--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He was a good man, but he had a broken…" description: "\"“He was a good man, but he had a broken heart. That’ll take even the best of them down.”\" — Hugh Howey" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b6/hugh-howey-841_broken_he-was-a-good-man-but-he-had-a-broken-he_1962208.png" --- # He was a good man, but he had a broken heart. That’ll take… ![“He was a good man, but he had a broken heart. That’ll take even the best of them down.” quote by Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b6/hugh-howey-841_broken_he-was-a-good-man-but-he-had-a-broken-he_1962208.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b6/hugh-howey-841_broken_he-was-a-good-man-but-he-had-a-broken-he_1962208.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b6/hugh-howey-841_broken_he-was-a-good-man-but-he-had-a-broken-he_1962208.png) > ““He was a good man, but he had a broken heart. That’ll take even the best of them down.”” [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Even the strongest can be undone by emotional pain, highlighting vulnerability. **In simple terms:** Heartbreak can topple anyone. Key Takeaway Guard emotional health as fiercely as physical strength. Themes vulnerability strength heartbreak resilience Mood empathetic somber Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - grief counseling - relationship loss - mental health support Key Concepts psychology human condition Questions to Reflect On - How do you support those in emotional distress? - What coping strategies help you recover? A Different Perspective Emotional pain may not be visible to others. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Broken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/broken/) [Broken Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/broken-heart-231836/) [Good man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-man/) [Heart Ll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart-ll/) [Man Broken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-broken-1011585/) ## Related quotes > [When you meet a man who is broken, pick him up and carry him. 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It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamara-hoffa/as-she-stepped-up-to-the-stall-door-the-two-men-inside-turned-at-her/) [Tamara Hoffa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamara-hoffa/) > [An old man, broken with the storms of state, Is come to lay his weary bones among ye; Give him a little earth for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/an-old-man-broken-with-the-storms-of-state-is-come-to-lay-his-weary/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Man is the broken giant, and in all his weakness both his body and his mind are invigorated by habits of conversation with nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/man-is-the-broken-giant-and-in-all-his-weakness-both-his-body-and-his/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Once a man is broken, only love can pick up the pieces and glue him back together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-j-bell/once-a-man-is-broken-only-love-can-pick-up-the-pieces-and-glue-him/) [K.J. 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Horne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paige-p-horne/) > [“Man is broken down in many places because of bitterness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/man-is-broken-down-in-many-places-because-of-bitterness/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [“Preaching a man a sermon with a broken head and telling him to be right with God is equal to telling a man with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/preaching-a-man-a-sermon-with-a-broken-head-and-telling-him-to-be/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [It's hard to locate the right key that'll open your heart, but once you find it, it'll be worth it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-hard-to-locate-the-right-key-that-ll-open-your-heart-but-once/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Because, wherever your heart is, that is where you´ll find your treasure”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/because-wherever-your-heart-is-that-is-where-you-ll-find-your-treasure/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) ## More by Hugh Howey > [“the mind-numbing routine. It was the castration of thought,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/the-mind-numbing-routine-it-was-the-castration-of-thought/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [“a crime to fell a tree and light it on fire, where coals of hardened shit warmed and stunk up homes,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/a-crime-to-fell-a-tree-and-light-it-on-fire-where-coals-of-hardened/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [Even in the darkness, his smile threw shadows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/even-in-the-darkness-his-smile-threw-shadows/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [“The Loud came before the quiet. 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Juliette’s”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/people-from-it-sent-to-replace-those-they-d-killed-juliette-s/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [“a heap of words designed to hinder communication rather than facilitate it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/a-heap-of-words-designed-to-hinder-communication-rather-than/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [“That leaves Bravo Company, the expendables who know what they’re doing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/that-leaves-bravo-company-the-expendables-who-know-what-they-re-doing/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [“Sleep was a vehicle for passing the time, for avoiding the present. It was a trolley for the depressed, the impatient, and the dying.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/sleep-was-a-vehicle-for-passing-the-time-for-avoiding-the-present-it/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [“Overhead, tangles of wires knotted together in a grand display of unplanned infrastructure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/overhead-tangles-of-wires-knotted-together-in-a-grand-display-of/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [“Montana wants to scream, but the thing she is angry at is in the past. The past can’t hear her. This is the thing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/montana-wants-to-scream-but-the-thing-she-is-angry-at-is-in-the-past/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [“I guess what I'm sayin' is, if you want to give Jules a job, be very careful.” “Why be careful?” Marnes asked. Marck gazed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/i-guess-what-i-m-sayin-is-if-you-want-to-give-jules-a-job-be-very/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [One of the many things that surprised me about 'Wool' is how many of its fans don't consider themselves science fiction readers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/one-of-the-many-things-that-surprised-me-about-wool-is-how-many-of/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [“We have allowed a dangerous forest to grow as we try to guard against individual trees.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/we-have-allowed-a-dangerous-forest-to-grow-as-we-try-to-guard-against/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [“You’re . . . a rock,” I tell the rock. “The fuck I am.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/you-re-a-rock-i-tell-the-rock-the-fuck-i-am/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [“I hated Sundays as a kid. From the moment I woke up, I could feel Monday looming,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/i-hated-sundays-as-a-kid-from-the-moment-i-woke-up-i-could-feel/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) [Explore all 351 Hugh Howey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) ## More Broken quotes > [Broken by hardships, disappointments and tragedy, people can become discouraged and cynical. But lives can also be mended. 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I felt it quivering, spitting out broken teeth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-fox/my-life-was-incoherent-to-me-i-felt-it-quivering-spitting-out-broken/) [Paula Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-fox/) > [Don't fix what's not broken.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-atkins/don-t-fix-what-s-not-broken/) [Robert Atkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-atkins/) > [“ving self and others is an every second of every day of every week, of every month, of every year gift that should not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanjo-jendayi/ving-self-and-others-is-an-every-second-of-every-day-of-every-week-of/) [Sanjo Jendayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanjo-jendayi/) > [Your head's like mine, like all our heads; big enough to contain every god and devil there ever was. Big enough to hold the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grant-morrison/your-head-s-like-mine-like-all-our-heads-big-enough-to-contain-every/) [Grant Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grant-morrison/) > [Rome, believe me, my friend, is like its own Monte Testaceo, Merelya marvellous mass of broken and castaway wine-pots.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hugh-clough/rome-believe-me-my-friend-is-like-its-own-monte-testaceo-merelya/) [Arthur Hugh Clough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hugh-clough/) > [Its funny how someone breaks your heart but you still love them with all those broken pieces..!!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/its-funny-how-someone-breaks-your-heart-but-you-still-love-them-with/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When we don't get what we want, there's a legitimate grieving, and then the spiritual journey truly begins, because not getting what we want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/when-we-don-t-get-what-we-want-there-s-a-legitimate-grieving-and-then/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Browse all 5,851 Broken quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/broken/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“He was a good man, but he had a broken heart. 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