--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Virginians were no more angels or…" description: "\"Virginians were no more angels or philanthropists than people to the north or to the south of them. They were moved by their affections, their interest..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32d/john-sergeant-wise-25485_affections_virginians-were-no-more-angels-or-philan_275871.jpg" --- # Virginians were no more angels or philanthropists than… ![“Virginians were no more angels or philanthropists than people to the north or to the south of them. They were moved by their affections, their interest, and their resentments, just as humanity is moved to-day.” quote by John Sergeant Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32d/john-sergeant-wise-25485_affections_virginians-were-no-more-angels-or-philan_275871.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32d/john-sergeant-wise-25485_affections_virginians-were-no-more-angels-or-philan_275871.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32d/john-sergeant-wise-25485_affections_virginians-were-no-more-angels-or-philan_275871.jpg) > “Virginians were no more angels or philanthropists than people to the north or to the south of them. They were moved by their affections, their interest, and their resentments, just as humanity is moved to-day.” [John Sergeant Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sergeant-wise/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Notes that Virginians share human flaws like any region, driven by emotions and interests **In simple terms:** People everywhere are influenced by feelings and personal motives Key Takeaway Recognize common humanity beyond regional stereotypes Themes human nature regional identity emotions politics bias Mood reflective thoughtful Type political philosophical When to use this quote - public debate - education - community building Key Concepts psychology social dynamics political rhetoric Questions to Reflect On - In what ways do emotions shape political decisions? - How can we foster empathy across regional divides? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Affections](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affections/) [Angels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/angels/) [Humanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humanity/) [Interest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interest/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [North](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/north/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/today/) [Virginians](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virginians/) ## Related quotes > [For humanity has moved forward to an era when wrong and slavery are being displaced, and reason and justice are being recognized as the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-humanity-has-moved-forward-to-an-era-when-wrong-and-slavery-are/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [ According to Adams, Jefferson proposed that he, Adams, do the writing \[pf the Declaration of Independence\], but that he declined, telling Jefferson he must… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mccullough/according-to-adams-jefferson-proposed-that-he-adams-do-the-writing-pf/) [David McCullough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mccullough/) > [You are a Virginian, and a Virginian ought to appear at the head of this business. I am obnoxious, suspected and unpopular; you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-adams/you-are-a-virginian-and-a-virginian-ought-to-appear-at-the-head-of/) [John Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-adams/) > [The will of Virginians was clear: Parents should have a say in education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-youngkin/the-will-of-virginians-was-clear-parents-should-have-a-say-in/) [Glenn Youngkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-youngkin/) > [The distinctions between Virginians, Pennsylvanians, New Yorkers, and New Englanders are no more. I Am Not A Virginian, But An American!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-henry/the-distinctions-between-virginians-pennsylvanians-new-yorkers-and/) [Patrick Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-henry/) > [The thing that influenced me most in relation to 'Nanny McPhee' were the Westerns I watched with my father. All the Spaghetti Westerns; all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-thompson/the-thing-that-influenced-me-most-in-relation-to-nanny-mcphee-were/) [Emma Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-thompson/) > [The Army of Northern Virginia was never defeated. It merely wore itself out whipping the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jubal-early/the-army-of-northern-virginia-was-never-defeated-it-merely-wore/) [Jubal Early](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jubal-early/) > [Virginians deserve someone in Richmond who will always have their back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-northam/virginians-deserve-someone-in-richmond-who-will-always-have-their-back/) [Ralph Northam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-northam/) > [Tim Kaine can't point to a single accomplishment in the United States Senate for Virginia or Virginians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corey-stewart/tim-kaine-can-t-point-to-a-single-accomplishment-in-the-united-states/) [Corey Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corey-stewart/) > [Rural Virginians know when they're getting a raw deal - when other parts of the state get attention and resources and folks on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-northam/rural-virginians-know-when-they-re-getting-a-raw-deal-when-other/) [Ralph Northam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-northam/) > [Central Virginians have a proud, centuries-long record of service and commitment to country, and each year, we gather to honor our neighbors who have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-spanberger/central-virginians-have-a-proud-centuries-long-record-of-service-and/) [Abigail Spanberger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-spanberger/) > [Unlike Wimpy Tim Kaine, Virginians have a warrior spirit and a rebel heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corey-stewart/unlike-wimpy-tim-kaine-virginians-have-a-warrior-spirit-and-a-rebel/) [Corey Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corey-stewart/) > [Virginians were nice, they confided to each other, if caught singly. Two Virginians, of course, talked horses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-scott-rorick/virginians-were-nice-they-confided-to-each-other-if-caught-singly-two/) Isabel Scott Rorick > [Virginians deserve civility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-northam/virginians-deserve-civility/) [Ralph Northam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-northam/) > [I am very proud of the critical role West Virginians play in providing energy to our nation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-manchin/i-am-very-proud-of-the-critical-role-west-virginians-play-in/) [Joe Manchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-manchin/) ## More by John Sergeant Wise > [America is good enough for us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sergeant-wise/america-is-good-enough-for-us/) [John Sergeant Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sergeant-wise/) > [The first American ancestor of our name was a younger son of these old Devonshire people, and came to the Virginia colony in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sergeant-wise/the-first-american-ancestor-of-our-name-was-a-younger-son-of-these/) [John Sergeant Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sergeant-wise/) > [I was a tried seaman when, for the first time, I set foot upon the soil of my country, and took up my residence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sergeant-wise/i-was-a-tried-seaman-when-for-the-first-time-i-set-foot-upon-the-soil/) [John Sergeant Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sergeant-wise/) > [It is true, there was no public-school system, and the reason for it was very plain. The wealth of the upper classes enabled them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sergeant-wise/it-is-true-there-was-no-public-school-system-and-the-reason-for-it/) [John Sergeant Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sergeant-wise/) > [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/) > [The attack of John Brown upon Harper's Ferry came upon Virginia like a clap of thunder out of a clear sky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sergeant-wise/the-attack-of-john-brown-upon-harper-s-ferry-came-upon-virginia-like/) [John Sergeant Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sergeant-wise/) > [And let me tell you, you boys of America, that there is no higher inspiration to any man to be a good man, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sergeant-wise/and-let-me-tell-you-you-boys-of-america-that-there-is-no-higher/) [John Sergeant Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sergeant-wise/) > [In all her history, from the formation of the federal government until the hour of secession, no year stands out more prominently than the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sergeant-wise/in-all-her-history-from-the-formation-of-the-federal-government-until/) [John Sergeant Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sergeant-wise/) > [In the year 1857, passing through Washington on our return from the annual visit to Philadelphia, I had the distinguished honor of visiting a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sergeant-wise/in-the-year-1857-passing-through-washington-on-our-return-from-the/) [John Sergeant Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sergeant-wise/) > [Even if my mother had no qualms of conscience concerning ownership of negroes, her sense of duty carried her far beyond the mere supplying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sergeant-wise/even-if-my-mother-had-no-qualms-of-conscience-concerning-ownership-of/) [John Sergeant Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sergeant-wise/) > [John Brown was tried for treason, murder, and inciting slaves to insurrection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sergeant-wise/john-brown-was-tried-for-treason-murder-and-inciting-slaves-to/) [John Sergeant Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sergeant-wise/) > [Father had notions about manhood suffrage, public schools, the education and the elevation of the masses, and the gradual emancipation of the slaves, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sergeant-wise/father-had-notions-about-manhood-suffrage-public-schools-the/) [John Sergeant Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sergeant-wise/) > [However the Southern man may have been master of the negro, there were compensatory processes whereby certain negroes were masters of their masters' children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sergeant-wise/however-the-southern-man-may-have-been-master-of-the-negro-there-were/) [John Sergeant Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sergeant-wise/) > [THE autumn of 1850 brought an event freighted with deep significance to me. My mother died.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sergeant-wise/the-autumn-of-1850-brought-an-event-freighted-with-deep-significance/) [John Sergeant Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sergeant-wise/) > [That settled Abraham Lincoln with me. I was thoroughly satisfied that no such man ought to be President; but I could not yet conceive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sergeant-wise/that-settled-abraham-lincoln-with-me-i-was-thoroughly-satisfied-that/) [John Sergeant Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sergeant-wise/) [Explore all 23 John Sergeant Wise quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sergeant-wise/) ## More Affections quotes > [A difference of taste in jokes is a great strain on the affections.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-difference-of-taste-in-jokes-is-a-great-strain-on-the-affections/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A woman's life is a history of the affections.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washington-irving/a-woman-s-life-is-a-history-of-the-affections/) [Washington Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washington-irving/) > [A woman's whole life is a history of the affections. - Washington Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-woman-s-whole-life-is-a-history-of-the-affections-washington-irving/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A woman's whole life is a history of the affections. The heart is her world: it is there her ambition strives for empire; it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washington-irving/a-woman-s-whole-life-is-a-history-of-the-affections-the-heart-is-her/) [Washington Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washington-irving/) > [“Necessity is very often the mother of romance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-sebag-montefiore/necessity-is-very-often-the-mother-of-romance/) [Simon Sebag Montefiore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-sebag-montefiore/) > [When the affections so kindly break loose, Joy, is another name for Religion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-sterne/when-the-affections-so-kindly-break-loose-joy-is-another-name-for/) [Laurence Sterne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-sterne/) > [The principle we call self-love never seeks anything external for the sake of the thing, but only as a means of happiness or good:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-butler/the-principle-we-call-self-love-never-seeks-anything-external-for-the/) [Joseph Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-butler/) > [That is the great mistake about the affections. It is not the rise and fall of empires, the birth and death of kings, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amelia-barr/that-is-the-great-mistake-about-the-affections-it-is-not-the-rise-and/) [Amelia Barr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelia-barr/) > [I sometimes wish I had been educated a Catholic, in order to unite the poetry of religion with its higher principles. Are they necessarily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-fenimore-cooper/i-sometimes-wish-i-had-been-educated-a-catholic-in-order-to-unite-the/) [James Fenimore Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-fenimore-cooper/) > [“Minimizing the importance of transformed feelings makes Christian conversion less supernatural and less radical. It is humanly manageable to make decisions of the will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-piper/minimizing-the-importance-of-transformed-feelings-makes-christian/) [John Piper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-piper/) > [“This was how it was with travel: one city gives you gifts, another robs you. One gives you the heart’s affections, the other destroys…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roman-payne/this-was-how-it-was-with-travel-one-city-gives-you-gifts-another-robs/) [Roman Payne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roman-payne/) > [Humid seal of soft affections, Tend'rest pledge of future bliss, Dearest tie of young connections, Love's first snow-drop, virgin kiss.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-burns/humid-seal-of-soft-affections-tend-rest-pledge-of-future-bliss/) [Robert Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-burns/) > [“The affections are more reticent than the passions, and their expression more subtle.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/the-affections-are-more-reticent-than-the-passions-and-their/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [Son, brother, father, lover, friend. There is room in the heart for all the affections, as there is room in heaven for all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/son-brother-father-lover-friend-there-is-room-in-the-heart-for-all/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“Grant that, by purity of life, we may repair the past; that, by the fervor of our affections, we may return Thy love; and,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-j-arnoudt/grant-that-by-purity-of-life-we-may-repair-the-past-that-by-the/) [Peter J. Arnoudt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-j-arnoudt/) [Browse all 110 Affections quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affections/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Virginians were no more angels or philanthropists than people to the north or to the south of them. 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