--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If there is one person on the planet who…" description: "\"If there is one person on the planet who still is suffering from loneliness and from pain or despair, and we don't know about it, or we don't want to k..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c3/elie-wiesel-341_despair_if-there-is-one-person-on-the-planet-who_547319.png" --- # If there is one person on the planet who still is… ![“If there is one person on the planet who still is suffering from loneliness and from pain or despair, and we don't know about it, or we don't want to know about it, then something is wrong with the world.” quote by Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c3/elie-wiesel-341_despair_if-there-is-one-person-on-the-planet-who_547319.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c3/elie-wiesel-341_despair_if-there-is-one-person-on-the-planet-who_547319.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c3/elie-wiesel-341_despair_if-there-is-one-person-on-the-planet-who_547319.png) > “If there is one person on the planet who still is suffering from loneliness and from pain or despair, and we don't know about it, or we don't want to know about it, then something is wrong with the world.” [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Unaddressed suffering and ignored pain reveal a fundamental flaw in society’s compassion. **In simple terms:** Ignoring pain shows a broken world. Key Takeaway Listen and act on hidden suffering. Themes compassion loneliness social responsibility justice Mood empathetic serious Type ethical motivational When to use this quote - healthcare - mental health services - community support - policy making Key Concepts human rights psychology ethics Questions to Reflect On - What hidden pains can you help reveal? - How can you foster empathy in your community? A Different Perspective Societal denial can persist despite evidence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Despair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/despair/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Loneliness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loneliness/) [Loneliness Pain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loneliness-pain-4221602/) [Pain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pain/) [Persons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/persons/) [Planet Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/planet-suffering-2491595/) [Planets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/planets/) [Solitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/solitude/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering/) [Suffering Loneliness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering-loneliness-1667692/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [Today we have the economic collapse that the whole planet is suffering, but there is hope, and that's what's going to keep us moving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-takei/today-we-have-the-economic-collapse-that-the-whole-planet-is/) [George Takei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-takei/) > [“earth drama has any purpose at all, it is an indirect one: It creates more and more suffering on the planet, and suffering, although…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/earth-drama-has-any-purpose-at-all-it-is-an-indirect-one-it-creates/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [One of the most painful aspects of suffering is the loneliness of it. Others may offer support or empathy, but no one can walk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg/one-of-the-most-painful-aspects-of-suffering-is-the-loneliness-of-it/) [John Ortberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg/) > [As prevalent as loneliness is, many people don't recognize that people that they know may very well be suffering from loneliness. It's important for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivek-murthy/as-prevalent-as-loneliness-is-many-people-don-t-recognize-that-people/) [Vivek Murthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivek-murthy/) > [“I called no one, and no one called me. I was suffocating with loneliness. The pain was almost physical. I felt like tearing myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cat-clarke/i-called-no-one-and-no-one-called-me-i-was-suffocating-with/) [Cat Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cat-clarke/) > [Lost in loneliness and pain. Black and unendurable, Thinking of you with every Corpuscle of my flesh, in Every instant of night And day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-rexroth/lost-in-loneliness-and-pain-black-and-unendurable-thinking-of-you/) [Kenneth Rexroth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-rexroth/) > [“Only writing could soak up his loneliness and pain. Written words could tell him who he was.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/only-writing-could-soak-up-his-loneliness-and-pain-written-words/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [Ive begun to balance the pleasure of loneliness against the pain of loving you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/ive-begun-to-balance-the-pleasure-of-loneliness-against-the-pain-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We are looking back again all loneliness and pain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-kaulitz/we-are-looking-back-again-all-loneliness-and-pain/) [Bill Kaulitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-kaulitz/) > [“A man is too insignificant to be preoccupied with his failures. All of the energy he has is required for attending to the loneliness,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-novak/a-man-is-too-insignificant-to-be-preoccupied-with-his-failures-all-of/) [Michael Novak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-novak/) > [Only one enemy is worse than despair: indifference. In every area of human creativity, indifference is the enemy; indifference of evil is worse than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/only-one-enemy-is-worse-than-despair-indifference-in-every-area-of/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [This is the duty of our generation as we enter the twenty-first century - solidarity with the weak, the persecuted, the lonely, the sick,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/this-is-the-duty-of-our-generation-as-we-enter-the-twenty-first/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [“Did hope help us to survive, or not? Too many families clung to it all through the war, thus falling into the enemy's trap.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/did-hope-help-us-to-survive-or-not-too-many-families-clung-to-it-all/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [There is the extreme of hopelessness and the inevitability of doom, a deep despair that comes from the sense that our industrial, consuming society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/there-is-the-extreme-of-hopelessness-and-the-inevitability-of-doom-a/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) > [If I think back to every rehearsal process for every play I've ever worked on, there's just so much crying at home. I barely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-baker/if-i-think-back-to-every-rehearsal-process-for-every-play-i-ve-ever/) [Annie Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-baker/) ## More by Elie Wiesel > [A religious person answers to God, not to the elected or non-elected official.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/a-religious-person-answers-to-god-not-to-the-elected-or-non-elected/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [One more stab to the heart, one more reason to hate. One less reason to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/one-more-stab-to-the-heart-one-more-reason-to-hate-one-less-reason-to/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [“What all these victims need above all is to know that they are not alone; that we are not forgetting them, that when their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/what-all-these-victims-need-above-all-is-to-know-that-they-are-not/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [I feel that books, just like people, have a destiny. Some invite sorrow, others joy, some both.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/i-feel-that-books-just-like-people-have-a-destiny-some-invite-sorrow/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [ \[Chinese\] are a huge empire now, you'll soon be - in a few years two billion people in the world. So, you should be… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/chinese-are-a-huge-empire-now-you-ll-soon-be-in-a-few-years-two/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Did I write it so as not to go mad or, on the contrary, to go mad in order to understand the nature of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/did-i-write-it-so-as-not-to-go-mad-or-on-the-contrary-to-go-mad-in/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Take the story of Cain and Abel. Why were we given that story? Scientifically, you may have an explanation for it, but I'm not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/take-the-story-of-cain-and-abel-why-were-we-given-that-story/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Mankind must remember that peace is not God's gift to his creatures; peace is our gift to each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/mankind-must-remember-that-peace-is-not-god-s-gift-to-his-creatures/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [The world? The world is not interested in us. Today, everything is possible, even the crematoria...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/the-world-the-world-is-not-interested-in-us-today-everything-is/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [every question possessed a power that was lost in the answer . . .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/every-question-possessed-a-power-that-was-lost-in-the-answer/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [I think this century more than any other really has seen the phenomenon of people being uprooted in such numbers, such a degree. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/i-think-this-century-more-than-any-other-really-has-seen-the/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [His cold eyes stared at me. At last, he said wearily: "I have more faith in Hitler than in anyone else. He alone has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/his-cold-eyes-stared-at-me-at-last-he-said-wearily-i-have-more-faith/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [As you know, I describe Shirat ha-Yam as part of an epic story that has qualities of history and which also has qualities of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/as-you-know-i-describe-shirat-ha-yam-as-part-of-an-epic-story-that/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Every Jew, somewhere in his being, should set apart a zone of hate -healthy virile hate- for what the German personifies and for what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/every-jew-somewhere-in-his-being-should-set-apart-a-zone-of-hate/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [“Did hope help us to survive, or not? Too many families clung to it all through the war, thus falling into the enemy's trap.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/did-hope-help-us-to-survive-or-not-too-many-families-clung-to-it-all/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) [Explore all 662 Elie Wiesel quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) ## More Despair quotes > [“As ofttimes as it rains on my little spot of earth, you'd think I'd grow accustomed to the gloom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/as-ofttimes-as-it-rains-on-my-little-spot-of-earth-you-d-think-i-d/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > [“She searched her mind for a single day when it had felt good to be alive. There must have been one, surely?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-abbott/she-searched-her-mind-for-a-single-day-when-it-had-felt-good-to-be/) [Rachel Abbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-abbott/) > [“Men circle like bees around honey, buzzing to communicate their sexual despair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carla-h-krueger/men-circle-like-bees-around-honey-buzzing-to-communicate-their-sexual/) [Carla H Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carla-h-krueger/) > [I think what was special about 'Music by Prudence' was the classic story of the title subject's life path - from being an outcast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-think-what-was-special-about-music-by-prudence-was-the-classic/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [Your spirit is the part of you that seeks meaning and purpose. It's the part drawn to hope, that will not give in to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-myss/your-spirit-is-the-part-of-you-that-seeks-meaning-and-purpose-it-s/) [Caroline Myss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-myss/) > [My God, whose son, as on this night, took on Him the form of man, and for man vouchsafed to suffer and bleed, controls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/my-god-whose-son-as-on-this-night-took-on-him-the-form-of-man-and-for/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [The modernist writers found despair inspirational.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-modernist-writers-found-despair-inspirational/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [The skin and shell of things Though fair are not Thy wish nor prayer but got My meer despair of wings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-vaughan/the-skin-and-shell-of-things-though-fair-are-not-thy-wish-nor-prayer/) [Henry Vaughan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-vaughan/) > [“A fine setting for a fit of despair,” it occurred to him, “if I were only standing here by accident instead of design.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/a-fine-setting-for-a-fit-of-despair-it-occurred-to-him-if-i-were-only/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [Enough for this bow & arrow. It caused me nothing but sorrow. No need for another tomorrow. In your heart, I will never be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louaiq8/enough-for-this-bow-arrow-it-caused-me-nothing-but-sorrow-no-need-for/) [Louaiq8](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louaiq8/) > [True repentance never leads to despair. Its leads home. It leads to grace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg/true-repentance-never-leads-to-despair-its-leads-home-it-leads-to/) [John Ortberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg/) > [Do not consider despair as a thick and high wall standing on your way; it is just a darkness and you can still walk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/do-not-consider-despair-as-a-thick-and-high-wall-standing-on-your-way/) [Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [Despair is the price one pays for setting oneself an impossible aim. It is, one is told, the unforgivable sin, but it is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/despair-is-the-price-one-pays-for-setting-oneself-an-impossible-aim/) [Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/) > [A speculative despair is unpardonable where it our duty to act.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/a-speculative-despair-is-unpardonable-where-it-our-duty-to-act/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [I have noticed that there is no dissatisfaction like that of the rich. Feed a man, clothe him, put him in a good house,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-have-noticed-that-there-is-no-dissatisfaction-like-that-of-the-rich/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) [Browse all 3,181 Despair quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/despair/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If there is one person on the planet who still is suffering from loneliness and from pain or despair, and we don't know about it, or we don't want to know about it, then something is wrong with the world.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Elie Wiesel" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/if-there-is-one-person-on-the-planet-who-still-is-suffering-from/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Despair" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/if-there-is-one-person-on-the-planet-who-still-is-suffering-from/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c3/elie-wiesel-341_despair_if-there-is-one-person-on-the-planet-who_547319.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c3/elie-wiesel-341_despair_if-there-is-one-person-on-the-planet-who_547319.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c3/elie-wiesel-341_despair_if-there-is-one-person-on-the-planet-who_547319.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If there is one person on the planet who still is suffering from loneliness and from pain or despair, and we…” — Elie Wiesel", "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": "Elie Wiesel", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If there is one person on...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/if-there-is-one-person-on-the-planet-who-still-is-suffering-from/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/if-there-is-one-person-on-the-planet-who-still-is-suffering-from/#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 } } ] } ```