--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: While it's true that, as Tolstoy…" description: "\"“While it's true that, as Tolstoy observed, every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way, and everyone on planet Earth, vale of tears that it is, is ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/99c/elif-batuman-2172_family_while-it-s-true-that-as-tolstoy-observed_2809925.png" --- # While it's true that, as Tolstoy observed, every unhappy… ![“While it's true that, as Tolstoy observed, every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way, and everyone on planet Earth, vale of tears that it is, is certainly entitled to the specificity of his or her suffering, one nonetheless likes to think that literature has the power to render comprehensible…” quote by Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/99c/elif-batuman-2172_family_while-it-s-true-that-as-tolstoy-observed_2809925.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/99c/elif-batuman-2172_family_while-it-s-true-that-as-tolstoy-observed_2809925.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/99c/elif-batuman-2172_family_while-it-s-true-that-as-tolstoy-observed_2809925.png) > ““While it's true that, as Tolstoy observed, every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way, and everyone on planet Earth, vale of tears that it is, is certainly entitled to the specificity of his or her suffering, one nonetheless likes to think that literature has the power to render comprehensible different kinds of unhappiness. If it can't do that, what's it good for?”” [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author questions literature's ability to convey unique personal suffering, suggesting its purpose is to make diverse unhappiness understandable. **In simple terms:** Literature should help us grasp others' pain. Key Takeaway Read with empathy. Themes literature empathy human experience philosophy Mood thoughtful reflective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - book clubs - therapy sessions - academic courses - personal reflection Key Concepts narrative theory subjectivity psychology Questions to Reflect On - What stories have changed your view of suffering? - Can art ever fully capture personal pain? A Different Perspective Not all literature succeeds in this aim. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Happy family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happy-family/) [Kinds Unhappiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kinds-unhappiness-935040/) [Planet earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/planet-earth/) [Sadness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sadness/) [Think Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-literature/) [Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tolstoy/) [Unhappiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unhappiness/) [Unhappiness Good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unhappiness-good-3512178/) [Unhappy family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unhappy-family/) ## Related quotes > [I agree with the Lev Tolstoy quote completely, but I also feel like there's more to it. What is a happy family and an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-orner/i-agree-with-the-lev-tolstoy-quote-completely-but-i-also-feel-like/) [Peter Orner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-orner/) > [Gordie, the white boy genius, gave me this book by a Russian dude named Tolstoy, who wrote, 'Happy families are all alike; every unhappy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/gordie-the-white-boy-genius-gave-me-this-book-by-a-russian-dude-named/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Tolstoy said that “each unhappy family is unhappy in a way of its own—”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/tolstoy-said-that-each-unhappy-family-is-unhappy-in-a-way-of-its-own/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [“Tolstoy opens Anna Karenina by observing: “All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” Business is the opposite.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-thiel/tolstoy-opens-anna-karenina-by-observing-all-happy-families-are-alike/) [Peter Thiel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-thiel/) > [“The fact that they were there, that everything they owned wasn’t enough somehow, disturbed her, suggesting a bottomlessness to certain kinds of unhappiness. She”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-thomas/the-fact-that-they-were-there-that-everything-they-owned-wasn-t/) [Matthew Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-thomas/) > [“It’s like Tolstoy’s quote: “All happy families resemble each other, but each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” All”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chip-heath/it-s-like-tolstoy-s-quote-all-happy-families-resemble-each-other-but/) [Chip Heath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chip-heath/) > [unhappy families are conspiracies of silence. The one who breaks the silence is never forgiven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/unhappy-families-are-conspiracies-of-silence-the-one-who-breaks-the/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [I was raised to think about philosophy and religious thought and the soul and the spirit of humankind in a different way, also really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/i-was-raised-to-think-about-philosophy-and-religious-thought-and-the/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [Families without songs are unhappy families.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/families-without-songs-are-unhappy-families/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [He who is really kind, can never be unhappy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/he-who-is-really-kind-can-never-be-unhappy/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [Every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/every-unhappy-family-is-unhappy-in-its-own-way/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/happy-families-are-all-alike-every-unhappy-family-is-unhappy-in-its/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [All happy families resemble one another, each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/all-happy-families-resemble-one-another-each-unhappy-family-is/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [Being popular is the most important thing in the world!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/being-popular-is-the-most-important-thing-in-the-world/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/all-happy-families-are-alike-each-unhappy-family-is-unhappy-in-its/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) ## More by Elif Batuman > [My parents were born into a secular country. They met in Turkey's top medical school, moved to America in the nineteen-seventies, and became researchers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/my-parents-were-born-into-a-secular-country-they-met-in-turkey-s-top/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [“I leafed through the phrase book. If a Martian read it, the Martian would probably decide to avoid Hungary.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/i-leafed-through-the-phrase-book-if-a-martian-read-it-the-martian/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [You can't invent something you have no epistemological access to. In a way, it's all recombination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/you-can-t-invent-something-you-have-no-epistemological-access-to-in-a/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [Poetry is another space, like love, where we extend that extra credit to the writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/poetry-is-another-space-like-love-where-we-extend-that-extra-credit/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [“Svetlana said that she identified with that Madonna more than with any other woman in any other painting. She kept asking me what painting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/svetlana-said-that-she-identified-with-that-madonna-more-than-with/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [One of the most painful parts of a breakup is having the feeling that your life is a story, and then the other person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/one-of-the-most-painful-parts-of-a-breakup-is-having-the-feeling-that/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [“Dracula visited the Wolf Department at the Zoological Gardens. "These wolves seem upset at something," he observed. The next morning the cage was all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/dracula-visited-the-wolf-department-at-the-zoological-gardens-these/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [I like to think that I know a lot of words, but I definitely don't know all of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/i-like-to-think-that-i-know-a-lot-of-words-but-i-definitely-don-t/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [“I don't know if I ended up siding with the academics just because I happened to end up in graduate school, or if I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/i-don-t-know-if-i-ended-up-siding-with-the-academics-just-because-i/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [People don't become writers because they love having spontaneous, real-world interactions with living people as bodies with clothes in time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/people-don-t-become-writers-because-they-love-having-spontaneous-real/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [“Each work of criticism is supposed to build on the body of work, to increase the total sum of human understanding. It's not like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/each-work-of-criticism-is-supposed-to-build-on-the-body-of-work-to/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [Humor is really important to me. All my favorite writers are writers I consider to be funny, including Tolstoy and Dostoevsky, even though that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/humor-is-really-important-to-me-all-my-favorite-writers-are-writers-i/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [Every time a meteor comes close to the earth, we all think about the end of the world - but our internal soundtrack doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/every-time-a-meteor-comes-close-to-the-earth-we-all-think-about-the/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [I felt grateful to Ataturk that my parents were so well educated, that they weren't held back by superstition or religion, that they were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/i-felt-grateful-to-ataturk-that-my-parents-were-so-well-educated-that/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [“For a moment it felt like we weren’t in the Danube at all but in the river of time, and everyone was at a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/for-a-moment-it-felt-like-we-weren-t-in-the-danube-at-all-but-in-the/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) [Explore all 182 Elif Batuman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) ## More Family quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [One can put some trust in the gratitude of a sovereign, and also in that of his family; under certain conditions, one can even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-von-bismarck/one-can-put-some-trust-in-the-gratitude-of-a-sovereign-and-also-in/) [Otto von Bismarck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-von-bismarck/) > [Social responsibility above the level of family, or at most of tribe, requires imagination-- devotion, loyalty, all the higher virtues -- which a man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/social-responsibility-above-the-level-of-family-or-at-most-of-tribe/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [“ever day Maureen is Selfish To her friend and Family One she get mad at her friend and family and She need to Grad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-andeson/ever-day-maureen-is-selfish-to-her-friend-and-family-one-she-get-mad/) [Maureen Andeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-andeson/) > [Our concept of a family holiday was going to a guest house in the Lake district or Wales where walking was part of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-bannister/our-concept-of-a-family-holiday-was-going-to-a-guest-house-in-the/) [Roger Bannister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-bannister/) > [“So Jace is my actual family," Kit said. "But I can't go live with him, because him and his hot girlfriend are going off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/so-jace-is-my-actual-family-kit-said-but-i-can-t-go-live-with-him/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [I have friends and family that identify as LGBTQ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-mace/i-have-friends-and-family-that-identify-as-lgbtq/) [Nancy Mace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-mace/) > [Her dignity consists in being unknown to the world; her glory is in the esteem of her husband; her pleasures in the happiness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/her-dignity-consists-in-being-unknown-to-the-world-her-glory-is-in/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [It's not just that families can't buy a home or start a business without some savings tucked away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cooper/it-s-not-just-that-families-can-t-buy-a-home-or-start-a-business/) [Jim Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cooper/) > [“She knew how to play him so very well. He slipped his hand around hers. "Friends," he repeated roughly. Her smile was bright enough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-smith/she-knew-how-to-play-him-so-very-well-he-slipped-his-hand-around-hers/) [Kathryn Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-smith/) > [As a family, we all loved the Flyers. To me, rooting for the Flyers were how I bonded with my dad especially.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-f-goldberg/as-a-family-we-all-loved-the-flyers-to-me-rooting-for-the-flyers-were/) [Adam F. Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-f-goldberg/) > [The people have always been family to me here in Las Vegas. The people have always been very, very kind to me, and it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-cunningham/the-people-have-always-been-family-to-me-here-in-las-vegas-the-people/) [Randall Cunningham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-cunningham/) > [“Your relationship with your brother will be, in many ways, the most complex and bewildering of all the interpersonal connections you will form. An…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-currie-jr/your-relationship-with-your-brother-will-be-in-many-ways-the-most/) [Ron Currie Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-currie-jr/) > [I've long believed one of the mainsprings of our own liberty has been the widespread ownership of property among our people and the expectation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-ve-long-believed-one-of-the-mainsprings-of-our-own-liberty-has-been/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [Family over friends, because real friends are family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/family-over-friends-because-real-friends-are-family/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 36,913 Family quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“While it's true that, as Tolstoy observed, every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way, and everyone on planet Earth, vale of tears that it is, is certainly entitled to the specificity of his or her suffering, one nonetheless likes to think that literature has the power to render comprehensible different kinds of unhappiness. If it can't do that, what's it good for?”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Elif Batuman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/while-it-s-true-that-as-tolstoy-observed-every-unhappy-family-is/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Family" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/while-it-s-true-that-as-tolstoy-observed-every-unhappy-family-is/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/99c/elif-batuman-2172_family_while-it-s-true-that-as-tolstoy-observed_2809925.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/99c/elif-batuman-2172_family_while-it-s-true-that-as-tolstoy-observed_2809925.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/99c/elif-batuman-2172_family_while-it-s-true-that-as-tolstoy-observed_2809925.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“While it's true that, as Tolstoy observed, every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way, and everyone on…” — Elif Batuman", "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": "Elif Batuman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“While it's true that, as Tolstoy...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/while-it-s-true-that-as-tolstoy-observed-every-unhappy-family-is/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/while-it-s-true-that-as-tolstoy-observed-every-unhappy-family-is/#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 } } ] } ```