--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The philanthropist too often surrounds…" description: "\"The philanthropist too often surrounds mankind with the remembrance of his own cast- off griefs as an atmosphere, and calls it sympathy. We should impa..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df9/henry-david-thoreau-20_atmosphere_the-philanthropist-too-often-surrounds-m_388904.jpg" --- # The philanthropist too often surrounds mankind with the… ![“The philanthropist too often surrounds mankind with the remembrance of his own cast- off griefs as an atmosphere, and calls it sympathy. We should impart our courage, and not our despair, our health and ease, and not our disease, and take care that this does not spread by contagion.” quote by Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df9/henry-david-thoreau-20_atmosphere_the-philanthropist-too-often-surrounds-m_388904.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df9/henry-david-thoreau-20_atmosphere_the-philanthropist-too-often-surrounds-m_388904.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df9/henry-david-thoreau-20_atmosphere_the-philanthropist-too-often-surrounds-m_388904.jpg) > “The philanthropist too often surrounds mankind with the remembrance of his own cast- off griefs as an atmosphere, and calls it sympathy. We should impart our courage, and not our despair, our health and ease, and not our disease, and take care that this does not spread by contagion.” [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He warns that false sympathy spreads despair like disease, urging us to share courage instead of personal grief. **In simple terms:** Share courage, not sorrow. Key Takeaway Offer strength, not misery. Themes sympathy despair influence courage health Mood reflective serious Type philosophical ethical When to use this quote - personal relationships - public speaking - mental health advocacy Key Concepts empathy contagion psychology Questions to Reflect On - How can you demonstrate authentic support? - What actions convey courage over pity? A Different Perspective Sympathy can become performative, masking genuine concern. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bravery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bravery/) [Care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/care/) [Contagion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contagion/) [Courage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courage/) [Despair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/despair/) [Disease](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disease/) [Grief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grief/) [Health](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/health/) [Mankind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mankind/) [Nostalgia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nostalgia/) [Philanthropist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philanthropist/) [Philanthropy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philanthropy/) [Remembrance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remembrance/) [Sympathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sympathy/) ## Related quotes > [“Philanthropy is. . . greatly overrated. A pain in the gut is not sympathy for the underprivileged, but the result of eating a green…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/philanthropy-is-greatly-overrated-a-pain-in-the-gut-is-not-sympathy/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [A cold and searching wind drives away all contagion, and nothing can withstand it but what has a virtue in it, and accordingly, whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/a-cold-and-searching-wind-drives-away-all-contagion-and-nothing-can/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [All sound heard at the greatest possible distance produces one and the same effect, a vibration of the universal lyre, just as the intervening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/all-sound-heard-at-the-greatest-possible-distance-produces-one-and/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [As I stand over the insect crawling amid the pine needles on the forest floor, and endeavoring to conceal itself from my sight, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/as-i-stand-over-the-insect-crawling-amid-the-pine-needles-on-the/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [We should impart our courage and not our despair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/we-should-impart-our-courage-and-not-our-despair/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [As a philanthropist, I give away a lot of money every year. Yet I thought there was a higher leverage to come in and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-skoll/as-a-philanthropist-i-give-away-a-lot-of-money-every-year-yet-i/) [Jeffrey Skoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-skoll/) > [To get your name well enough known that you can run for a public office, some people do it by being great lawyers or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-glenn/to-get-your-name-well-enough-known-that-you-can-run-for-a-public/) [John Glenn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-glenn/) > [There is the expression of selfishness and there is the expression of selflessness - but economists or theoreticians never touched that part. They said:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-yunus/there-is-the-expression-of-selfishness-and-there-is-the-expression-of/) [Muhammad Yunus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-yunus/) > [“There's no sell in serve.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julieanne-o-connor/there-s-no-sell-in-serve/) [Julieanne O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julieanne-o-connor/) > [Wealth is not to feed our egos but to feed the hungry and to help people help themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-carnegie/wealth-is-not-to-feed-our-egos-but-to-feed-the-hungry-and-to-help/) [Andrew Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-carnegie/) > [The philanthropists inquire whether Transcendentalism does not mean sloth: they had as lief hear that their friend is dead, as that he is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-philanthropists-inquire-whether-transcendentalism-does-not-mean/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [I did do an American pilot, but it wasnt shot in America, it was shot in South Africa. It was called The Philanthropist, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominique-mcelligott/i-did-do-an-american-pilot-but-it-wasnt-shot-in-america-it-was-shot/) [Dominique McElligott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominique-mcelligott/) > [My goal is to work diligently to become the top philanthropist in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chen-guangbiao/my-goal-is-to-work-diligently-to-become-the-top-philanthropist-in-the/) [Chen Guangbiao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chen-guangbiao/) > [My undergraduate studies at Brown and graduate degrees from Harvard prepared me for a multifaceted career as an actor, entrepreneur and philanthropist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hill-harper/my-undergraduate-studies-at-brown-and-graduate-degrees-from-harvard/) [Hill Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hill-harper/) > [I am not Christ or a philanthropist, old lady, I am all the contrary of a Christ I fight for the things I believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/che-guevara/i-am-not-christ-or-a-philanthropist-old-lady-i-am-all-the-contrary-of/) [Che Guevara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/che-guevara/) ## More by Henry David Thoreau > [If ever I did a man any goodof course it was something exceptional and insignificant compared with the good or evil which I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/if-ever-i-did-a-man-any-goodof-course-it-was-something-exceptional/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys-which-distract-our/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“Men say they know many things; But lo! they have taken wings, — The arts and sciences, And a thousand appliances; The wind that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/men-say-they-know-many-things-but-lo-they-have-taken-wings-the-arts/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I am not afraid of praise, for I have practiced it on myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-am-not-afraid-of-praise-for-i-have-practiced-it-on-myself/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“All voting is a sort of gaming, like checkers or back gammon, with a slight moral tinge to it, a playing with right and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/all-voting-is-a-sort-of-gaming-like-checkers-or-back-gammon-with-a/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“This spending of the best part of one's life earning money in order to enjoy a questionable liberty during the least valuable part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/this-spending-of-the-best-part-of-one-s-life-earning-money-in-order/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [As for doing good; that is one of the professions which is full. Moreover I have tried it fairly and, strange as it may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/as-for-doing-good-that-is-one-of-the-professions-which-is-full/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [A traveler who looks at things with an impartial eye may see what the oldest inhabitant has not observed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/a-traveler-who-looks-at-things-with-an-impartial-eye-may-see-what-the/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [In proportion as our inward life fails, we go more constantly and desperately to the post office. You may depend on it, that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/in-proportion-as-our-inward-life-fails-we-go-more-constantly-and/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I had three chairs in my house; one for solitude, two for friendship, three for society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-had-three-chairs-in-my-house-one-for-solitude-two-for-friendship/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The still youthful energies of the globe have only to be directed in their proper channel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-still-youthful-energies-of-the-globe-have-only-to-be-directed-in/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Concord's little arch does not span all our fate, nor is what transpires under it law for the universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/concord-s-little-arch-does-not-span-all-our-fate-nor-is-what/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The lumberers rarely trouble themselves to put out their fires, such is the dampness of the primitive forest; and this is one cause, no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-lumberers-rarely-trouble-themselves-to-put-out-their-fires-such/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“When he has obtained those things which are necessary to life, there is another alternative than to obtain the superfluities; and that is, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/when-he-has-obtained-those-things-which-are-necessary-to-life-there/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Wealth is measured by the level of experience in all aspects of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/wealth-is-measured-by-the-level-of-experience-in-all-aspects-of-life/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Explore all 3,376 Henry David Thoreau quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) ## More Atmosphere quotes > [“The global population of Earth are involved in the following corporate government experiments: The long term effects of - 1. Nuclear bomb fallout radiation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-global-population-of-earth-are-involved-in-the-following/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [If I had my brothers I think with just a little bit of the correct marketing, I'd like to be almost exclusively in small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-bozzio/if-i-had-my-brothers-i-think-with-just-a-little-bit-of-the-correct/) [Terry Bozzio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-bozzio/) > [My mind rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, give me the most abstruse cryptogram, or the most intricate analysis, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/my-mind-rebels-at-stagnation-give-me-problems-give-me-work-give-me/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [Man will not always stay on Earth; the pursuit of light and space will lead him to penetrate the bounds of the atmosphere, timidly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konstantin-tsiolkovsky/man-will-not-always-stay-on-earth-the-pursuit-of-light-and-space-will/) [Konstantin Tsiolkovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konstantin-tsiolkovsky/) > [Pause before you get home and prepare your heart. A peaceful heart leads to a peaceful atmosphere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-burns/pause-before-you-get-home-and-prepare-your-heart-a-peaceful-heart/) [Jim Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-burns/) > [Sometimes a minute is really the difference between success and failure. There are times when you finish with ten seconds left, and one extra…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-symon/sometimes-a-minute-is-really-the-difference-between-success-and/) [Michael Symon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-symon/) > [Christianity does not oppose debauchery and uncontrollable passions and the like as much as it opposes... flat mediocrity, this nauseating atmosphere, this homey, civil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/christianity-does-not-oppose-debauchery-and-uncontrollable-passions/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [Washington bureaucrats have classified the very air we exhale as a pollutant and have gone unchallenged in this incredible assertion. The logical consequence is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-paul/washington-bureaucrats-have-classified-the-very-air-we-exhale-as-a/) [Ron Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-paul/) > [“Atmosphere" is a massive song. A lot of people say it's their favorite Joy Division song, but it's not mine; it reminds me too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-hook/atmosphere-is-a-massive-song-a-lot-of-people-say-it-s-their-favorite/) [Peter Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-hook/) > [Establish an atmosphere that energizes you. Some creative people flourish in confusion; others need to be free from interruption. Many prepare themselves for work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nita-leland/establish-an-atmosphere-that-energizes-you-some-creative-people/) [Nita Leland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nita-leland/) > [Each year we pump at least six billion tons of heat-trapping carbon into the innermost layer of our atmosphere, whose outer extent is only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-gelbspan/each-year-we-pump-at-least-six-billion-tons-of-heat-trapping-carbon/) [Ross Gelbspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-gelbspan/) > [It was clear to me that the White House's solemn atmosphere would not civilize Trump. But the merciless nepotism with which he conducts politics,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-schulz/it-was-clear-to-me-that-the-white-house-s-solemn-atmosphere-would-not/) [Martin Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-schulz/) > [“Bjerknes had come up with equations capable of describing the behavior of the atmosphere. The state of the atmosphere at any point could be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heidi-cullen/bjerknes-had-come-up-with-equations-capable-of-describing-the/) [Heidi Cullen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heidi-cullen/) > [What one thing does the world need most today-apart, that is, from the all-inclusive thing we call righteousness? Aren't you inclined to agree that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-c-forbes/what-one-thing-does-the-world-need-most-today-apart-that-is-from-the/) [B. C. Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-c-forbes/) > [ Jowett, in his day, did probably more than any other single man to let some fresh air into the exhausted atmosphere of the \[Oxford\]… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-jowett/jowett-in-his-day-did-probably-more-than-any-other-single-man-to-let/) [Benjamin Jowett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-jowett/) Browse all 1,572 Atmosphere quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The philanthropist too often surrounds mankind with the remembrance of his own cast- off griefs as an atmosphere, and calls it sympathy. 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