--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Society, during the last hundred years…" description: "\"Society, during the last hundred years, has been alternately perplexed and encouraged, respecting the two great questions -how shall the criminal and p..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/98a/dorothea-dix-29243_citizenship_society-during-the-last-hundred-years-ha_1885268.jpg" --- # Society, during the last hundred years, has been… ![“Society, during the last hundred years, has been alternately perplexed and encouraged, respecting the two great questions -how shall the criminal and pauper be disposed of, in order to reduce crime and reform the criminal on the one hand, and, on the other, to diminish pauperism and restore the…” quote by Dorothea Dix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/98a/dorothea-dix-29243_citizenship_society-during-the-last-hundred-years-ha_1885268.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/98a/dorothea-dix-29243_citizenship_society-during-the-last-hundred-years-ha_1885268.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/98a/dorothea-dix-29243_citizenship_society-during-the-last-hundred-years-ha_1885268.jpg) > “Society, during the last hundred years, has been alternately perplexed and encouraged, respecting the two great questions -how shall the criminal and pauper be disposed of, in order to reduce crime and reform the criminal on the one hand, and, on the other, to diminish pauperism and restore the pauper to useful citizenship?” [Dorothea Dix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Society struggles to balance crime reduction with poverty alleviation, seeking solutions that punish offenders while rehabilitating them and helping the poor become productive citizens. **In simple terms:** Balancing crime control and poverty relief is challenging. Key Takeaway Create policies that both deter crime and support the poor. Themes justice poverty rehabilitation social policy crime prevention Mood concerned hopeful determined Type policy philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - criminal justice reform - poverty reduction programs - community reintegration - education and job training - housing assistance Key Concepts penology social welfare economic inequality Questions to Reflect On - How can we design a system that punishes wrongdoing but also offers redemption? - What incentives encourage the poor to become productive citizens? A Different Perspective Effective reform requires resources and political will, and may face resistance from entrenched interests. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Citizenship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/citizenship/) [Crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime/) [Criminal Pauper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criminal-pauper-2689735/) [Criminals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criminals/) [Diminish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/diminish/) [Diminish Pauperism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/diminish-pauperism-2689736/) [Hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hands/) [Has beens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/has-beens/) [Hundred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hundred/) [Lasts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lasts/) [Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order/) [Pauperism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pauperism-310882/) [Pauperism Restore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pauperism-restore-2689734/) [Perplexed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perplexed/) [Reform](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reform/) [Reform Criminal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reform-criminal-1772189/) [Two](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/two/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) ## Related quotes > [I agree with President Obama and Attorney General Holder that we need to reform our criminal sentencing laws.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raul-labrador/i-agree-with-president-obama-and-attorney-general-holder-that-we-need/) [Raul Labrador](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raul-labrador/) > [“Walter made me understand why we have to reform a system of criminal justice that continues to treat people better if they are rich…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/walter-made-me-understand-why-we-have-to-reform-a-system-of-criminal/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [My heart and passion has always been to reform the criminal justice system. I want to be a public servant, and I wanted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-mosby/my-heart-and-passion-has-always-been-to-reform-the-criminal-justice/) [Marilyn Mosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-mosby/) > [A reform in the system of criminal jurisprudence, by which the death penalty shall no longer be inflicted . . . and by which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-woodhull/a-reform-in-the-system-of-criminal-jurisprudence-by-which-the-death/) [Victoria Woodhull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-woodhull/) > [Punishment is not for revenge, but to lessen crime and reform the criminal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-fry/punishment-is-not-for-revenge-but-to-lessen-crime-and-reform-the/) [Elizabeth Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-fry/) > [To be a born American citizen seems a guarantee against pauperism; and this, perhaps, springs from the virtue of a vote.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/to-be-a-born-american-citizen-seems-a-guarantee-against-pauperism-and/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [I suggest that we are thieves in a way. If I take anything that I do not need for my own immediate use, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/i-suggest-that-we-are-thieves-in-a-way-if-i-take-anything-that-i-do/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [Clamorous pauperism feastest While honest Labor, pining, hideth his sharp ribs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-farquhar-tupper/clamorous-pauperism-feastest-while-honest-labor-pining-hideth-his/) [Martin Farquhar Tupper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-farquhar-tupper/) > [Anything that encourages pauperism, anything that relaxes the manly fiber and lowers self-respect, is an unmixed evil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/anything-that-encourages-pauperism-anything-that-relaxes-the-manly/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [I would rather have India reduced to a state of pauperism than have thousands of drunkards in our midst.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/i-would-rather-have-india-reduced-to-a-state-of-pauperism-than-have/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [Our course, then, is clear; if we desire to put an end to pauperism, or to lessen it, we should import everything we can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-hume/our-course-then-is-clear-if-we-desire-to-put-an-end-to-pauperism-or/) [Joseph Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-hume/) > [Men and women with freed minds may often be mistaken, but they are seldom fooled. They may be influenced, but they cannot be intimidated.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/men-and-women-with-freed-minds-may-often-be-mistaken-but-they-are/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [He was so excited by this little bit of intelligence that he might have gone off, perplexed, pondering for a long time. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/he-was-so-excited-by-this-little-bit-of-intelligence-that-he-might/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) > [The cars of the migrant people crawled out of the side roads onto the great cross-country highway, and they took the migrant way to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/the-cars-of-the-migrant-people-crawled-out-of-the-side-roads-onto-the/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [I'm very excited about my new Spotify account, which gives me access to twenty gazillion songs any time, all the time. The day I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-m-very-excited-about-my-new-spotify-account-which-gives-me-access/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) ## More by Dorothea Dix > [ \[To a woman who claimed she'd rather be dead than unconfined and unfashionable:\] My dear, if you continue to lace as tightly as you… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/to-a-woman-who-claimed-she-d-rather-be-dead-than-unconfined-and/) [Dorothea Dix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/) > [Every evil has its good, and every ill an antidote.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/every-evil-has-its-good-and-every-ill-an-antidote/) [Dorothea Dix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/) > [I have no particular love for my species, but own to an exhaustless fund of compassion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/i-have-no-particular-love-for-my-species-but-own-to-an-exhaustless/) [Dorothea Dix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/) > [While we diminish the stimulant of fear, we must increase to prisoners the incitements of hope, in proportion as we extinguish the terrors of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/while-we-diminish-the-stimulant-of-fear-we-must-increase-to-prisoners/) [Dorothea Dix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/) > [Man is not made better by being degraded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/man-is-not-made-better-by-being-degraded/) [Dorothea Dix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/) > [The tapestry of history has no point at which you can cut it and leave the design intelligible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/the-tapestry-of-history-has-no-point-at-which-you-can-cut-it-and/) [Dorothea Dix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/) > [I think even lying on my bed I can still do something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/i-think-even-lying-on-my-bed-i-can-still-do-something/) [Dorothea Dix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/) > [Be of good cheer, for sadness cannot heal the national wounds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/be-of-good-cheer-for-sadness-cannot-heal-the-national-wounds/) [Dorothea Dix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/) > [But the truth is the highest consideration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/but-the-truth-is-the-highest-consideration/) [Dorothea Dix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/) > [I proceed, gentlemen, to call your attention to the present state of insane persons confined within the commonwealth; in cages, closets, cellars, stalls, pens;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/i-proceed-gentlemen-to-call-your-attention-to-the-present-state-of/) [Dorothea Dix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/) > [A man usually values that most for which he has labored; he uses that most frugally which he has toiled hour by hour and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/a-man-usually-values-that-most-for-which-he-has-labored-he-uses-that/) [Dorothea Dix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/) > [in proportion as my own discomfort has increased, my conviction of necessity to search into the wants of the friendless and afflicted has deepened.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/in-proportion-as-my-own-discomfort-has-increased-my-conviction-of/) [Dorothea Dix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/) > [I come to present the strong claims of suffering humanity. I come to place before the Legislature of Massachusetts the condition of the miserable,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/i-come-to-present-the-strong-claims-of-suffering-humanity-i-come-to/) [Dorothea Dix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/) > [I have learned to live each day as it comes, and not to borrow trouble by dreading tomorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/i-have-learned-to-live-each-day-as-it-comes-and-not-to-borrow-trouble/) [Dorothea Dix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/) > [Man is not made better by being degraded; he is seldom restrained from crime by harsh measures, except the principle of fear predominates in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/man-is-not-made-better-by-being-degraded-he-is-seldom-restrained-from/) [Dorothea Dix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/) [Explore all 18 Dorothea Dix quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/) ## More Citizenship quotes > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [The rich people are apparently leaving America. They're giving up their citizenship. These great lovers of America who made their money in this country-when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/the-rich-people-are-apparently-leaving-america-they-re-giving-up/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [If you don't plan to live the Christian life totally committed to knowing your God and to walking in obedience to Him, then don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-arthur/if-you-don-t-plan-to-live-the-christian-life-totally-committed-to/) [Kay Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-arthur/) > [Let us at all times remember that all American citizens are brothers of a common country, and should dwell together in bonds of fraternal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/let-us-at-all-times-remember-that-all-american-citizens-are-brothers/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [There can be a debate on the Citizenship Amendment Act, but why should we shelter someone who has come to India illegally from outside?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raj-thackeray/there-can-be-a-debate-on-the-citizenship-amendment-act-but-why-should/) [Raj Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raj-thackeray/) > [Motherland is our property and we have right to handle our properties as pleased. The jokes about death for the sake of the motherland…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/motherland-is-our-property-and-we-have-right-to-handle-our-properties/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [Your best friends are your principles, if you havent them, dont look for another friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/your-best-friends-are-your-principles-if-you-havent-them-dont-look/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [The point I wish plainly to bring before you on this occasion is the individuality of each human soul--our Protestant idea, the right of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-cady-stanton/the-point-i-wish-plainly-to-bring-before-you-on-this-occasion-is-the/) [Elizabeth Cady Stanton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-cady-stanton/) > [A strong saying is not afraid of criticism, because it includes all the answers to criticism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/a-strong-saying-is-not-afraid-of-criticism-because-it-includes-all/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [Undeniably, character does count for our citizens, out communities, and our Nation, and this week we celebrate the importance of character in our individual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/undeniably-character-does-count-for-our-citizens-out-communities-and/) [William J. 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At…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kofi-annan/in-an-age-of-interdependence-global-citizenship-based-on-trust-and/) [Kofi Annan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kofi-annan/) > [Strengthening our identity is one way of reinforcing people's confidence and sense of citizenship and well-being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-blunkett/strengthening-our-identity-is-one-way-of-reinforcing-people-s/) [David Blunkett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-blunkett/) > [We are not to simply bandage the wounds of victims beneath the wheels of injustice, we are to drive a spoke into the wheel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/we-are-not-to-simply-bandage-the-wounds-of-victims-beneath-the-wheels/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) [Browse all 793 Citizenship quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/citizenship/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Society, during the last hundred years, has been alternately perplexed and encouraged, respecting the two great questions -how shall the criminal and pauper be disposed of, in order to reduce crime and reform the criminal on the one hand, and, on the other, to diminish pauperism and restore the pauper to useful citizenship?", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Dorothea Dix" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/society-during-the-last-hundred-years-has-been-alternately-perplexed/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Citizenship" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/society-during-the-last-hundred-years-has-been-alternately-perplexed/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/98a/dorothea-dix-29243_citizenship_society-during-the-last-hundred-years-ha_1885268.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/98a/dorothea-dix-29243_citizenship_society-during-the-last-hundred-years-ha_1885268.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/98a/dorothea-dix-29243_citizenship_society-during-the-last-hundred-years-ha_1885268.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Society, during the last hundred years, has been alternately perplexed and encouraged, respecting the two…” — Dorothea Dix", "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": "Dorothea Dix", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Society, during the last hundred years,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/society-during-the-last-hundred-years-has-been-alternately-perplexed/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/society-during-the-last-hundred-years-has-been-alternately-perplexed/#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 } } ] } ```