--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The prison guards are capable of…" description: "\"The prison guards are capable of committing daily atrocities and obscenities, smiling the smile of the angels all the while.\" — Jean Harris" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60a/jean-harris-58255_angel_the-prison-guards-are-capable-of-committ_383750.png" --- # The prison guards are capable of committing daily… ![“The prison guards are capable of committing daily atrocities and obscenities, smiling the smile of the angels all the while.” quote by Jean Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60a/jean-harris-58255_angel_the-prison-guards-are-capable-of-committ_383750.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60a/jean-harris-58255_angel_the-prison-guards-are-capable-of-committ_383750.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60a/jean-harris-58255_angel_the-prison-guards-are-capable-of-committ_383750.png) > “The prison guards are capable of committing daily atrocities and obscenities, smiling the smile of the angels all the while.” [Jean Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-harris/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Guards can commit horrific acts while appearing benevolent, showing the duality of power and cruelty **In simple terms:** Powerful people can hide cruelty behind a kind façade Key Takeaway Beware appearances; recognize hidden cruelty Themes power morality abuse Mood critical somber Type ethical social When to use this quote - prison management - law enforcement - human rights monitoring Key Concepts authority deception violence Questions to Reflect On - What mechanisms enable such dual behavior? - How can institutions prevent abuse? A Different Perspective Such statements may oversimplify complex institutional behavior ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Angel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/angel/) [Atrocities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atrocities/) [Civil rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civil-rights/) [Obscenity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obscenity/) [Prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prison/) [Prison guards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prison-guards/) ## Related quotes > [“The only time they appear human is when you have a knife at their throats. 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Government is in the last…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/it-is-important-to-remember-that-government-interference-always-means-2/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [The prison-industrial complex employs millions of people directly and indirectly. Judges, prosecutors, defense attorneys, prison guards, construction companies that build prisons, police, probation officers,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-alexander/the-prison-industrial-complex-employs-millions-of-people-directly-and/) [Michelle Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-alexander/) > [“I had a chance to read Monte Christo in prison once, too, but not to the end. I observed that while Dumas tries to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/i-had-a-chance-to-read-monte-christo-in-prison-once-too-but-not-to/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [Prison guard unions have become the powerful political forces in some states, particularly California.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-alexander/prison-guard-unions-have-become-the-powerful-political-forces-in-some/) [Michelle Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-alexander/) > [That there is also freedom in captivity, only a prisoner can claim. Coming from a prison guard, this statement would be blasphemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-d-rrenmatt/that-there-is-also-freedom-in-captivity-only-a-prisoner-can-claim/) [Friedrich Durrenmatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-d-rrenmatt/) > [The fastest growing occupation in the private sector is security guards. The fastest growing occupation in the public sector is prison guards. 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No more mas turbating in the dark! No more public confessions! Unscrew the doors from their jambs! I want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/no-more-peeping-through-keyholes-no-more-mas-turbating-in-the-dark-no/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [That which attempts to elevate the ugly to the level of beauty becomes neither; but an obscenity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-donne/that-which-attempts-to-elevate-the-ugly-to-the-level-of-beauty/) [John Donne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-donne/) > [It's true that obscenity is a matter of taste and in the eye of the beholder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-true-that-obscenity-is-a-matter-of-taste-and-in-the-eye-of-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## More by Jean Harris > [Overnight I became a cottage industry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-harris/overnight-i-became-a-cottage-industry/) [Jean Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-harris/) > [It would be ugly to watch people poking sticks at a caged rat. It is uglier still to watch rats poking sticks at a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-harris/it-would-be-ugly-to-watch-people-poking-sticks-at-a-caged-rat-it-is/) [Jean Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-harris/) > [You learn about gratitude by giving. You learn about humility by receiving, and in the pecking order of human qualities, I'd probably put humility…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-harris/you-learn-about-gratitude-by-giving-you-learn-about-humility-by/) [Jean Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-harris/) > [Loving an old bachelor is always a no-win situation, and you come to terms with that early on, or you go away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-harris/loving-an-old-bachelor-is-always-a-no-win-situation-and-you-come-to/) [Jean Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-harris/) > [I had led a private life and wanted to die a private death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-harris/i-had-led-a-private-life-and-wanted-to-die-a-private-death/) [Jean Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-harris/) [Explore all 6 Jean Harris quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-harris/) ## More Angel quotes > [A man walks down the street. It's a street in a strange world. 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And maybe they'll protect all of us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-maclaine/i-believe-in-ufos-i-believe-in-extraterrestrials-and-i-believe-in/) [Shirley MacLaine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-maclaine/) > [Sometimes we have the absolute certainty there's something inside us that's so hideous and monstrous that if we ever search it out we won't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-selby-jr/sometimes-we-have-the-absolute-certainty-there-s-something-inside-us/) [Hubert Selby, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-selby-jr/) > [Flowers are the alphabet of angels, whereby they write on the hills and fields mysterious truths.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/flowers-are-the-alphabet-of-angels-whereby-they-write-on-the-hills/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [You should never feel lonely, neglected, fearful, or defeated when you remember that there are the shining ones. They are watching with keen interest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flower-a-newhouse/you-should-never-feel-lonely-neglected-fearful-or-defeated-when-you/) [Flower A. Newhouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flower-a-newhouse/) > [Hark the herald angels sing, 'Glory to the new-born king.' Peace on earth, and mercy mild, God and sinners reconciled!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-wesley/hark-the-herald-angels-sing-glory-to-the-new-born-king-peace-on-earth/) [Charles Wesley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-wesley/) > [Man was created a little lower than the angels and has been getting a little lower ever since.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-billings/man-was-created-a-little-lower-than-the-angels-and-has-been-getting-a/) [Josh Billings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-billings/) > [Mooner was walking around laying his hands on the cars, divining karma. "this is it", he said, standing by a small khaki-colored jeep."this car…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-evanovich/mooner-was-walking-around-laying-his-hands-on-the-cars-divining-karma/) [Janet Evanovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-evanovich/) [Browse all 4,625 Angel quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/angel/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The prison guards are capable of committing daily atrocities and obscenities, smiling the smile of the angels all the while.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jean Harris" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-harris/the-prison-guards-are-capable-of-committing-daily-atrocities-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Angel" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-harris/the-prison-guards-are-capable-of-committing-daily-atrocities-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60a/jean-harris-58255_angel_the-prison-guards-are-capable-of-committ_383750.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60a/jean-harris-58255_angel_the-prison-guards-are-capable-of-committ_383750.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60a/jean-harris-58255_angel_the-prison-guards-are-capable-of-committ_383750.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The prison guards are capable of committing daily atrocities and obscenities, smiling the smile of the…” — Jean Harris", "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": "Jean Harris", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-harris/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The prison guards are capable of...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-harris/the-prison-guards-are-capable-of-committing-daily-atrocities-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-harris/the-prison-guards-are-capable-of-committing-daily-atrocities-and/#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 } } ] } ```