--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Dull would be the man who should merely…" description: "\"Dull would be the man who should merely tolerate this plan of social industry. Weak would be the position of him who should take an apologetic tone in ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e83/john-bates-clark-34020_apologetic_dull-would-be-the-man-who-should-merely_2785488.jpg" --- # Dull would be the man who should merely tolerate this plan… ![“Dull would be the man who should merely tolerate this plan of social industry. Weak would be the position of him who should take an apologetic tone in defending it, or present its claims in a merely negative way, by exposing the evils and perils of the socialistic plan.” quote by John Bates Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e83/john-bates-clark-34020_apologetic_dull-would-be-the-man-who-should-merely_2785488.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e83/john-bates-clark-34020_apologetic_dull-would-be-the-man-who-should-merely_2785488.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e83/john-bates-clark-34020_apologetic_dull-would-be-the-man-who-should-merely_2785488.jpg) > “Dull would be the man who should merely tolerate this plan of social industry. Weak would be the position of him who should take an apologetic tone in defending it, or present its claims in a merely negative way, by exposing the evils and perils of the socialistic plan.” [John Bates Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bates-clark/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A tolerant stance toward a social plan is weak; critique should expose its flaws rather than merely defend it. **In simple terms:** Critique must be honest, not apologetic. Key Takeaway Offer rigorous critique. Themes politics social policy critique Mood critical thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - policy debates - academic writing - activism Key Concepts ethical analysis public discourse Questions to Reflect On - What balance between critique and constructive dialogue? - How can you expose flaws without dismissing ideas? A Different Perspective Over‑critical stance can alienate allies. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Apologetic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apologetic/) [Industry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/industry/) [Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [Tone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tone/) ## Related quotes > [“Ignoring somebody’s mistakes in life from a powerful position makes you a saint, but the same act (whose intention does not matter), if carried…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravindra-shukla/ignoring-somebody-s-mistakes-in-life-from-a-powerful-position-makes/) [Ravindra Shukla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravindra-shukla/) > [I believe the Obama administration, from the president on down, has taken a very weak position regarding granting Palestine statehood at the United Nations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ileana-ros-lehtinen/i-believe-the-obama-administration-from-the-president-on-down-has/) [Ileana Ros-Lehtinen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ileana-ros-lehtinen/) > [The great man is not so great as folks think, and the dull man is not quite so stupid as he seems. The difference…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/the-great-man-is-not-so-great-as-folks-think-and-the-dull-man-is-not/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [“I am probably a dull man. Emotionally I have had no complications. I was engaged to a pretty girl, a neighbor, when I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daphne-du-maurier/i-am-probably-a-dull-man-emotionally-i-have-had-no-complications-i/) [Daphne du Maurier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daphne-du-maurier/) > [A mere literary man is a dull man; a man who is solely a man of business is a selfish man; but when literature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/a-mere-literary-man-is-a-dull-man-a-man-who-is-solely-a-man-of/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [“Anger will make a dull man witty, but very little money.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-i-tudor/anger-will-make-a-dull-man-witty-but-very-little-money/) Elizabeth I Tudor > [It is widely held that too much wine will dull a man's desire. Indeed it will...in a dull man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-widely-held-that-too-much-wine-will-dull-a-man-s-desire-indeed/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Labour is good for a man, bracing up his energies to conquest, And without it life is dull, the man perceiving himself useless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-farquhar-tupper/labour-is-good-for-a-man-bracing-up-his-energies-to-conquest-and/) [Martin Farquhar Tupper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-farquhar-tupper/) > [You have been second always. Tragical? No. You preferred it to the usual thing: One dull man, dulling and uxorious, One average mind- with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/you-have-been-second-always-tragical-no-you-preferred-it-to-the-usual/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [It is the dull man who is always sure, and the sure man who is always dull.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-the-dull-man-who-is-always-sure-and-the-sure-man-who-is-always/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [No man's brain is so dull, and no man's eye so blind, that they cannot catch food for dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-g-mitchell/no-man-s-brain-is-so-dull-and-no-man-s-eye-so-blind-that-they-cannot/) [Donald G. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-g-mitchell/) > [I'm actually a rather dull man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-allen/i-m-actually-a-rather-dull-man/) [Keith Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-allen/) > [Somehow love gives even to a dull man the knowledge of his lover's heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hope/somehow-love-gives-even-to-a-dull-man-the-knowledge-of-his-lover-s/) [Anthony Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hope/) > [Only a very dull man spells a word the same way twice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/only-a-very-dull-man-spells-a-word-the-same-way-twice/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [Dull indeed would be the man that did not feel the thrill awakened by the first glimpse of brilliant color in the orchard, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-cleveland-bent/dull-indeed-would-be-the-man-that-did-not-feel-the-thrill-awakened-by/) Arthur Cleveland Bent ## More by John Bates Clark > [In a recent decision of the Supreme Court, not made, however, by the full court, and concurred in by only four justices, it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bates-clark/in-a-recent-decision-of-the-supreme-court-not-made-however-by-the/) [John Bates Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bates-clark/) > [If a man were living in isolation his income would be literally his product. Make him the monarch and owner of an island, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bates-clark/if-a-man-were-living-in-isolation-his-income-would-be-literally-his/) [John Bates Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bates-clark/) > [As the work progresses the careful reader will insert mental interrogation points here and there. He will find that his interest increases as the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bates-clark/as-the-work-progresses-the-careful-reader-will-insert-mental/) [John Bates Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bates-clark/) > [A laborer no longer makes whole articles. He receives raw materials, puts his touch on them, and passes them to another worker in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bates-clark/a-laborer-no-longer-makes-whole-articles-he-receives-raw-materials/) [John Bates Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bates-clark/) > [Socialism appeals to better classes and has far more strength. Attack the state and you excite feelings of loyalty even among the disaffected classes;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bates-clark/socialism-appeals-to-better-classes-and-has-far-more-strength-attack/) [John Bates Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bates-clark/) > [The first issue to be settled is whether socialism has a right to exist. Are its allegations concerning the present system true? Is industry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bates-clark/the-first-issue-to-be-settled-is-whether-socialism-has-a-right-to/) [John Bates Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bates-clark/) > [We cannot afford to have any large section of the business world in doubt whether they have broken the laws or not, and we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bates-clark/we-cannot-afford-to-have-any-large-section-of-the-business-world-in/) [John Bates Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bates-clark/) > [When we say that the persistence of competition is ensured by fate, we mean that individual freedom is so guaranteed. The one thing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bates-clark/when-we-say-that-the-persistence-of-competition-is-ensured-by-fate-we/) [John Bates Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bates-clark/) > [The limit is not as narrow as it might be. I do not claim for this action, as it now goes on, an ideal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bates-clark/the-limit-is-not-as-narrow-as-it-might-be-i-do-not-claim-for-this/) [John Bates Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bates-clark/) > [If the adjustment made by a court can be accepted or not, it will be refused whenever the men can gain more by continuing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bates-clark/if-the-adjustment-made-by-a-court-can-be-accepted-or-not-it-will-be/) [John Bates Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bates-clark/) > [The decree of a coercive tribunal would not need to conform to the true standard of wages, the final productivity of social labor. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bates-clark/the-decree-of-a-coercive-tribunal-would-not-need-to-conform-to-the/) [John Bates Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bates-clark/) > [Experience alone can give a final answer. The knowledge gained in a few years by a commission of the kind suggested would be worth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bates-clark/experience-alone-can-give-a-final-answer-the-knowledge-gained-in-a/) [John Bates Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bates-clark/) > [The market tends to pay as a wage what an individual laborer is worth. But the case last studied suggests the question how accurately…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bates-clark/the-market-tends-to-pay-as-a-wage-what-an-individual-laborer-is-worth/) [John Bates Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bates-clark/) [Explore all 14 John Bates Clark quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bates-clark/) ## More Apologetic quotes > [If writing with a goal - whether it be evangelistic, apologetic, or didactic - implies propaganda, then all recorded history is propaganda. . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-copan/if-writing-with-a-goal-whether-it-be-evangelistic-apologetic-or/) [Paul Copan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-copan/) > [In the New Testament alone there are Gospels, acts, epistles, and an apocalypse. Gospels contain literary forms like miracles, parables, pronouncements, proverbs, farewell discourses,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-blomberg/in-the-new-testament-alone-there-are-gospels-acts-epistles-and-an/) [Craig Blomberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-blomberg/) > [We preach sermons, write books on apologetics, conduct city-wide evangelistic campaigns. For those alienated from the church, that approach no longer has the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/we-preach-sermons-write-books-on-apologetics-conduct-city-wide/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [The purpose of apologetics is not just to win an argument or a discussion, but that people with whom we are in contact may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-schaeffer/the-purpose-of-apologetics-is-not-just-to-win-an-argument-or-a/) [Francis Schaeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-schaeffer/) > [I'm a single-issue voter, to get straight to the point. I'm really only interested in the candidate who's toughest and least apologetic when it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-m-a-single-issue-voter-to-get-straight-to-the-point-i-m-really-only/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Writing is a vocation and, as in any other calling, a writer should develop his talents for the greater glory of God. Novels should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/piers-paul-read/writing-is-a-vocation-and-as-in-any-other-calling-a-writer-should/) Piers Paul Read > [... and yet he could also be very charming, in a bookish, infinitely apologetic way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-mclain/and-yet-he-could-also-be-very-charming-in-a-bookish-infinitely/) [Paula McLain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-mclain/) > [When I started playing in bands, we had to be apologetic for what we did. We had to be apologetic because the mainstream was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-antonoff/when-i-started-playing-in-bands-we-had-to-be-apologetic-for-what-we/) [Jack Antonoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-antonoff/) > [“The snow lay thin and apologetic over the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cooper/the-snow-lay-thin-and-apologetic-over-the-world/) [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) > [In a post-modern culture we need an apologetic that is felt and seen because if post-moderns are not feeling it, they are not believing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/in-a-post-modern-culture-we-need-an-apologetic-that-is-felt-and-seen/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [I'm apologetic when I feel like I've made a mistake. And when I have done a disservice to myself or someone else. But I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-rice/i-m-apologetic-when-i-feel-like-i-ve-made-a-mistake-and-when-i-have/) [Susan Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-rice/) > [I know I'm an overachiever, and I'm not apologetic about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyra-banks/i-know-i-m-an-overachiever-and-i-m-not-apologetic-about-it/) [Tyra Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyra-banks/) > [Apologetics has an important place in the local church as we seek to influence our communities for Christ in an increasingly skeptical culture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-strobel/apologetics-has-an-important-place-in-the-local-church-as-we-seek-to/) [Lee Strobel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-strobel/) > [If you don't feel apologetic for slavery, if you don't feel apologetic for colonialism, if you feel proud of it then say that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-jackson/if-you-don-t-feel-apologetic-for-slavery-if-you-don-t-feel-apologetic/) [Jesse Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-jackson/) > [Most apologetic books are really written for Christians, even the ones that purport to be written for non-believers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/most-apologetic-books-are-really-written-for-christians-even-the-ones/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) [Browse all 127 Apologetic quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apologetic/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Dull would be the man who should merely tolerate this plan of social industry. 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