy-wasn-t-necessarily-the-sexual-freedom-his-critic/) Joel Spector Larry Geller Patricia Romanowski > [I went on a Buddha jag. I read 'Confession of a Buddhist Atheist' by Stephen Batchelor and Karen Armstrong's biography of Buddha, which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-o-hare/i-went-on-a-buddha-jag-i-read-confession-of-a-buddhist-atheist-by/) [Denis O'Hare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-o-hare/) > [I've read every Madonna biography. I've also looked up every pop star to see how they first made it. The biggest thing I learnt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marina-and-the-diamonds/i-ve-read-every-madonna-biography-i-ve-also-looked-up-every-pop-star/) [Marina and the Diamonds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marina-and-the-diamonds/) > [All Philosophy is Biography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-j-carroll/all-philosophy-is-biography/) [Peter J. Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-j-carroll/) > [“If you can choose your way into a cage, you can choose your way out.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-kempton/if-you-can-choose-your-way-into-a-cage-you-can-choose-your-way-out/) [Beth Kempton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-kempton/) > [I have my own biography of Gram Parsons - I don't want to be part of somebody else's.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmylou-harris/i-have-my-own-biography-of-gram-parsons-i-don-t-want-to-be-part-of/) [Emmylou Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmylou-harris/) ## More by Claire Tomalin > [“Poor Nelly, she was not to know that fashions in sin change as much as other fashions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/poor-nelly-she-was-not-to-know-that-fashions-in-sin-change-as-much-as/) [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) > [I always feel sad when I come to the end of a book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/i-always-feel-sad-when-i-come-to-the-end-of-a-book/) [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) > [I would like to have a more social life than I have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/i-would-like-to-have-a-more-social-life-than-i-have/) [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) > [I continually get more information about a subject after the book has been published.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/i-continually-get-more-information-about-a-subject-after-the-book-has/) [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) > [I was working at the 'Evening Standard' when I heard that there was a job going as deputy literary editor on the 'New Statesman.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/i-was-working-at-the-evening-standard-when-i-heard-that-there-was-a/) [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) > [I've behaved badly in my life. I hope I haven't behaved as badly as Dickens! In a way, if you're a woman, you're not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/i-ve-behaved-badly-in-my-life-i-hope-i-haven-t-behaved-as-badly-as/) [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) > [Simon Russell Beale is an incomparable speaker of Shakespeare and a superb all-round actor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/simon-russell-beale-is-an-incomparable-speaker-of-shakespeare-and-a/) [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) > [I sometimes think that, since I started writing biographies, I've had more of a life in books than I have had in my real…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/i-sometimes-think-that-since-i-started-writing-biographies-i-ve-had/) [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) > [Poetry was one of the things that interested me most as I was growing up. I used to write it in my head all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/poetry-was-one-of-the-things-that-interested-me-most-as-i-was-growing/) [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) > [Biographers search for traces, for evidence of activity, for signs of movement, for letters, for diaries, for photographs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/biographers-search-for-traces-for-evidence-of-activity-for-signs-of/) [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) > [You become more tolerant when you become older. You're not interested in rapping people over the knuckles; you're interested in understanding them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/you-become-more-tolerant-when-you-become-older-you-re-not-interested/) [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) > [Dickens is a lover of human beings; a relisher of human beings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/dickens-is-a-lover-of-human-beings-a-relisher-of-human-beings/) [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) > [Dickens never joined a political party nor put forward a political programme. He was a writer who rightly saw his power as coming through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/dickens-never-joined-a-political-party-nor-put-forward-a-political/) [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) > [Throughout his life, Dickens cared passionately about orphans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/throughout-his-life-dickens-cared-passionately-about-orphans/) [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) > [It's a difficult thing to lose a child, a grown-up child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/it-s-a-difficult-thing-to-lose-a-child-a-grown-up-child/) [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) [Explore all 77 Claire Tomalin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) ## More Attack quotes > [British Forces should be in a position to give back in a ten fold measure any attack that the Germans may attempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-banting/british-forces-should-be-in-a-position-to-give-back-in-a-ten-fold/) [Frederick Banting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-banting/) > [“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/) > [When I hit bottom, I can attack the problem and get to where I want to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-rodman/when-i-hit-bottom-i-can-attack-the-problem-and-get-to-where-i-want-to/) [Dennis Rodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-rodman/) > [It was both necessary and desirable for us to be so strong at sea that no Sea Power could attack us without risk, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernhard-von-bulow/it-was-both-necessary-and-desirable-for-us-to-be-so-strong-at-sea/) [Bernhard von Bulow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernhard-von-bulow/) > [The best way to counter-attack a hater is to make it blatantly obvious that their attack has had no impact on you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-ferriss/the-best-way-to-counter-attack-a-hater-is-to-make-it-blatantly/) [Tim Ferriss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-ferriss/) > [President Obama has never summarized the Obama Doctrine with such clarity, but here is what it would look like: 'I will undertake any military…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-abrams/president-obama-has-never-summarized-the-obama-doctrine-with-such/) [Elliott Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-abrams/) > [Everything has got a place in my house. If something is moved I get a panic attack.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rylan-clark-neal/everything-has-got-a-place-in-my-house-if-something-is-moved-i-get-a/) [Rylan Clark-Neal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rylan-clark-neal/) > [I mean, it's not just the rappers, you know what i'm saying? People want to attack anybody that's a large figure, you know what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-notorious-b-i-g/i-mean-it-s-not-just-the-rappers-you-know-what-i-m-saying-people-want/) [The Notorious B.I.G](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-notorious-b-i-g/) > [Sometimes when you take a tough action against one side in the conflict, they see you as part of the conflict and they attack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kofi-annan/sometimes-when-you-take-a-tough-action-against-one-side-in-the/) [Kofi Annan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kofi-annan/) > [“Hence, when able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must seem inactive; when we are near, we must make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-tzu/hence-when-able-to-attack-we-must-seem-unable-when-using-our-forces/) [Sun Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-tzu/) > [Free speech has a very small constituency on the modern campus, particularly if the speaker under attack is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-leo/free-speech-has-a-very-small-constituency-on-the-modern-campus/) [John Leo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-leo/) > [Daniil is a player who will not give you many chances to attack. If I have enough power and choose the right moment, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrey-rublev/daniil-is-a-player-who-will-not-give-you-many-chances-to-attack-if-i/) [Andrey Rublev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrey-rublev/) > [Distributed ledgers are inherently harder to attack because instead of a single database, there are multiple shared copies of the same database, so a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-walport/distributed-ledgers-are-inherently-harder-to-attack-because-instead/) [Mark Walport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-walport/) > [Attack life. It's going to kill you anyways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/attack-life-it-s-going-to-kill-you-anyways/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [For those of us in the political business, generally, it's been pretty much an unwritten but understood rule that family and children are out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-nutter/for-those-of-us-in-the-political-business-generally-it-s-been-pretty/) [Michael Nutter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-nutter/) Browse all 1,074 Attack quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "People who attack biography choose as their models vulgar and offensive biography. 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