--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Abolitionists were men of sharp angles…" description: "\"Abolitionists were men of sharp angles. Organizing them was like binding crooked sticks in a bundle.\" — Jane Swisshelm" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82e/jane-swisshelm-28261_abolitionist_abolitionists-were-men-of-sharp-angles-o_2537944.jpg" --- # Abolitionists were men of sharp angles. Organizing them… ![“Abolitionists were men of sharp angles. Organizing them was like binding crooked sticks in a bundle.” quote by Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82e/jane-swisshelm-28261_abolitionist_abolitionists-were-men-of-sharp-angles-o_2537944.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82e/jane-swisshelm-28261_abolitionist_abolitionists-were-men-of-sharp-angles-o_2537944.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82e/jane-swisshelm-28261_abolitionist_abolitionists-were-men-of-sharp-angles-o_2537944.jpg) > “Abolitionists were men of sharp angles. Organizing them was like binding crooked sticks in a bundle.” [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. It likens abolitionists to irregular sticks, indicating they were difficult to organize due to diverse or conflicting viewpoints. **In simple terms:** Abolitionists were hard to unite. Key Takeaway Recognize challenges in uniting diverse groups. Themes social movements organization diversity Mood thoughtful analytical Type motivational inspirational When to use this quote - activism - team building - policy advocacy Key Concepts collective action conflict resolution Questions to Reflect On - What strategies can unify fragmented groups? - How does diversity both hinder and strengthen movements? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abolitionist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abolitionist/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Slavery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slavery/) ## Related quotes > [Many abolitionists have yet to learn the ABC of woman's rights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-b-anthony/many-abolitionists-have-yet-to-learn-the-abc-of-woman-s-rights/) [Susan B. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-b-anthony/) > [That a majority of the Abolitionists in this place would patronize a free labor store, in preference to others, I do not doubt; but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gamaliel-bailey/that-a-majority-of-the-abolitionists-in-this-place-would-patronize-a/) [Gamaliel Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gamaliel-bailey/) > [I do not hesitate to say, that those who call themselves Abolitionists should at once effectually withdraw their support, both inperson and property, from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-do-not-hesitate-to-say-that-those-who-call-themselves-abolitionists/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I hear you have abolitionists here. We have a few in Illinois, but we shot one the other day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/i-hear-you-have-abolitionists-here-we-have-a-few-in-illinois-but-we/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [Wilberforce and the band of abolitionists knew that a private faith that did not act in the face of oppression was no faith at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-colson/wilberforce-and-the-band-of-abolitionists-knew-that-a-private-faith/) [Charles Colson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-colson/) > [There is a large body of abolitionists in Clinton and Clark Counties in this state, and in Wayne County Indiana, that would undoubtedly support…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gamaliel-bailey/there-is-a-large-body-of-abolitionists-in-clinton-and-clark-counties/) [Gamaliel Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gamaliel-bailey/) > [ In one point of view, we, the abolitionists and colored people, should meet \[the Dred Scott\] decision, unlooked for and monstrous as it appears,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/in-one-point-of-view-we-the-abolitionists-and-colored-people-should/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [Who freed the slaves? To the extent that they were ever u2018freed,' they were freed by the Thirteenth Amendment, which was authored and pressured…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lerone-bennett-jr/who-freed-the-slaves-to-the-extent-that-they-were-ever-u2018freed/) Lerone Bennett, Jr > [We've actually bought quite a number of historical pieces. We are doing a piece on the abolitionists, Harper's Ferry and the abolitionist John Brown…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-landgraf/we-ve-actually-bought-quite-a-number-of-historical-pieces-we-are/) [John Landgraf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-landgraf/) > [Enslaving each other was what human beings had done for ages. And the abolitionist movement was greeted with incredulity. Conservative spokesmen ridiculed the abolitionists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/enslaving-each-other-was-what-human-beings-had-done-for-ages-and-the/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [There are those who view the abolitionists as just maniacs, apolitical fanatics who helped to cause the war, and Lincoln is the model of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-foner/there-are-those-who-view-the-abolitionists-as-just-maniacs-apolitical/) [Eric Foner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-foner/) > [I was in favour of the death penalty, and disposed to regard abolitionists as people whose hearts were bigger than their heads. Four years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gowers/i-was-in-favour-of-the-death-penalty-and-disposed-to-regard/) Ernest Gowers > [ Slave rebellions, especially the \[1791\] Haitian Revolution, had an ongoing effect on the ways in which abolitionists talked about ending slavery. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manisha-sinha/slave-rebellions-especially-the-1791-haitian-revolution-had-an/) [Manisha Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manisha-sinha/) > [Everybody has asked the question, and they learned to ask it early of the abolitionists, 'What shall we do with the Negro?' I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/everybody-has-asked-the-question-and-they-learned-to-ask-it-early-of/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [“Doak and other early abolitionists planted a host of Presbyterian churches and “log cabin colleges” that taught a strong antislavery doctrine. They laid the basis…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-himes/doak-and-other-early-abolitionists-planted-a-host-of-presbyterian/) [Andrew Himes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-himes/) ## More by Jane Swisshelm > [I must be the mate of the man I had chosen; and if he would not come to my level, I must go to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-swisshelm/i-must-be-the-mate-of-the-man-i-had-chosen-and-if-he-would-not-come/) [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) > [I had gone into the hospital with the stupid notion that its primary object was the care and comfort of the sick and wounded.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-swisshelm/i-had-gone-into-the-hospital-with-the-stupid-notion-that-its-primary/) [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) > [If I wrote at all, I must throw myself headlong into the great political maelstrom, and would of course be swallowed up like a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-swisshelm/if-i-wrote-at-all-i-must-throw-myself-headlong-into-the-great/) [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) > [As our boys and men are all expecting to be Presidents, so our girls and women must all hold themselves in readiness to preside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-swisshelm/as-our-boys-and-men-are-all-expecting-to-be-presidents-so-our-girls/) [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) > [Let the erring sisters depart in peace; the idea of getting up a civil war to compel the weaker States to remain in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-swisshelm/let-the-erring-sisters-depart-in-peace-the-idea-of-getting-up-a-civil/) [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) > [The diagnosis of drunkenness was that it was a disease for which the patient was in no way responsible, that it was created by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-swisshelm/the-diagnosis-of-drunkenness-was-that-it-was-a-disease-for-which-the/) [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) > [When a woman starts out in the world on a mission, secular or religious, she should leave her feminine charms at home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-swisshelm/when-a-woman-starts-out-in-the-world-on-a-mission-secular-or/) [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) > [It appears to be a matter of national pride that the President is to have more mud, and blacker mud, and filthier mud in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-swisshelm/it-appears-to-be-a-matter-of-national-pride-that-the-president-is-to/) [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) > [Girls, do not scrub and cook and scour until you have no time left to plant a tree, or vine or flower.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-swisshelm/girls-do-not-scrub-and-cook-and-scour-until-you-have-no-time-left-to/) [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) > [A woman with her two children was captured on the steps of the capitol building, whither she had fled for protection, and this, too,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-swisshelm/a-woman-with-her-two-children-was-captured-on-the-steps-of-the/) [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) > [I cannot tell what I am as much afraid of, as a woman who invariably washes on Monday. It is a kind of key…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-swisshelm/i-cannot-tell-what-i-am-as-much-afraid-of-as-a-woman-who-invariably/) [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) > [It is an old adage, "All is fair in love as in war," but I thought not of general laws, and only felt a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-swisshelm/it-is-an-old-adage-all-is-fair-in-love-as-in-war-but-i-thought-not-of/) [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) > [I put away my brushes; resolutely crucified my divine gift, and while it hung writhing on the cross, spent my best years and powers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-swisshelm/i-put-away-my-brushes-resolutely-crucified-my-divine-gift-and-while/) [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) > [So, instead of spending my strength quarreling with the hand, I would strike for the heart of that great tyranny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-swisshelm/so-instead-of-spending-my-strength-quarreling-with-the-hand-i-would/) [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) > [We have not the slightest idea that women are made of such light material that the breath of any fool or knave may blow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-swisshelm/we-have-not-the-slightest-idea-that-women-are-made-of-such-light/) [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) [Explore all 19 Jane Swisshelm quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) ## More Abolitionist quotes > [Nowhere is wisdom more necessary than in the guidance of charitable impulses. Meaning well is only half our duty; Thinking right is the other,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-gridley-howe/nowhere-is-wisdom-more-necessary-than-in-the-guidance-of-charitable/) Samuel Gridley Howe > [“I am aware that many object to the severity of my language; but is there not cause for severity? I will be as harsh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-lloyd-garrison/i-am-aware-that-many-object-to-the-severity-of-my-language-but-is/) [William Lloyd Garrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-lloyd-garrison/) > [“That was when I realized we weren’t born to be slaves. It was ignorant for any man to think he could be the master…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-grewal/that-was-when-i-realized-we-weren-t-born-to-be-slaves-it-was-ignorant/) [Jay Grewal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-grewal/) > [I feel safe even in the midst of my enemies; for the truth is powerful and will prevail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sojourner-truth/i-feel-safe-even-in-the-midst-of-my-enemies-for-the-truth-is-powerful/) [Sojourner Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sojourner-truth/) > [One of the songs that stayed in my head that I really considered a lot was an old folk song called 'John Brown' -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-tarantino/one-of-the-songs-that-stayed-in-my-head-that-i-really-considered-a/) [Quentin Tarantino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-tarantino/) > [Whether by the House or by the People, if an Abolitionist be chosen President of the United States, you will have presented to you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jefferson-davis/whether-by-the-house-or-by-the-people-if-an-abolitionist-be-chosen/) [Jefferson Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jefferson-davis/) > [Many abolitionists have yet to learn the ABC of woman's rights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-b-anthony/many-abolitionists-have-yet-to-learn-the-abc-of-woman-s-rights/) [Susan B. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-b-anthony/) > [You point out that war is only a symptom of the whole horrid business of human behavior, and cannot be isolated. And that, even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-macaulay/you-point-out-that-war-is-only-a-symptom-of-the-whole-horrid-business/) [Rose Macaulay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-macaulay/) > [It’s time for a 21st-century abolitionist movement in the U.S and around the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-d-kristof/it-s-time-for-a-21st-century-abolitionist-movement-in-the-u-s-and/) [Nicholas D. Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-d-kristof/) > [If, while I hear the wild shriek of the slave mother robbed of her little ones, I do not open my mouth, am I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-stone/if-while-i-hear-the-wild-shriek-of-the-slave-mother-robbed-of-her/) [Lucy Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-stone/) > [I was in favour of the death penalty, and disposed to regard abolitionists as people whose hearts were bigger than their heads. Four years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gowers/i-was-in-favour-of-the-death-penalty-and-disposed-to-regard/) Ernest Gowers > [There are those who view the abolitionists as just maniacs, apolitical fanatics who helped to cause the war, and Lincoln is the model of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-foner/there-are-those-who-view-the-abolitionists-as-just-maniacs-apolitical/) [Eric Foner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-foner/) > [In such a condition of affairs, the practical difference between the abolitionist and the sympathizer, to the man who lost his slave and could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sergeant-wise/in-such-a-condition-of-affairs-the-practical-difference-between-the/) [John Sergeant Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sergeant-wise/) > [If I had to write down the most important people in the history of this planet, No.1 would be (abolitionist) John Brown. Why? Because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-gregory/if-i-had-to-write-down-the-most-important-people-in-the-history-of/) [Dick Gregory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-gregory/) > [“These men are all talk. What we need is action—action!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-brown/these-men-are-all-talk-what-we-need-is-action-action/) [John Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-brown/) [Browse all 90 Abolitionist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abolitionist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Abolitionists were men of sharp angles. 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