--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The very good people did not convince me…" description: "\"The very good people did not convince me; I felt they'd never been tempted. But you knew; you understood; you felt the world outside tugging at one wit..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/340/edith-wharton-512_betrayal_the-very-good-people-did-not-convince-me_1197640.jpg" --- # The very good people did not convince me; I felt they'd… ![“The very good people did not convince me; I felt they'd never been tempted. But you knew; you understood; you felt the world outside tugging at one with all its golden hands - and you hated the things it asked of one; you hated happiness bought by disloyalty and cruelty and indifference. That was…” quote by Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/340/edith-wharton-512_betrayal_the-very-good-people-did-not-convince-me_1197640.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/340/edith-wharton-512_betrayal_the-very-good-people-did-not-convince-me_1197640.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/340/edith-wharton-512_betrayal_the-very-good-people-did-not-convince-me_1197640.jpg) > “The very good people did not convince me; I felt they'd never been tempted. But you knew; you understood; you felt the world outside tugging at one with all its golden hands - and you hated the things it asked of one; you hated happiness bought by disloyalty and cruelty and indifference. That was what I'd never known before - and it's better than anything I've known.” [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker reflects on resisting temptation and rejecting superficial happiness tied to disloyalty, finding deeper value in authentic experience despite societal pressure. **In simple terms:** Resisting false temptations leads to deeper fulfillment. Key Takeaway Seek authentic values over easy allure. Themes integrity temptation authenticity societal pressure Mood thoughtful reflective inspirational Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - career decisions - relationships - ethical dilemmas - personal development Key Concepts moral philosophy personal growth existential choice Questions to Reflect On - What temptations are most deceptive today? - How can we stay true to values under pressure? A Different Perspective May overlook practical realities of survival in harsh societies. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Betrayal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/betrayal/) [Convince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/convince/) [Cruelty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cruelty/) [Cruelty Indifference](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cruelty-indifference-1471557/) [Disloyalty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disloyalty/) [Felt Tempted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/felt-tempted-1407940/) [Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/golden/) [Good people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-people/) [Hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hands/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Hated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hated/) [Hated Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hated-happiness-3578053/) [Indifference](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/indifference/) [Indifference Known](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/indifference-known-2347615/) [Loyalty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loyalty/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Responsibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/responsibility/) [Temptation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/temptation/) [Tempted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tempted/) [Tempted Knew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tempted-knew-3578054/) [Tugging](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tugging/) [Understood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understood/) [Very good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/very-good/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [The very good people didn't convince me; I felt they'd never been tempted. But you knew; you understood; you had felt the world outside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/the-very-good-people-didn-t-convince-me-i-felt-they-d-never-been/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [I hated Shallow Grave, that movie made me angry. And I hated Happiness. I generally hate movies that use extreme violence or gratuitous shock…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-michaels/i-hated-shallow-grave-that-movie-made-me-angry-and-i-hated-happiness/) [Jesse Michaels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-michaels/) > [Throughout history, it has been the inaction of those who could have acted; the indifference of those who should have known better; the silence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/throughout-history-it-has-been-the-inaction-of-those-who-could-have-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Throughout history, it has been the inaction of those who could have acted; the indifference of those who should have known better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/throughout-history-it-has-been-the-inaction-of-those-who-could-have/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Whenever I felt tempted to, I don’t know, watch cat videos or bad Netflix TV instead of writing this Brandeis biography, I thought of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-rosen/whenever-i-felt-tempted-to-i-don-t-know-watch-cat-videos-or-bad/) [Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-rosen/) > [“But perhaps the enthusiastic sensibility of young women of her age also played a role. This feeling sought release at every opportunity, and with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/but-perhaps-the-enthusiastic-sensibility-of-young-women-of-her-age/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [The profound immoralities of our time are cruelty, indifference, injustice and the use of others as means rather than ends in themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-j-harris/the-profound-immoralities-of-our-time-are-cruelty-indifference/) [Sydney J. Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-j-harris/) > [“One result for many people is a tendency to think that power comes from cruelty or indifference. But, in reality such things are not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-result-for-many-people-is-a-tendency-to-think-that-power-comes/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Why do progress and beauty have to be so opposed? ; 75 Also, as in war, the case, like a great bubbling cauldron of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-morrow-lindbergh/why-do-progress-and-beauty-have-to-be-so-opposed-75-also-as-in-war/) [Anne Morrow Lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-morrow-lindbergh/) > [And I wonder, among all the tangles of this mortal coil, which one contains tighter knots to undo, & consequently suggests more tugging, &…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/and-i-wonder-among-all-the-tangles-of-this-mortal-coil-which-one/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [I wonder, among all the tangles of this mortal coil, which one contains tighter knots to undo, and consequently suggests more tugging, and pain,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/i-wonder-among-all-the-tangles-of-this-mortal-coil-which-one-contains/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [“I was all the time tugging and carrying water. But now I have a river that carries me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-lyman-moody/i-was-all-the-time-tugging-and-carrying-water-but-now-i-have-a-river/) [Dwight lyman moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-lyman-moody/) > [“Maxon, Tugging my ear whenever. - America”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiera-cass/maxon-tugging-my-ear-whenever-america/) [Kiera Cass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiera-cass/) > [You may feel a tugging sensation near your ankles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/you-may-feel-a-tugging-sensation-near-your-ankles/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [- You look fine. - Right. I look fine. Except I don't, said Zora, tugging sadly at her man's nightshirt. This was why Kiki…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/you-look-fine-right-i-look-fine-except-i-don-t-said-zora-tugging/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) ## More by Edith Wharton > [“Suddenly the air was full of that deep clangor of bells which periodically covers Rome with a roof of silver.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/suddenly-the-air-was-full-of-that-deep-clangor-of-bells-which/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [“Untrained human nature was not frank and innocent; it was full of the twists and defences of an instinctive guile. And he felt himself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/untrained-human-nature-was-not-frank-and-innocent-it-was-full-of-the/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [“High Pasture Come up--come up: in the dim vale below The autumn mist muffles the fading trees, But on this keen hill-pasture, though the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/high-pasture-come-up-come-up-in-the-dim-vale-below-the-autumn-mist/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [“Two ways to be a light for all, is to be a flaming candle or the mirror that reflects it”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/two-ways-to-be-a-light-for-all-is-to-be-a-flaming-candle-or-the/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [“... no treasure-house of Atreus was ever as rich as a well-stored memory.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/no-treasure-house-of-atreus-was-ever-as-rich-as-a-well-stored-memory/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [“...the endless labour of rolling human stupidity up the steep hill of understanding.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/the-endless-labour-of-rolling-human-stupidity-up-the-steep-hill-of/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [“he saw his marriage becoming what most of the other marriages about him were: a dull association of material and social interests held together…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/he-saw-his-marriage-becoming-what-most-of-the-other-marriages-about/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [The real loneliness is living among all these kind people who only ask one to pretend!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/the-real-loneliness-is-living-among-all-these-kind-people-who-only/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [With a shiver of foreboding he saw his marriage becoming what most of the other marriages about him were: a dull association of material…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/with-a-shiver-of-foreboding-he-saw-his-marriage-becoming-what-most-of/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [Life is the saddest thing there is, next to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/life-is-the-saddest-thing-there-is-next-to-death/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [A classic is classic not because it conforms to certain structural rules, or fits certain definitions (of which its author had quite probably never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/a-classic-is-classic-not-because-it-conforms-to-certain-structural/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [There is too much sour grapes for my taste in the present American attitude. The time to denounce the bankers was when we were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/there-is-too-much-sour-grapes-for-my-taste-in-the-present-american/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [“But in a few years more perhaps there may be; for, deep within us as the ghost instinct lurks, I seem to see it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/but-in-a-few-years-more-perhaps-there-may-be-for-deep-within-us-as/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [Dialogue in fiction should be reserved for the culminating moments and regarded as the spray into which the great wave of narrative breaks in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/dialogue-in-fiction-should-be-reserved-for-the-culminating-moments/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [“These Americans, under their forthcoming manner, their surface-gush, as some might call it, have an odd reticence about what goes on underneath.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/these-americans-under-their-forthcoming-manner-their-surface-gush-as/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) [Explore all 504 Edith Wharton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) ## More Betrayal quotes > [“That's the catch about betrayal, of course: that it feels good, that there's something immensely pleasurable about moving from a complicated relationship which involves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-ephron/that-s-the-catch-about-betrayal-of-course-that-it-feels-good-that/) [Nora Ephron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-ephron/) > [God’s faithfulness is stronger than our unfaithfulness and our infidelities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/god-s-faithfulness-is-stronger-than-our-unfaithfulness-and-our/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [“Flattery looks like friendship, just like a wolf looks like a dog.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-auliq-ice/flattery-looks-like-friendship-just-like-a-wolf-looks-like-a-dog/) [Oscar Auliq-Ice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-auliq-ice/) > [There is no deceit in death. It delivers precisely what it has promised. Betrayal, though ... betrayal is the willful slaughter of hope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/km-ii/there-is-no-deceit-in-death-it-delivers-precisely-what-it-has/) [KM II](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/km-ii/) > [If you leave someone for another person, don't be surprised if that person leaves you for someone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-leave-someone-for-another-person-don-t-be-surprised-if-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“As they say in New York, Get over it and, if you can't get over it, Get over talking about it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-keyes/as-they-say-in-new-york-get-over-it-and-if-you-can-t-get-over-it-get/) [Marian Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-keyes/) > [“He returned her gaze, yearning for sentimental solace; love which emanated from a familiar source, mattered little how bedevilling. They shared an intimate moment,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-h-septimius/he-returned-her-gaze-yearning-for-sentimental-solace-love-which/) [A. H. Septimius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-h-septimius/) > [I was always here for you,you knew you could count on me and trust me blindly, and you knew that I would never tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-hayssus/i-was-always-here-for-you-you-knew-you-could-count-on-me-and-trust-me/) [Michael Hayssus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-hayssus/) > [Joy doesn't betray but sustains activism. And when you face a politics that aspires to make you fearful, alienated and isolated, joy is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-solnit/joy-doesn-t-betray-but-sustains-activism-and-when-you-face-a-politics/) [Rebecca Solnit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-solnit/) > [“Betrayal and love are not mutually exclusive." (Mordred)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-mercer/betrayal-and-love-are-not-mutually-exclusive-mordred/) [Aldous Mercer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-mercer/) > [Love comes exactly... To those who still hope, even though they've been disappointed. To those who still believe, even though they've been betrayed and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mizhan/love-comes-exactly-to-those-who-still-hope-even-though-they-ve-been/) [Mizhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mizhan/) > [For some people, a one-night stand doesn't make any difference in a seven-year love affair. I don't believe the degree of betrayal is always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/for-some-people-a-one-night-stand-doesn-t-make-any-difference-in-a/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [Betrayal is a serious thing in this world,you know what else is serious? Being lied to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sabrina/betrayal-is-a-serious-thing-in-this-world-you-know-what-else-is/) [Sabrina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sabrina/) > [The greatest temptation for the like of us is: to renounce violence, to repent, to make peace with oneself. Most revolutionaries fell before this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-greatest-temptation-for-the-like-of-us-is-to-renounce-violence-to/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [“Sarai, you never know who might betray you until it’s too late.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-a-redmerski/sarai-you-never-know-who-might-betray-you-until-it-s-too-late/) [J.A. Redmerski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-a-redmerski/) [Browse all 2,050 Betrayal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/betrayal/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The very good people did not convince me; I felt they'd never been tempted. But you knew; you understood; you felt the world outside tugging at one with all its golden hands - and you hated the things it asked of one; you hated happiness bought by disloyalty and cruelty and indifference. That was what I'd never known before - and it's better than anything I've known.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Edith Wharton" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/the-very-good-people-did-not-convince-me-i-felt-they-d-never-been/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Betrayal" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/the-very-good-people-did-not-convince-me-i-felt-they-d-never-been/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/340/edith-wharton-512_betrayal_the-very-good-people-did-not-convince-me_1197640.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/340/edith-wharton-512_betrayal_the-very-good-people-did-not-convince-me_1197640.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/340/edith-wharton-512_betrayal_the-very-good-people-did-not-convince-me_1197640.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The very good people did not convince me; I felt they'd never been tempted. But you knew; you understood…” — Edith Wharton", "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": "Edith Wharton", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The very good people did not...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/the-very-good-people-did-not-convince-me-i-felt-they-d-never-been/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/the-very-good-people-did-not-convince-me-i-felt-they-d-never-been/#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 } } ] } ```