--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is a crime here that goes beyond…" description: "\"“There is a crime here that goes beyond denunciation. There is a sorrow here that weeping cannot symbolize. There is a failure here that topples all ou..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c5/john-steinbeck-71_nature_there-is-a-crime-here-that-goes-beyond-d_1984814.jpg" --- # There is a crime here that goes beyond denunciation. There… ![“There is a crime here that goes beyond denunciation. There is a sorrow here that weeping cannot symbolize. There is a failure here that topples all our success. The fertile earth, the straight tree rows, the sturdy trunks, and the ripe fruit. And children dying of pellagra must die because a…” quote by John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c5/john-steinbeck-71_nature_there-is-a-crime-here-that-goes-beyond-d_1984814.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c5/john-steinbeck-71_nature_there-is-a-crime-here-that-goes-beyond-d_1984814.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c5/john-steinbeck-71_nature_there-is-a-crime-here-that-goes-beyond-d_1984814.jpg) > ““There is a crime here that goes beyond denunciation. There is a sorrow here that weeping cannot symbolize. There is a failure here that topples all our success. The fertile earth, the straight tree rows, the sturdy trunks, and the ripe fruit. And children dying of pellagra must die because a profit cannot be taken from an orange. And coroners must fill in the certificates—died of malnutrition—because the food must rot, must be forced to rot.”” [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote condemns systemic neglect where profit motives override basic human needs, leading to suffering and death. **In simple terms:** Profit over people causes suffering. Key Takeaway Prioritize human welfare over profit. Themes social injustice poverty health environment economics Mood somber critical Type political social commentary When to use this quote - rural poverty - food security - public health policy - corporate ethics Key Concepts capitalism moral failure public health agricultural policy Questions to Reflect On - How can societies balance profit with basic human needs? - What policies could prevent such systemic failures? A Different Perspective The statement may overlook individual agency and non‑economic causes of malnutrition. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Denunciation Sorrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/denunciation-sorrow-1030623/) [Dying Pellagra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dying-pellagra-3408750/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Ripe fruit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ripe-fruit/) [Sorrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sorrow/) [Sorrow Weeping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sorrow-weeping-941613/) [Weeping Symbolize](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weeping-symbolize-1030624/) ## Related quotes > [“There is a crime here that goes beyond denunciation. There is a sorrow here that weeping cannot symbolize. There is a failure here that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/there-is-a-crime-here-that-goes-beyond-denunciation-there-is-a-sorrow/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“​There is a crime here that goes beyond denunciation. There is a sorrow here that weeping cannot symbolize. There is a failure here that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/there-is-a-crime-here-that-goes-beyond-denunciation-there-is-a-sorrow-2/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [If it were possible to heal sorrow by weeping and to raise the dead with tears, gold were less prized than grief.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/if-it-were-possible-to-heal-sorrow-by-weeping-and-to-raise-the-dead/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“The works of the roots of the vines, of the trees, must be destroyed to keep up the price, and this is the saddest,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/the-works-of-the-roots-of-the-vines-of-the-trees-must-be-destroyed-to/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [True love is the ripe fruit of a lifetime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alphonse-de-lamartine/true-love-is-the-ripe-fruit-of-a-lifetime/) [Alphonse de Lamartine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alphonse-de-lamartine/) > [So may'st thou live, till like ripe fruit thou drop Into thy mother's lap.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/so-may-st-thou-live-till-like-ripe-fruit-thou-drop-into-thy-mother-s/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [She was considered timid and morose. Only in the country, her skin tanned by the sun and her belly full of ripe fruit, running…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/she-was-considered-timid-and-morose-only-in-the-country-her-skin/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [It is sparkling light, aromatic plants, a lofty palace, a flowing river, ripe fruit, a beautiful wife and abundant clothing, in an eternal abode…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad/it-is-sparkling-light-aromatic-plants-a-lofty-palace-a-flowing-river/) [Muhammad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad/) > [To use bitter words, when kind words are at hand, Is like picking unripe fruit when the ripe fruit is there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thiruvalluvar/to-use-bitter-words-when-kind-words-are-at-hand-is-like-picking/) [Thiruvalluvar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thiruvalluvar/) > [“When they have opened you up like a ripe fruit they devour your juices and then spit you out like the seed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u-f-shah/when-they-have-opened-you-up-like-a-ripe-fruit-they-devour-your/) [U.F. Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/u-f-shah/) > [“It’s a puzzle why we binge on the sweetest and greasiest food we can find, until we consider the eating habits of our forager…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/it-s-a-puzzle-why-we-binge-on-the-sweetest-and-greasiest-food-we-can/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [Fruits that blossom first will first be ripe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/fruits-that-blossom-first-will-first-be-ripe/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Educational reforms are like ripe fruit. They rarely travel well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-hargreaves/educational-reforms-are-like-ripe-fruit-they-rarely-travel-well/) [Andy Hargreaves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-hargreaves/) > [There are moments when a rope's end, a pole, the branch of the tree, is life itself, and it is a frightful thing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/there-are-moments-when-a-rope-s-end-a-pole-the-branch-of-the-tree-is/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“On the third day, she smelled the fruit as soon as she came in. She followed the scent to the kitchen, and the peach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allegra-goodman/on-the-third-day-she-smelled-the-fruit-as-soon-as-she-came-in-she/) [Allegra Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allegra-goodman/) ## More by John Steinbeck > [ Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. My three \[great teachers\] did not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/teaching-might-even-be-the-greatest-of-the-arts-since-the-medium-is/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [Prayer never brought in no side-meat. Takes a shoat to bring in pork.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/prayer-never-brought-in-no-side-meat-takes-a-shoat-to-bring-in-pork/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“And now submarines are armed with mass murder, our silly, only way of deterring mass murder.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/and-now-submarines-are-armed-with-mass-murder-our-silly-only-way-of/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“I’d think there are degrees of greatness,” Adam said. “I don’t think so,” said Samuel. “That would be like saying there is a little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-d-think-there-are-degrees-of-greatness-adam-said-i-don-t-think-so/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“He was forever inventing a new way of doing an old thing and doing it better and quicker, but he never in his whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/he-was-forever-inventing-a-new-way-of-doing-an-old-thing-and-doing-it/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“You come back a changed man. Samuel, you don’t change him. He changes you. I can see the look of him in your face.”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/you-come-back-a-changed-man-samuel-you-don-t-change-him-he-changes/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [I find out of long experience that I admire all nations and hate all governments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-find-out-of-long-experience-that-i-admire-all-nations-and-hate-all/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [At about 10 o'clock in the morning the sun threw a bright dust-laden bar through one of the side windows and in and out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/at-about-10-o-clock-in-the-morning-the-sun-threw-a-bright-dust-laden/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [I have noticed that there is no dissatisfaction like that of the rich. Feed a man, clothe him, put him in a good house,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-have-noticed-that-there-is-no-dissatisfaction-like-that-of-the-rich/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“Who in his mind has not probe the dark water?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/who-in-his-mind-has-not-probe-the-dark-water/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [Sometimes, a lie is told in kindness. I don't believe it ever works kindly. The quick pain of truth can pass away, but the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/sometimes-a-lie-is-told-in-kindness-i-don-t-believe-it-ever-works/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [People like you to be something, preferably what they are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/people-like-you-to-be-something-preferably-what-they-are/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“Suddenly he knew joy and sorrow felted into one fabric. Courage and fear were one thing too. He found that he had started to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/suddenly-he-knew-joy-and-sorrow-felted-into-one-fabric-courage-and/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [I am writing this from what we Americans call Yurrp. In Yurrp writers are taken as seriously as Lana Turner's legs are in America…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-am-writing-this-from-what-we-americans-call-yurrp-in-yurrp-writers/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [I write because I like to write. I find joy in the texture and tone and rhythm of words. It is a satisfaction like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-write-because-i-like-to-write-i-find-joy-in-the-texture-and-tone/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) [Explore all 1,589 John Steinbeck quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) ## More Nature quotes > [It is indeed a surprising and fortunate fact that nature can be expressed by relatively low-order mathematical functions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-carnap/it-is-indeed-a-surprising-and-fortunate-fact-that-nature-can-be/) [Rudolf Carnap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-carnap/) > [Remember that your natural state is joy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/remember-that-your-natural-state-is-joy/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Borrow trouble for yourself, if that's your nature, but don't lend it to your neighbours.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudyard-kipling/borrow-trouble-for-yourself-if-that-s-your-nature-but-don-t-lend-it/) [Rudyard Kipling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudyard-kipling/) > [There is no human nature, since there is no god to conceive it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/there-is-no-human-nature-since-there-is-no-god-to-conceive-it/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [“Men mistook measurement for understanding. And they always had to put themselves at the center of everything. That was their greatest conceit. The earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/men-mistook-measurement-for-understanding-and-they-always-had-to-put/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [“She was, he knew- and had known very early, he supposed- one of those rare and always lovely humans whose moral nature was so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-williams/she-was-he-knew-and-had-known-very-early-he-supposed-one-of-those/) [John Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-williams/) > [“When the water covers the earth the sun will vanish the darkess and the cold will come.When the last dragon and the last Elf…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/silvana-de-mari/when-the-water-covers-the-earth-the-sun-will-vanish-the-darkess-and/) [Silvana de Mari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/silvana-de-mari/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [“It is not the force of the wind, but the depth of the roots.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/it-is-not-the-force-of-the-wind-but-the-depth-of-the-roots/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [The history of mankind interests us only as it exhibits a steady gain of truth and right, in the incessant conflict which it records…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-history-of-mankind-interests-us-only-as-it-exhibits-a-steady-gain/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Nothing is so powerful as an insight into human nature... what compulsions drive a man, what instincts dominate his action. If you know these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-bernbach/nothing-is-so-powerful-as-an-insight-into-human-nature-what/) [William Bernbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-bernbach/) > [Sing like no one's listening, love like you've never been hurt, dance like nobody's watching, and live like its heaven on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/sing-like-no-one-s-listening-love-like-you-ve-never-been-hurt-dance/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) [Browse all 47,383 Nature quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“There is a crime here that goes beyond denunciation. There is a sorrow here that weeping cannot symbolize. There is a failure here that topples all our success. The fertile earth, the straight tree rows, the sturdy trunks, and the ripe fruit. And children dying of pellagra must die because a profit cannot be taken from an orange. And coroners must fill in the certificates—died of malnutrition—because the food must rot, must be forced to rot.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Steinbeck" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/there-is-a-crime-here-that-goes-beyond-denunciation-there-is-a-sorrow-3/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Nature" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/there-is-a-crime-here-that-goes-beyond-denunciation-there-is-a-sorrow-3/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c5/john-steinbeck-71_nature_there-is-a-crime-here-that-goes-beyond-d_1984814.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c5/john-steinbeck-71_nature_there-is-a-crime-here-that-goes-beyond-d_1984814.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c5/john-steinbeck-71_nature_there-is-a-crime-here-that-goes-beyond-d_1984814.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There is a crime here that goes beyond denunciation. There is a sorrow here that weeping cannot symbolize…” — John Steinbeck", "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": "John Steinbeck", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“There is a crime here that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/there-is-a-crime-here-that-goes-beyond-denunciation-there-is-a-sorrow-3/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/there-is-a-crime-here-that-goes-beyond-denunciation-there-is-a-sorrow-3/#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 } } ] } ```