--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The masses are still ungrateful or…" description: "\"The masses are still ungrateful or ignorant. They prefer murder, poisonings, and crimes generally to a literature possessed of style and feeling.\" — Ge..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/172/george-sand-1753_books_the-masses-are-still-ungrateful-or-ignor_12019.jpg" --- # The masses are still ungrateful or ignorant. They prefer… ![“The masses are still ungrateful or ignorant. They prefer murder, poisonings, and crimes generally to a literature possessed of style and feeling.” quote by George Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/172/george-sand-1753_books_the-masses-are-still-ungrateful-or-ignor_12019.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/172/george-sand-1753_books_the-masses-are-still-ungrateful-or-ignor_12019.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/172/george-sand-1753_books_the-masses-are-still-ungrateful-or-ignor_12019.jpg) > “The masses are still ungrateful or ignorant. They prefer murder, poisonings, and crimes generally to a literature possessed of style and feeling.” [George Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sand/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People often choose sensational, violent actions over refined artistic expression, revealing a preference for immediate impact over subtlety. **In simple terms:** Violence outweighs art Key Takeaway Art's value is undervalued Themes human nature cultural values violence art appreciation societal priorities Mood cynical critical reflective Type aphorism social commentary When to use this quote - political unrest - media sensationalism - public protests - cultural debates Key Concepts aesthetic vs. visceral mass psychology moral decay Practical Applications - cultural criticism - educational curricula Questions to Reflect On - Why do people gravitate toward shock over nuance? - How can societies elevate appreciation for refined art? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime/) [Culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture/) [Feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feelings/) [Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature/) [Mass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mass/) [Murder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/murder/) [Popular culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/popular-culture/) [Style](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/style/) ## Related quotes > [“Not just Negroponte, who doesn't like to read, but even Birkerts, who thinks that history is ending, underestimates the instability of society and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-franzen/not-just-negroponte-who-doesn-t-like-to-read-but-even-birkerts-who/) [Jonathan Franzen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-franzen/) > [Sometimes too much tolerance can kill you. If you are tolerant of people poisoning themselves to death they will drag you down. 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No, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcafee/you-ll-see-a-movie-about-someone-you-hate-or-someone-you-love-will/) [John McAfee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcafee/) > [There's nothing worse than poisoning our children's minds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-savage/there-s-nothing-worse-than-poisoning-our-children-s-minds/) [Michael Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-savage/) > [I would rather sit still in a state of peace on a stone than ride in the motor-car of a multi-millionaire and feel the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-would-rather-sit-still-in-a-state-of-peace-on-a-stone-than-ride-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by George Sand > [I was born to love - but none of you wanted to believe it, and that misunderstanding was crucial in forming my character. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sand/i-was-born-to-love-but-none-of-you-wanted-to-believe-it-and-that/) [George Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sand/) > [Genius, whether locked up in a cell or roaming at large, is always solitary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sand/genius-whether-locked-up-in-a-cell-or-roaming-at-large-is-always/) [George Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sand/) > [... love is too delicate a flower to rise again when one has trampled it under foot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sand/love-is-too-delicate-a-flower-to-rise-again-when-one-has-trampled-it/) [George Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sand/) > [The mind has no sex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sand/the-mind-has-no-sex/) [George Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sand/) > [A child motivated by competitive ideals will grow into a man without conscience, shame, or true dignity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sand/a-child-motivated-by-competitive-ideals-will-grow-into-a-man-without/) [George Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sand/) > [Weeds are omnipresent; errors are to be found in the heart of the most lovable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sand/weeds-are-omnipresent-errors-are-to-be-found-in-the-heart-of-the-most/) [George Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sand/) > [The more you lose the right to be jealous, the more so you become!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sand/the-more-you-lose-the-right-to-be-jealous-the-more-so-you-become/) [George Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sand/) > [He who draws noble delights from sentiments of poetry is a true poet, though he has never written a line in all his life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sand/he-who-draws-noble-delights-from-sentiments-of-poetry-is-a-true-poet/) [George Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sand/) > [Try to keep your soul young and quivering right up to old age, and to imagine right up to the brink of death that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sand/try-to-keep-your-soul-young-and-quivering-right-up-to-old-age-and-to/) [George Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sand/) > [The beauty that addresses itself to the eyes is only the spell of the moment; the eye of the body is not always that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sand/the-beauty-that-addresses-itself-to-the-eyes-is-only-the-spell-of-the/) [George Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sand/) > [Punctuation has its own philosophy, just as style does, although not as language does. Style is a good understanding of language, punctuation is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sand/punctuation-has-its-own-philosophy-just-as-style-does-although-not-as/) [George Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sand/) > [The artist vocation is to send light into the human heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sand/the-artist-vocation-is-to-send-light-into-the-human-heart/) [George Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sand/) > [It is always the best friends who are neglected and ignored.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sand/it-is-always-the-best-friends-who-are-neglected-and-ignored/) [George Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sand/) > [The cigar is the perfect complement to an elegant lifestyle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sand/the-cigar-is-the-perfect-complement-to-an-elegant-lifestyle/) [George Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sand/) > [The marriage vow is an absurdity imposed by society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sand/the-marriage-vow-is-an-absurdity-imposed-by-society/) [George Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sand/) [Explore all 203 George Sand quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sand/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! 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