--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is,” she wrote, “an unfortunate trait…" description: "\"“It is,” she wrote, “an unfortunate trait in the human character to assail or asperse others engaged in the performance of humanitarian acts.”\" — Erik ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/931/erik-larson-1710_character_it-is-she-wrote-an-unfortunate-trait-in_2855722.png" --- # It is,” she wrote, “an unfortunate trait in the human… ![“It is,” she wrote, “an unfortunate trait in the human character to assail or asperse others engaged in the performance of humanitarian acts.” quote by Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/931/erik-larson-1710_character_it-is-she-wrote-an-unfortunate-trait-in_2855722.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/931/erik-larson-1710_character_it-is-she-wrote-an-unfortunate-trait-in_2855722.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/931/erik-larson-1710_character_it-is-she-wrote-an-unfortunate-trait-in_2855722.png) > ““It is,” she wrote, “an unfortunate trait in the human character to assail or asperse others engaged in the performance of humanitarian acts.”” [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Humanity often criticizes those who do good, showing a flaw in our character. **In simple terms:** People attack helpers, a human flaw. Key Takeaway Be aware of this tendency and practice empathy. Themes human nature criticism philanthropy Mood analytical concerned Type philosophical psychological When to use this quote - volunteering - public service - team work - conflict resolution Key Concepts moral psychology social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - Why do we judge well‑intentioned people? - How can we foster supportive attitudes? A Different Perspective Criticism can undermine beneficial actions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Humanitarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humanitarian/) [Humanitarian Acts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humanitarian-acts-3825463/) [Performance Humanitarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/performance-humanitarian-3825462/) [Unfortunate Trait](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unfortunate-trait-2607658/) [Wrote Unfortunate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wrote-unfortunate-3825464/) ## Related quotes > [The NHS is one of the most humanitarian acts that has ever been undertaken in peace time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stuart-hall/the-nhs-is-one-of-the-most-humanitarian-acts-that-has-ever-been/) [Stuart Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stuart-hall/) > [“Bookishness, an unfortunate trait for a girl, especially one who is not nice to look at.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-holden-rothman/bookishness-an-unfortunate-trait-for-a-girl-especially-one-who-is-not/) [Claire Holden Rothman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-holden-rothman/) > [We have to ask ourselves whether medicine is to remain a humanitarian and respected profession or a new but depersonalized science in the service…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/we-have-to-ask-ourselves-whether-medicine-is-to-remain-a-humanitarian/) [Elisabeth Kubler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [“When you love the world like you love your family, that day you'll develop the peacemaker métier.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/when-you-love-the-world-like-you-love-your-family-that-day-you-ll/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [“Bombs kill terrorists, Books kill terrorism. Missiles kill extremists, Mindfulness kills extremism. Guns kill supremacists, Goodness kills supremacy. Law restrains cruel people, Love reforms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/bombs-kill-terrorists-books-kill-terrorism-missiles-kill-extremists/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [Our national leaders tend to try to protect the national interest as they see it. They may screw up in that, but they at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-d-kristof/our-national-leaders-tend-to-try-to-protect-the-national-interest-as/) [Nicholas D. Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-d-kristof/) > [A sense of proportion and humanitarian action are not issues for terrorists. Their aim is that of killing and destroying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-yeltsin/a-sense-of-proportion-and-humanitarian-action-are-not-issues-for/) [Boris Yeltsin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-yeltsin/) > [The humanitarian argument is so selective I find it difficult to swallow. It's not even so much about the choice as to where we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-hastings/the-humanitarian-argument-is-so-selective-i-find-it-difficult-to/) [Michael Hastings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-hastings/) > [We are always talking about how we can get more environmental and humanitarian education. It is about listening to the voice of young people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-goodall/we-are-always-talking-about-how-we-can-get-more-environmental-and/) [Jane Goodall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-goodall/) > [ The other thing we did as government is to open gates for the civilians to leave that \[ eastern part\] area \[in Aleppo\], and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bashar-al-assad/the-other-thing-we-did-as-government-is-to-open-gates-for-the/) [Bashar al-Assad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bashar-al-assad/) > [“I am not an atheist. But the religion that I do advocate is not of the Bible, Vedas, Quran or any other scripture. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/i-am-not-an-atheist-but-the-religion-that-i-do-advocate-is-not-of-the/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [“I do not give a damn whether a person is a scientist, a philosopher or a theologian If that person cannot recognize the basic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/i-do-not-give-a-damn-whether-a-person-is-a-scientist-a-philosopher-or/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [I want to thank the Greek people publicly for their humanitarian response to the crisis of so many migrants and refugees seeking safety in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/i-want-to-thank-the-greek-people-publicly-for-their-humanitarian/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [The concept of humanity is an especially useful ideological instrument of imperialist expansion, and in its ethical-humanitarian form it is a specific vehicle of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-schmitt/the-concept-of-humanity-is-an-especially-useful-ideological/) [Carl Schmitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-schmitt/) > [Humanitarian goods and people must flow in both directions. Gaza cannot and must not be allowed to remain a prison camp.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cameron/humanitarian-goods-and-people-must-flow-in-both-directions-gaza/) [David Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cameron/) ## More by Erik Larson > [I've heard from the movie marketplace that James Cameron did such a killer job with 'Titanic' that it's almost impossible to do anything better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/i-ve-heard-from-the-movie-marketplace-that-james-cameron-did-such-a/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [As a rule, I am very skeptical of tying books to anniversaries. I don't think readers care. I also feel that it just about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/as-a-rule-i-am-very-skeptical-of-tying-books-to-anniversaries-i-don-t/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“look as if they had been plucked from the Palace of Versailles or a Jacobean mansion—that you were aboard a ship being propelled far…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/look-as-if-they-had-been-plucked-from-the-palace-of-versailles-or-a/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [That's what I love about history - nuance. I don't believe in unalloyed heroes. Everyone's got warts, and everyone's got a surprise side.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/that-s-what-i-love-about-history-nuance-i-don-t-believe-in-unalloyed/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“Holmes was charming and gracious, but something about him made Belknap uneasy. He could not have defined it. Indeed, for the next several decades…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/holmes-was-charming-and-gracious-but-something-about-him-made-belknap/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [. . . why some men choose to fill their brief allotment of time engaging the impossible, others in the manufacture of sorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/why-some-men-choose-to-fill-their-brief-allotment-of-time-engaging/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“At present," he said, "I am responsible for conveying my associates to a place called Chicago. I understand it is somewhere in the hinterland.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/at-present-he-said-i-am-responsible-for-conveying-my-associates-to-a/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [I knew from an online search that the Wisconsin State Historical Society, on the vast University of Wisconsin campus, held the papers of Sigrid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/i-knew-from-an-online-search-that-the-wisconsin-state-historical/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [Dodd continued to hope that the murders would so outrage the German public that the regime would fall, but as the days passed he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/dodd-continued-to-hope-that-the-murders-would-so-outrage-the-german/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [I envy other writers who claim to have a backlog of books they'd like to write.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/i-envy-other-writers-who-claim-to-have-a-backlog-of-books-they-d-like/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [Trying to find ideas is the hardest part of my job. You'd think it would be the most fun. Just sitting around reading whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/trying-to-find-ideas-is-the-hardest-part-of-my-job-you-d-think-it/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“Her blind endorsement of Hitler’s regime first faded to a kind of sympathetic skepticism, but as summer approached,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/her-blind-endorsement-of-hitler-s-regime-first-faded-to-a-kind-of/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“Perhaps, Herr Ditzen, it is less important where one lives than how one lives.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/perhaps-herr-ditzen-it-is-less-important-where-one-lives-than-how-one/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [I figured, correctly, that Berlin in February was not a destination coveted by tourists. I found good airfares on Lufthansa, an airline I quite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/i-figured-correctly-that-berlin-in-february-was-not-a-destination/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“It was truly a transitional moment: There he was, at the cusp of the twentieth century, using the telephone to send a telegram.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/it-was-truly-a-transitional-moment-there-he-was-at-the-cusp-of-the/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) [Explore all 214 Erik Larson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) ## More Character quotes > [This may sound strange, but although I feel like I know everything about my characters, the brand of shampoo they use, how many cavities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-honeyman/this-may-sound-strange-but-although-i-feel-like-i-know-everything/) [Gail Honeyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-honeyman/) > [I always like a character who makes me laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-stirling/i-always-like-a-character-who-makes-me-laugh/) [Rachael Stirling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachael-stirling/) > [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/) > [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'm often moved by the circumstances around some of my characters, but I don't think I've actually cried watching myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-winslet/i-m-often-moved-by-the-circumstances-around-some-of-my-characters-but/) [Kate Winslet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-winslet/) > [When you're on a daytime drama you get one page, you better damn well know your character. You better know what she would do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hudgins/when-you-re-on-a-daytime-drama-you-get-one-page-you-better-damn-well/) [David Hudgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hudgins/) > [It can sometimes make people fold into themselves and kind of run away, but I think in this case these characters are being forced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-deschanel/it-can-sometimes-make-people-fold-into-themselves-and-kind-of-run/) [Emily Deschanel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-deschanel/) > [If you are well-mannered towards those whose views are similar to yours, you may be said to exhibit a fairly good character. But, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-are-well-mannered-towards-those-whose-views-are-similar-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Democracy is based on the conviction that man has the moral and intellectual capacity, as well as the inalienable right, to govern himself with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/democracy-is-based-on-the-conviction-that-man-has-the-moral-and/) [Harry S. Truman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-s-truman/) > [In the fight between biology and morality, biology has commonly won in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/semir-zeki/in-the-fight-between-biology-and-morality-biology-has-commonly-won-in/) [Semir Zeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/semir-zeki/) > [Your looks don't make you pretty, it's the person inside who makes you pretty!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-chan/your-looks-don-t-make-you-pretty-it-s-the-person-inside-who-makes-you/) [Aaron Chan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-chan/) > [I'm not a huge social media kind of guy, so I don't really know, I don't really ever get... at least in real life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-stroma/i-m-not-a-huge-social-media-kind-of-guy-so-i-don-t-really-know-i-don/) [Freddie Stroma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-stroma/) > [If you stood me in a costume next to a computer graphic of the same-looking character, I think there would be a difference. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warwick-davis/if-you-stood-me-in-a-costume-next-to-a-computer-graphic-of-the-same/) [Warwick Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warwick-davis/) > [Courage: the most important of all the virtues because without courage, you can't practice any other virtue consistently](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/courage-the-most-important-of-all-the-virtues-because-without-courage/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [I'm a character actor - always have been, always will be - and historically, character actors don't come into their own until later in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-potts/i-m-a-character-actor-always-have-been-always-will-be-and/) [Annie Potts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-potts/) [Browse all 32,707 Character quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It is,” she wrote, “an unfortunate trait in the human character to assail or asperse others engaged in the performance of humanitarian acts.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Erik Larson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/it-is-she-wrote-an-unfortunate-trait-in-the-human-character-to-assail/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Character" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/it-is-she-wrote-an-unfortunate-trait-in-the-human-character-to-assail/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/931/erik-larson-1710_character_it-is-she-wrote-an-unfortunate-trait-in_2855722.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/931/erik-larson-1710_character_it-is-she-wrote-an-unfortunate-trait-in_2855722.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/931/erik-larson-1710_character_it-is-she-wrote-an-unfortunate-trait-in_2855722.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It is,” she wrote, “an unfortunate trait in the human character to assail or asperse others engaged in the…” — Erik Larson", "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": "Erik Larson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“It is,” she wrote, “an unfortunate...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/it-is-she-wrote-an-unfortunate-trait-in-the-human-character-to-assail/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/it-is-she-wrote-an-unfortunate-trait-in-the-human-character-to-assail/#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 } } ] } ```