--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I would not tell this court that I do not…" description: "\"“I would not tell this court that I do not hope that some time, when life and age have changed their bodies, as they do, and have changed their emotion..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f8/clarence-darrow-1714_books_i-would-not-tell-this-court-that-i-do-no_2527997.jpg" --- # I would not tell this court that I do not hope that some… ![“I would not tell this court that I do not hope that some time, when life and age have changed their bodies, as they do, and have changed their emotions, as they do -- that they may once more return to life. I would be the last person on earth to close the door of hope to any human being that…” quote by Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f8/clarence-darrow-1714_books_i-would-not-tell-this-court-that-i-do-no_2527997.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f8/clarence-darrow-1714_books_i-would-not-tell-this-court-that-i-do-no_2527997.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f8/clarence-darrow-1714_books_i-would-not-tell-this-court-that-i-do-no_2527997.jpg) > ““I would not tell this court that I do not hope that some time, when life and age have changed their bodies, as they do, and have changed their emotions, as they do -- that they may once more return to life. I would be the last person on earth to close the door of hope to any human being that lives, and least of all to my clients. But what have they to look forward to? Nothing. And I think here of the stanza of Housman : Now hollow fires burn out to black, And lights are fluttering low: Square your shoulders, lift your pack And leave your friends and go. O never fear, lads, naught’s to dread, Look not left nor right: In all the endless road you tread There’s nothing but the night. ...Here it Leopold’s father -- and this boy was the pride of his life. He watched him, he cared for him, he worked for him; the boy was brilliant and accomplished, he educated him, and he thought that fame and position awaited him, as it should have awaited. It is a hard thing for a father to see his life’s hopes crumble into dust . ...I know the future is with me, and what I stand for here; not merely for the lives of these two unfortunate lads, but for all boys and all girls; for all of the young, and as far as possible, for all of the old. I am pleading for life, understanding, charity, kindness, and the infinite mercy that considers all. I am pleading that we overcome cruelty with kindness and hatred with love . I know the future is on my side. Your Honor stands between the past and the future. You may hang these boys; you may hang them by the neck until they are dead. But in doing it you will turn your face toward the past... I am pleading for the future; I am pleading for a time when hatred and cruelty will not control the hearts of men. When we can learn by reason and judgment and understanding that all life is worth saving, and that mercy is the highest attribute of man . ...I am sure I do not need to tell this court, or to tell my friends that I would fight just as hard for the poor as for the rich. If I should succeed, my greatest reward and my greatest hope will be that... I have done something to help human understanding, to temper justice with mercy, to overcome hate with love. I was reading last night of the aspiration of the old Persian poet, Omar Khayyám . It appealed to me as the highest that I can vision. I wish it was in my heart, and I wish it was in the hearts of all: So I be written in the Book of Love, I do not care about that Book above. Erase my name or write it as you will, So I be written in the Book of Love. ”” [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A plea for hope, mercy, and compassion despite inevitable suffering and injustice, urging humanity to choose kindness over cruelty. **In simple terms:** Advocates hope and kindness even in bleak circumstances. Key Takeaway Embrace compassion, resist cruelty. Themes justice hope mercy humanity compassion Mood determined empathetic serious Type oratory persuasive ethical When to use this quote - courtroom defense - human rights advocacy - public speaking - teaching empathy - policy reform Key Concepts ethical philosophy legal ethics moral reasoning Questions to Reflect On - How can societies institutionalize mercy? - What role does hope play in legal defense? A Different Perspective Hope may be challenged by systemic oppression and personal bias. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book Of Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book-of-love/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Capital punishment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capital-punishment/) [Court Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/court-hope-1315801/) [Hate With Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hate-with-love/) [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) [Humanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humanity/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Last night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/last-night/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life Hopes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-hopes-246008/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Man U](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-u/) [Old Pleading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-pleading-1315802/) [Omar Khayyam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/omar-khayyam/) [Past And The Future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past-and-the-future/) [Pleading Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pleading-life-1315799/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Stanza Housman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stanza-housman-1315800/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [O human beauty, what a dream art thou, that we should cast our life and hopes away on thee!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-procter/o-human-beauty-what-a-dream-art-thou-that-we-should-cast-our-life-and/) [Bryan Procter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-procter/) > [She'd tell him what she wanted in her life, her hopes & dreams for the future & he would listen intently and then promise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/she-d-tell-him-what-she-wanted-in-her-life-her-hopes-dreams-for-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everybody hurts from giving up their hearts to another soul, you can never replace it but you can keep walking through life in hopes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeannette/everybody-hurts-from-giving-up-their-hearts-to-another-soul-you-can/) [Jeannette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeannette/) > [“Who trusts the Bridge Builder when you wake to snow on your blankets and winter blasting through cracked walls and dinner for four is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/who-trusts-the-bridge-builder-when-you-wake-to-snow-on-your-blankets/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [Youth is to all the glad season of life; but often only by what it hopes, not by what it attains, or what it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/youth-is-to-all-the-glad-season-of-life-but-often-only-by-what-it/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [“Everybody tries to find the purpose for their life in hopes thst one more day is justified. But once you truly see, the very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mercyme/everybody-tries-to-find-the-purpose-for-their-life-in-hopes-thst-one/) [MercyMe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mercyme/) > [You bring life to my world you give me strength to go on And face life even when it seems all hopes gone Labeled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fat-joe/you-bring-life-to-my-world-you-give-me-strength-to-go-on-and-face/) [Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) > [“Now she saw that marriage was like being in a three-legged race with the same person for the rest of your life. Your hopes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-courtney-sullivan/now-she-saw-that-marriage-was-like-being-in-a-three-legged-race-with/) [J. Courtney Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-courtney-sullivan/) > [She would tell him what she wanted in her life--her hopes and dreams for the future--and he would listen intently and then promise to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/she-would-tell-him-what-she-wanted-in-her-life-her-hopes-and-dreams/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [I was a child who had a life, who had hopes, and I wished that a bomb would not fall on my head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-was-a-child-who-had-a-life-who-had-hopes-and-i-wished-that-a-bomb/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [“Have you ever heard of the theory that it is better for one man to die than an entire nation to suffer? Do you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-b-larson/have-you-ever-heard-of-the-theory-that-it-is-better-for-one-man-to/) [Sara B. Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-b-larson/) > [“Medieval Persia also produced a long and beautiful poem satirizing the claims and practices of religion. Though Omar Khayyám (1048-1131) is best remembered for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/medieval-persia-also-produced-a-long-and-beautiful-poem-satirizing/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [I was reading Omar Khayyam, Kahlil Gibran, Rumi, L. Ron Hubbard, all sorts of philosophy. Bebop cats are like that. Curious. I wanted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quincy-jones/i-was-reading-omar-khayyam-kahlil-gibran-rumi-l-ron-hubbard-all-sorts/) [Quincy Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quincy-jones/) > [“Alcohol makes other people less tedious, and food less bland, and can help provide what the Greeks called entheos , or the slight buzz…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/alcohol-makes-other-people-less-tedious-and-food-less-bland-and-can/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Inscribed on it was a verse from the Quatrains of Omar Khayyam, the eleventh-century Persian mystic. Reading the words aloud I prepared for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/inscribed-on-it-was-a-verse-from-the-quatrains-of-omar-khayyam-the/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) ## More by Clarence Darrow > [We know life is futile. A man who considers that his life is of very wonderful importance is awfully close to a padded cell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/we-know-life-is-futile-a-man-who-considers-that-his-life-is-of-very/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [Great wealth often curses all who touch it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/great-wealth-often-curses-all-who-touch-it/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [Punishment as punishment is not admissible unless the offender has had the free will to select his course.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/punishment-as-punishment-is-not-admissible-unless-the-offender-has/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [“One of the bravest, grandest champions of human liberty the world has ever seen. {Darrow on the great Robert Ingersoll }”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/one-of-the-bravest-grandest-champions-of-human-liberty-the-world-has/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [I cannot tell and I shall never know how many words of mine might have given birth to cruelty in place of love and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/i-cannot-tell-and-i-shall-never-know-how-many-words-of-mine-might/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [“As long as the world shall last there will be wrongs, and if no man objected and if no man rebelled, those wrongs would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/as-long-as-the-world-shall-last-there-will-be-wrongs-and-if-no-man/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [I have never killed a man, but I have read many obituaries with great pleasure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/i-have-never-killed-a-man-but-i-have-read-many-obituaries-with-great/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [Lost causes are the only ones worth fighting for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/lost-causes-are-the-only-ones-worth-fighting-for/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [One believes in the truthfulness of a man because of his long experience with the man, and because the man has always told a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/one-believes-in-the-truthfulness-of-a-man-because-of-his-long/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [Physical deformity, calls forth our charity. But the infinite misfortune of moral deformity calls forth nothing but hatred and vengeance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/physical-deformity-calls-forth-our-charity-but-the-infinite/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [Men have always been obliged to fight to preserve liberty. Constitutions and laws do not safeguard liberty. It can be preserved only by a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/men-have-always-been-obliged-to-fight-to-preserve-liberty/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [“ Robert G. Ingersoll was a great man. a wonderful intellect, a great soul of matchless courage, one of the great men of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/robert-g-ingersoll-was-a-great-man-a-wonderful-intellect-a-great-soul/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [Everybody is a potential murderer. I've never killed anyone, but I frequently get satisfaction reading the obituary notices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/everybody-is-a-potential-murderer-i-ve-never-killed-anyone-but-i/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [The first half of our lives are ruined by our parents and the second half by our children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/the-first-half-of-our-lives-are-ruined-by-our-parents-and-the-second/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [If there is a soul, what is it, and where did it come from, and where does it go? Can anyone who is guided…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/if-there-is-a-soul-what-is-it-and-where-did-it-come-from-and-where/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) [Explore all 213 Clarence Darrow quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) [Christopher K. Krebs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-k-krebs/) > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) [Markus Herz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-herz/) > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I would not tell this court that I do not hope that some time, when life and age have changed their bodies, as they do, and have changed their emotions, as they do -- that they may once more return to life. I would be the last person on earth to close the door of hope to any human being that lives, and least of all to my clients. But what have they to look forward to? Nothing. And I think here of the stanza of Housman : Now hollow fires burn out to black, And lights are fluttering low: Square your shoulders, lift your pack And leave your friends and go. O never fear, lads, naught’s to dread, Look not left nor right: In all the endless road you tread There’s nothing but the night. ...Here it Leopold’s father -- and this boy was the pride of his life. He watched him, he cared for him, he worked for him; the boy was brilliant and accomplished, he educated him, and he thought that fame and position awaited him, as it should have awaited. It is a hard thing for a father to see his life’s hopes crumble into dust . ...I know the future is with me, and what I stand for here; not merely for the lives of these two unfortunate lads, but for all boys and all girls; for all of the young, and as far as possible, for all of the old. I am pleading for life, understanding, charity, kindness, and the infinite mercy that considers all. I am pleading that we overcome cruelty with kindness and hatred with love . I know the future is on my side. Your Honor stands between the past and the future. You may hang these boys; you may hang them by the neck until they are dead. But in doing it you will turn your face toward the past... I am pleading for the future; I am pleading for a time when hatred and cruelty will not control the hearts of men. When we can learn by reason and judgment and understanding that all life is worth saving, and that mercy is the highest attribute of man . ...I am sure I do not need to tell this court, or to tell my friends that I would fight just as hard for the poor as for the rich. If I should succeed, my greatest reward and my greatest hope will be that... I have done something to help human understanding, to temper justice with mercy, to overcome hate with love. I was reading last night of the aspiration of the old Persian poet, Omar Khayyám . It appealed to me as the highest that I can vision. I wish it was in my heart, and I wish it was in the hearts of all: So I be written in the Book of Love, I do not care about that Book above. Erase my name or write it as you will, So I be written in the Book of Love. ”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Clarence Darrow" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/i-would-not-tell-this-court-that-i-do-not-hope-that-some-time-when/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/i-would-not-tell-this-court-that-i-do-not-hope-that-some-time-when/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f8/clarence-darrow-1714_books_i-would-not-tell-this-court-that-i-do-no_2527997.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f8/clarence-darrow-1714_books_i-would-not-tell-this-court-that-i-do-no_2527997.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f8/clarence-darrow-1714_books_i-would-not-tell-this-court-that-i-do-no_2527997.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I would not tell this court that I do not hope that some time, when life and age have changed their bodies…” — Clarence Darrow", "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": "Clarence Darrow", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I would not tell this court...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/i-would-not-tell-this-court-that-i-do-not-hope-that-some-time-when/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/i-would-not-tell-this-court-that-i-do-not-hope-that-some-time-when/#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 } } ] } ```