--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Poor, unhappy Erik! Shall we pity him?…" description: "\"“Poor, unhappy Erik! Shall we pity him? Shall we curse him? He asked only to be 'someone,' like everybody else. But he was too ugly! And he had to hide..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b80/gaston-leroux-7986_1993-barnes-noble-ed_poor-unhappy-erik-shall-we-pity-him-shal_1717484.jpg" --- # Poor, unhappy Erik! Shall we pity him? Shall we curse him?… ![“Poor, unhappy Erik! Shall we pity him? Shall we curse him? He asked only to be 'someone,' like everybody else. But he was too ugly! And he had to hide his genius or use it to play tricks with, when, with an ordinary face, he would have been one of the most distinguished of mankind! He had a heart…” quote by Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b80/gaston-leroux-7986_1993-barnes-noble-ed_poor-unhappy-erik-shall-we-pity-him-shal_1717484.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b80/gaston-leroux-7986_1993-barnes-noble-ed_poor-unhappy-erik-shall-we-pity-him-shal_1717484.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b80/gaston-leroux-7986_1993-barnes-noble-ed_poor-unhappy-erik-shall-we-pity-him-shal_1717484.jpg) > ““Poor, unhappy Erik! Shall we pity him? Shall we curse him? He asked only to be 'someone,' like everybody else. But he was too ugly! And he had to hide his genius or use it to play tricks with, when, with an ordinary face, he would have been one of the most distinguished of mankind! He had a heart that could have held the empire of the world; and in the end had to content himself with a cellar. Surely we must pity the Opera ghost!”” [Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A tragic figure laments his hidden brilliance and physical ugliness, feeling doomed to obscurity despite his potential greatness. **In simple terms:** He feels his talent is wasted because of his appearance. Key Takeaway Recognize inner worth beyond outward appearance. Themes tragedy self‑esteem beauty genius social alienation Mood melancholic sympathetic reflective Type literary tragic When to use this quote - artistic ambition - personal insecurity - social exclusion - career frustration Key Concepts identity self‑acceptance social judgment Questions to Reflect On - Can true genius thrive without recognition? - How can one find value when society rejects them? A Different Perspective Society often values appearance over talent, limiting opportunities for the misunderstood. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Pity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pity/) ## Related quotes > [Poor, unhappy Erik! Shall we pity him? Shall we curse him? He asked only to be 'some one,' like everybody else. But he was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/poor-unhappy-erik-shall-we-pity-him-shall-we-curse-him-he-asked-only/) [Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) > [Wherever I am, I see the yoke on women in some form or another. On some it sits easy for they are but beasts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abby-may-alcott/wherever-i-am-i-see-the-yoke-on-women-in-some-form-or-another-on-some/) [Abby May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abby-may-alcott/) > [It is not like studying German, where you mull along, in a groping, uncertain way, for thirty years; and at last, just as you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/it-is-not-like-studying-german-where-you-mull-along-in-a-groping/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [The only justice is to follow the sincere intuition of the soul, angry or gentle. Anger is just, and pity is just, but judgement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-justice-is-to-follow-the-sincere-intuition-of-the-soul-angry/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Do not be proud of your inconsistency. It is a pity, it is a pity that we should be equipped like this. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/do-not-be-proud-of-your-inconsistency-it-is-a-pity-it-is-a-pity-that/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [It's really a pity that there are observers who view political events like comic strips. There has to be a Zorro, there has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sankara/it-s-really-a-pity-that-there-are-observers-who-view-political-events/) [Thomas Sankara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sankara/) > [Please dont say you dont miss him. Just to pity me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-yap/please-dont-say-you-dont-miss-him-just-to-pity-me/) [William Yap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-yap/) > [Pity the planet, all joy gone from this sweet volcanic cone; peace to our children when they fall in small war on the heel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-lowell/pity-the-planet-all-joy-gone-from-this-sweet-volcanic-cone-peace-to/) [Robert Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-lowell/) > [Whoever will not love his enemies cannot know the Lord and the sweetness of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit teaches us to love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/silouan-the-athonite/whoever-will-not-love-his-enemies-cannot-know-the-lord-and-the/) [Silouan the Athonite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/silouan-the-athonite/) > [Pity is cruel. Pity destroys.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/pity-is-cruel-pity-destroys/) [Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/) > [“How dare I, Mrs Reed? How dare I? Because it is the truth. You think I have no feelings, and that I can do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/how-dare-i-mrs-reed-how-dare-i-because-it-is-the-truth-you-think-i/) [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [It is thus only this personal feeling of misery that we get rid of by acts of pity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/it-is-thus-only-this-personal-feeling-of-misery-that-we-get-rid-of-by/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [It is a pity that, commonly, more care is had--yea, and that among very wise men--to find out rather a cunning man for their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ascham/it-is-a-pity-that-commonly-more-care-is-had-yea-and-that-among-very/) [Roger Ascham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ascham/) > [But victimhood was seductive, a release from responsibility and caring. Fear would be transmuted into weary resignation; failure would no longer generate guilt but,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/but-victimhood-was-seductive-a-release-from-responsibility-and-caring/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [It's a pity that there's such a negative connotation about paying for sex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-sprinkle/it-s-a-pity-that-there-s-such-a-negative-connotation-about-paying-for/) [Annie Sprinkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-sprinkle/) ## More by Gaston Leroux > [“Possibly, I too shall take the train at that station one day, and go and seek around thy lakes, O Norway, O silent Scandinavia...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/possibly-i-too-shall-take-the-train-at-that-station-one-day-and-go/) [Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) > [Erik, Erik! I saved your life! Remember? You were scentenced to death! But for me you would be dead by now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/erik-erik-i-saved-your-life-remember-you-were-scentenced-to-death-but/) [Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) > [Persons visited by the angel quiver with a thrill unknown to the rest of mankind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/persons-visited-by-the-angel-quiver-with-a-thrill-unknown-to-the-rest/) [Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) > [“A ghost who bleeds is less dangerous!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/a-ghost-who-bleeds-is-less-dangerous/) [Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) > [She's singing to-night to bring the chandelier down!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/she-s-singing-to-night-to-bring-the-chandelier-down/) [Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) > [Now I want to live like everybody else. I want to have a wife like everybody else and to take her out on Sundays.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/now-i-want-to-live-like-everybody-else-i-want-to-have-a-wife-like/) [Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) > [“There is a terrible mystery around us...a mystery much more to be feared than any number of ghosts or genii!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/there-is-a-terrible-mystery-around-us-a-mystery-much-more-to-be/) [Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) > [He stared dully at the desolate, cold road and the pale, dead night. Nothing was colder or more dead than his heart. He had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/he-stared-dully-at-the-desolate-cold-road-and-the-pale-dead-night/) [Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) > [“Surely, if his heart continued to make such a noise, they would hear it inside, they would open the door and the young man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/surely-if-his-heart-continued-to-make-such-a-noise-they-would-hear-it/) [Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) > [I tore off my mask so as not to lose one of her tears... and she did not run away!...and she did not die!...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/i-tore-off-my-mask-so-as-not-to-lose-one-of-her-tears-and-she-did-not/) [Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) > [“No, no, you have driven me mad! When I think that I had only one object in life: to give my name to an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/no-no-you-have-driven-me-mad-when-i-think-that-i-had-only-one-object/) [Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) > [Know that it is a corpse who loves you and adores you and will never, never leave you!...Look, I am not laughing now, crying,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/know-that-it-is-a-corpse-who-loves-you-and-adores-you-and-will-never/) [Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) > [“He fills me with horror and I do not hate him. How can I hate him, Raoul? Think of Erik at my feet, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/he-fills-me-with-horror-and-i-do-not-hate-him-how-can-i-hate-him/) [Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) > [“with an ordinary face, he would have been one of the most distinguished of mankind! He had a heart that could have held the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/with-an-ordinary-face-he-would-have-been-one-of-the-most/) [Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) > [“The voice without a body went on singing, and certainly Raoul had never in his life heard anything more absolutely and heroically sweet, more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/the-voice-without-a-body-went-on-singing-and-certainly-raoul-had/) [Gaston Leroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) [Explore all 78 Gaston Leroux quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/) ## More Pity quotes > [It's a pity that there's such a negative connotation about paying for sex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-sprinkle/it-s-a-pity-that-there-s-such-a-negative-connotation-about-paying-for/) [Annie Sprinkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-sprinkle/) > [But victimhood was seductive, a release from responsibility and caring. Fear would be transmuted into weary resignation; failure would no longer generate guilt but,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/but-victimhood-was-seductive-a-release-from-responsibility-and-caring/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [It is a pity that, commonly, more care is had--yea, and that among very wise men--to find out rather a cunning man for their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ascham/it-is-a-pity-that-commonly-more-care-is-had-yea-and-that-among-very/) [Roger Ascham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ascham/) > [It is thus only this personal feeling of misery that we get rid of by acts of pity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/it-is-thus-only-this-personal-feeling-of-misery-that-we-get-rid-of-by/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“How dare I, Mrs Reed? How dare I? Because it is the truth. You think I have no feelings, and that I can do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/how-dare-i-mrs-reed-how-dare-i-because-it-is-the-truth-you-think-i/) [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [Pity is cruel. Pity destroys.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/pity-is-cruel-pity-destroys/) [Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/) > [Whoever will not love his enemies cannot know the Lord and the sweetness of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit teaches us to love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/silouan-the-athonite/whoever-will-not-love-his-enemies-cannot-know-the-lord-and-the/) [Silouan the Athonite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/silouan-the-athonite/) > [Pity the planet, all joy gone from this sweet volcanic cone; peace to our children when they fall in small war on the heel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-lowell/pity-the-planet-all-joy-gone-from-this-sweet-volcanic-cone-peace-to/) [Robert Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-lowell/) > [Please dont say you dont miss him. Just to pity me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-yap/please-dont-say-you-dont-miss-him-just-to-pity-me/) [William Yap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-yap/) > [It's really a pity that there are observers who view political events like comic strips. There has to be a Zorro, there has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sankara/it-s-really-a-pity-that-there-are-observers-who-view-political-events/) [Thomas Sankara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sankara/) > [Do not be proud of your inconsistency. It is a pity, it is a pity that we should be equipped like this. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/do-not-be-proud-of-your-inconsistency-it-is-a-pity-it-is-a-pity-that/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [The only justice is to follow the sincere intuition of the soul, angry or gentle. Anger is just, and pity is just, but judgement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-justice-is-to-follow-the-sincere-intuition-of-the-soul-angry/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It is not like studying German, where you mull along, in a groping, uncertain way, for thirty years; and at last, just as you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/it-is-not-like-studying-german-where-you-mull-along-in-a-groping/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Wherever I am, I see the yoke on women in some form or another. On some it sits easy for they are but beasts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abby-may-alcott/wherever-i-am-i-see-the-yoke-on-women-in-some-form-or-another-on-some/) [Abby May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abby-may-alcott/) > [“Self-pity is the worst disability a person can have, Callie. It's crippling.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelley-terrell/self-pity-is-the-worst-disability-a-person-can-have-callie-it-s/) Shelley Terrell [Browse all 2,046 Pity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Poor, unhappy Erik! Shall we pity him? Shall we curse him? He asked only to be 'someone,' like everybody else. But he was too ugly! And he had to hide his genius or use it to play tricks with, when, with an ordinary face, he would have been one of the most distinguished of mankind! He had a heart that could have held the empire of the world; and in the end had to content himself with a cellar. Surely we must pity the Opera ghost!”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gaston Leroux" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/poor-unhappy-erik-shall-we-pity-him-shall-we-curse-him-he-asked-only-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Pity" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/poor-unhappy-erik-shall-we-pity-him-shall-we-curse-him-he-asked-only-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b80/gaston-leroux-7986_1993-barnes-noble-ed_poor-unhappy-erik-shall-we-pity-him-shal_1717484.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b80/gaston-leroux-7986_1993-barnes-noble-ed_poor-unhappy-erik-shall-we-pity-him-shal_1717484.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b80/gaston-leroux-7986_1993-barnes-noble-ed_poor-unhappy-erik-shall-we-pity-him-shal_1717484.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Poor, unhappy Erik! Shall we pity him? Shall we curse him? He asked only to be 'someone,' like everybody…” — Gaston Leroux", "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": "Gaston Leroux", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-leroux/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Poor, unhappy Erik! Shall we pity...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/poor-unhappy-erik-shall-we-pity-him-shall-we-curse-him-he-asked-only-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-leroux/poor-unhappy-erik-shall-we-pity-him-shall-we-curse-him-he-asked-only-2/#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 } } ] } ```