--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If criticism had any power to harm, the…" description: "\"If criticism had any power to harm, the skunk would be extinct by now.\" — Fred Allen" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea8/fred-allen-4199_criticism_if-criticism-had-any-power-to-harm-the-s_2762769.png" --- # If criticism had any power to harm, the skunk would be… ![“If criticism had any power to harm, the skunk would be extinct by now.” quote by Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea8/fred-allen-4199_criticism_if-criticism-had-any-power-to-harm-the-s_2762769.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea8/fred-allen-4199_criticism_if-criticism-had-any-power-to-harm-the-s_2762769.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea8/fred-allen-4199_criticism_if-criticism-had-any-power-to-harm-the-s_2762769.png) > “If criticism had any power to harm, the skunk would be extinct by now.” [Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Criticism is harmless; if it could kill, the world would be full of extinct creatures. **In simple terms:** Criticism can't truly hurt. Key Takeaway Ignore harmful criticism. Themes humor resilience freedom of speech Mood lighthearted defensive Type satirical observational When to use this quote - online comments - public speaking - creative work - personal relationships Key Concepts psychology social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How do you differentiate constructive feedback from harmful criticism? - Can humor defuse criticism? A Different Perspective Criticism can still affect self‑esteem despite being harmless. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Criticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criticism/) [Criticism Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criticism-power-3182175/) [Critics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/critics/) [Extinct](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extinct/) [Funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) [Harm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/harm/) [Harm Skunk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/harm-skunk-3182173/) [Humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humor/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Skunk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skunk/) [Skunk Extinct](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skunk-extinct-3182174/) [Would be](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/would-be/) ## Related quotes > [Back in the 1930s, Carl Jung, the eminent thinker and psychologist, put it this way: Criticism has 'the power to do good when there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-o-clifton/back-in-the-1930s-carl-jung-the-eminent-thinker-and-psychologist-put/) [Donald O. Clifton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-o-clifton/) > [Everyone of us; at some point in our life, has received criticism. For the onion-skinned, even the slightest hint of criticism can dampen the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pacifiersucker/everyone-of-us-at-some-point-in-our-life-has-received-criticism-for/) [Pacifiersucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pacifiersucker/) > [“So a skunk humped my leg earlier.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-l-armentrout/so-a-skunk-humped-my-leg-earlier/) [Jennifer L. Armentrout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-l-armentrout/) > [Basically, there are three ways the skunk and I are a lot alike. The first is, we both like to spread our "stink" around.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-handey/basically-there-are-three-ways-the-skunk-and-i-are-a-lot-alike-the/) [Jack Handey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-handey/) > [Shortest straw pulls the skunk's tail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-hopkins-adams/shortest-straw-pulls-the-skunk-s-tail/) [Samuel Hopkins Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-hopkins-adams/) > [“A skunk sat on a stump and thunk the stump stunk, But the stump thunk the skunk stunk.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riley-weber/a-skunk-sat-on-a-stump-and-thunk-the-stump-stunk-but-the-stump-thunk/) [Riley Weber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/riley-weber/) > [We used to have skunks that would go under our house and scratch their backs. I remember after I had my first baby, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ree-drummond/we-used-to-have-skunks-that-would-go-under-our-house-and-scratch/) [Ree Drummond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ree-drummond/) > [“I skinned a skunk to make a rug. You know, for the bathroom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-skinned-a-skunk-to-make-a-rug-you-know-for-the-bathroom/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [“Dr. Stern told me that the wilderness of Carolina is alive wi’ fierce creatures—bears and wildcats and wicked panthers—and a great foul thing the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-gabaldon/dr-stern-told-me-that-the-wilderness-of-carolina-is-alive-wi-fierce/) [Diana Gabaldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-gabaldon/) > [Sometimes when you get in a fight with a skunk, you can't tell who started it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lloyd-doggett/sometimes-when-you-get-in-a-fight-with-a-skunk-you-can-t-tell-who/) [Lloyd Doggett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lloyd-doggett/) > [Back in the 1950s, there was a top-secret program code-named SUNTAN being conducted at a top-secret facility called Skunk Works. Its objective? To develop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-jacobsen/back-in-the-1950s-there-was-a-top-secret-program-code-named-suntan/) [Annie Jacobsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-jacobsen/) > [“No use trying to cat fight with a skunk.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-michael-quinn/no-use-trying-to-cat-fight-with-a-skunk/) [D. Michael Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-michael-quinn/) > [“The hair compromise he finally agreed to is a white strip on the left side – geriatric punk, he’d whispered to himself – with,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/the-hair-compromise-he-finally-agreed-to-is-a-white-strip-on-the-left/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [ I will not get into a pissing contest with that skunk \[Joseph McCarthy\]. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/i-will-not-get-into-a-pissing-contest-with-that-skunk-joseph-mccarthy/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [A skunk is better company than a person who prides himself on being 'frank'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/a-skunk-is-better-company-than-a-person-who-prides-himself-on-being/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) ## More by Fred Allen > [“I can't understand why a person will take a year or two to write a novel when he can easily buy one for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/i-can-t-understand-why-a-person-will-take-a-year-or-two-to-write-a/) [Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/) > [“(Faces are all important. Without faces it would be impossible to identify our friends. If we had to recognize people by their bodies, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/faces-are-all-important-without-faces-it-would-be-impossible-to/) [Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/) > [If I could get my membership fee back, I'd resign from the human race.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/if-i-could-get-my-membership-fee-back-i-d-resign-from-the-human-race/) [Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/) > [Ed Sullivan will be around as long as someone else has talent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/ed-sullivan-will-be-around-as-long-as-someone-else-has-talent/) [Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/) > [I like long walks, especially when they are taken by people who annoy me. Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/i-like-long-walks-especially-when-they-are-taken-by-people-who-annoy/) [Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/) > [My uncle is a Southern planter. He's an undertaker in Alabama.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/my-uncle-is-a-southern-planter-he-s-an-undertaker-in-alabama/) [Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/) > [Hollywood is a great place if you're an orange.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/hollywood-is-a-great-place-if-you-re-an-orange/) [Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/) > [Everywhere outside New York City is Bridgeport, Connecticut.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/everywhere-outside-new-york-city-is-bridgeport-connecticut/) [Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/) > [I'm a little hoarse tonight. I've been living in Chicago for the past two months, and you know how it is, yelling for help…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/i-m-a-little-hoarse-tonight-i-ve-been-living-in-chicago-for-the-past/) [Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/) > [He writes so well he makes me feel like putting my quill back in my goose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/he-writes-so-well-he-makes-me-feel-like-putting-my-quill-back-in-my/) [Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/) > [Her hat is a creation that will never go out of style; it will just look ridiculous year after year.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/her-hat-is-a-creation-that-will-never-go-out-of-style-it-will-just/) [Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/) > [When a radio comedian's program is finally finished it slinks down Memory Lane into the limbo of yesteryear's happy hours. All that the comedian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/when-a-radio-comedian-s-program-is-finally-finished-it-slinks-down/) [Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/) > [He's so small, he's a waste of skin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/he-s-so-small-he-s-a-waste-of-skin/) [Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/) > [Life, in my estimation, is a biological misadventure that we terminate on the shoulders of six strange men whose only objective is to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/life-in-my-estimation-is-a-biological-misadventure-that-we-terminate/) [Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/) > [My agent gets 10 percent of everything I get, except the blinding headaches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/my-agent-gets-10-percent-of-everything-i-get-except-the-blinding/) [Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/) [Explore all 114 Fred Allen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/) ## More Criticism quotes > [Regardless of the criticisms I receive from the left, the right and the middle, I think it's important to maintain a prolific writing jab,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ishmael-reed/regardless-of-the-criticisms-i-receive-from-the-left-the-right-and/) [Ishmael Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ishmael-reed/) > [I receive something we might euphemistically call an 'inappropriately hostile' response - that is to say, more than fair criticism or even fair anger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-beard/i-receive-something-we-might-euphemistically-call-an-inappropriately/) [Mary Beard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-beard/) > [A common fallacy in much of the adverse criticism to which science is subjected today is that it claims certainty, infallibility and complete emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/a-common-fallacy-in-much-of-the-adverse-criticism-to-which-science-is/) [Cyril Norman Hinshelwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/) > [For some reason, we are truly convinced that if we criticize ourselves, the criticism will lead to change. If we are harsh, we believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geneen-roth/for-some-reason-we-are-truly-convinced-that-if-we-criticize-ourselves/) [Geneen Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geneen-roth/) > [I reject criticism because the last thing I wanted was to sit there and look at people talking. I think people are conditioned to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-tyrnauer/i-reject-criticism-because-the-last-thing-i-wanted-was-to-sit-there/) [Matt Tyrnauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-tyrnauer/) > [I'm more comfortable modelling as a man because I don't get any criticism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rain-dove/i-m-more-comfortable-modelling-as-a-man-because-i-don-t-get-any/) [Rain Dove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rain-dove/) > [I don't mind positive criticism, but when it is negative and personal, it is quite hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/inzamam-ul-haq/i-don-t-mind-positive-criticism-but-when-it-is-negative-and-personal/) [Inzamam-ul-Haq](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/inzamam-ul-haq/) > [Judge a person not by his ability to make money but by his ability to retain it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/judge-a-person-not-by-his-ability-to-make-money-but-by-his-ability-to/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [Everything is allowable in literature, but what is not allowable in criticism is objection on the grounds of probability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/everything-is-allowable-in-literature-but-what-is-not-allowable-in/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [Lots of relationships fail because we spend more time pointing out each other's mistakes and not enough time enjoying each other's company.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/lots-of-relationships-fail-because-we-spend-more-time-pointing-out/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If our aim is to praise, we should forget to criticize; if our aim is to criticize, we should remember to praise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/if-our-aim-is-to-praise-we-should-forget-to-criticize-if-our-aim-is/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [No man can be criticised but by a greater than he. Do not, then, read the reviews.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/no-man-can-be-criticised-but-by-a-greater-than-he-do-not-then-read/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [People believe that criticism should be objective, whatever that means, but I really don't understand what people mean by that. I guess if you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-christgau/people-believe-that-criticism-should-be-objective-whatever-that-means/) [Robert Christgau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-christgau/) > [I welcome criticism. I come from a - I wouldn't say mean, but you've got to have tough skin to be in my family.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saweetie/i-welcome-criticism-i-come-from-a-i-wouldn-t-say-mean-but-you-ve-got/) [Saweetie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saweetie/) > [The good author is he who contemplates without marked joy or excessive sorrow the adventures of his soul amongst criticisms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-good-author-is-he-who-contemplates-without-marked-joy-or/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) [Browse all 3,954 Criticism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criticism/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If criticism had any power to harm, the skunk would be extinct by now.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Fred Allen" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/if-criticism-had-any-power-to-harm-the-skunk-would-be-extinct-by-now/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Criticism" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/if-criticism-had-any-power-to-harm-the-skunk-would-be-extinct-by-now/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea8/fred-allen-4199_criticism_if-criticism-had-any-power-to-harm-the-s_2762769.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea8/fred-allen-4199_criticism_if-criticism-had-any-power-to-harm-the-s_2762769.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea8/fred-allen-4199_criticism_if-criticism-had-any-power-to-harm-the-s_2762769.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If criticism had any power to harm, the skunk would be extinct by now.” — Fred Allen", "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": "Fred Allen", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If criticism had any power to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/if-criticism-had-any-power-to-harm-the-skunk-would-be-extinct-by-now/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/if-criticism-had-any-power-to-harm-the-skunk-would-be-extinct-by-now/#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 } } ] } ```