--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Nothing is so awkward as a demonstration…" description: "\"“Nothing is so awkward as a demonstration of humanity by the enemy.”\" — Kōbō Abe" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/264/kobo-abe-9863_awkwardness_nothing-is-so-awkward-as-a-demonstration_940005.jpg" --- # Nothing is so awkward as a demonstration of humanity by… ![“Nothing is so awkward as a demonstration of humanity by the enemy.” quote by Kōbō Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/264/kobo-abe-9863_awkwardness_nothing-is-so-awkward-as-a-demonstration_940005.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/264/kobo-abe-9863_awkwardness_nothing-is-so-awkward-as-a-demonstration_940005.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/264/kobo-abe-9863_awkwardness_nothing-is-so-awkward-as-a-demonstration_940005.jpg) > ““Nothing is so awkward as a demonstration of humanity by the enemy.”” [Kōbō Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Humanity displayed by an adversary feels especially uncomfortable because it reveals shared vulnerability. **In simple terms:** Enemy showing humanity is awkward. Key Takeaway Recognize shared humanity even in opponents. Themes empathy conflict identity Mood uneasy reflective Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - war - political negotiations - interpersonal conflict - cultural exchange Key Concepts existentialism otherness Questions to Reflect On - How does seeing humanity in an enemy change your response? - Can empathy be weaponized? A Different Perspective It may be used to manipulate or soften aggression. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Awkward Demonstration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/awkward-demonstration-1599314/) [Awkwardness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/awkwardness/) [Demonstration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demonstration/) [Demonstration Humanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demonstration-humanity-1599313/) [Enmity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enmity/) [Hostility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hostility/) [Humanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humanity/) [Humanity Enemy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humanity-enemy-1599315/) [Nature of man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-man/) [Relationships](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/relationships/) ## Related quotes > [The enemy of a tree is not only the enemy of humanity, but also the enemy of all the living beings!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/the-enemy-of-a-tree-is-not-only-the-enemy-of-humanity-but-also-the/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [If there ever was in the history of humanity an enemy who was truly universal, an enemy whose acts and moves trouble the entire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fidel-castro/if-there-ever-was-in-the-history-of-humanity-an-enemy-who-was-truly/) [Fidel Castro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fidel-castro/) > [The memories which peaceful country scenes call up, are not of this world, nor of its thoughts and hopes. Their gentle influence may teach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/the-memories-which-peaceful-country-scenes-call-up-are-not-of-this/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [If there be any who nurture in their hearts the poisonous brew of enmity toward another, I plead with you to ask the Lord…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/if-there-be-any-who-nurture-in-their-hearts-the-poisonous-brew-of/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [We had fed the heart on fantasies, The heart's grown brutal from the fare, More substance in our enmities Than in our love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-had-fed-the-heart-on-fantasies-the-heart-s-grown-brutal-from-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [But if you should take the bond of goodwill out of the universe no house or city could stand, nor would even the tillage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/but-if-you-should-take-the-bond-of-goodwill-out-of-the-universe-no/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) > [I am not interested to know whether vivisection produces results that are profitable to the human race or doesn't...The pain which it inflicts upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/i-am-not-interested-to-know-whether-vivisection-produces-results-that/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [“It's important that these people think of their adversaries specifically as assholes. That's what gives the modern rhetoric of polarization its singular stamp and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoffrey-nunberg/it-s-important-that-these-people-think-of-their-adversaries/) [Geoffrey Nunberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoffrey-nunberg/) > [There is an old saying which, from its truth, has become proverbial, that friendships should be immortal, enmities mortal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/livy/there-is-an-old-saying-which-from-its-truth-has-become-proverbial/) [Livy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/livy/) > [“Sufis are those who have expunged from their minds the human tendencies of envy and enmity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idries-shah/sufis-are-those-who-have-expunged-from-their-minds-the-human/) [Idries Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idries-shah/) > [As far back as she could remember, a phantom life had mocked her with its impenetrable “something else,” but now it was the opposite.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laini-taylor/as-far-back-as-she-could-remember-a-phantom-life-had-mocked-her-with/) [Laini Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laini-taylor/) > [Do nondoing, strive for non-stiving, savor the flavourless, make much of little, repay enmity with virture; plan for difficulty when it is still easy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/do-nondoing-strive-for-non-stiving-savor-the-flavourless-make-much-of/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [The enmity of such a party towards Socialism does not mean that the members are only prejudiced against it because they do not know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-radek/the-enmity-of-such-a-party-towards-socialism-does-not-mean-that-the/) [Karl Radek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-radek/) > [Do nondoing, strive for nonstriving, savor the flavorless, regard the small as important, make much of little, repay enmity with virtue; plan for difficulty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/do-nondoing-strive-for-nonstriving-savor-the-flavorless-regard-the/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [Most of us think of pride as self-centeredness, conceit, boastfulness, arrogance, or haughtiness. All of these are elements of the sin, but the heart,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-taft-benson/most-of-us-think-of-pride-as-self-centeredness-conceit-boastfulness/) [Ezra Taft Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-taft-benson/) ## More by Kōbō Abe > [“People like me who lack something are liable to become spiteful critics.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/people-like-me-who-lack-something-are-liable-to-become-spiteful/) [Kobo Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/) > [“I rather think the world is like sand. The fundamental nature of sand is very difficult to grasp when you think of it in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/i-rather-think-the-world-is-like-sand-the-fundamental-nature-of-sand/) [Kōbō Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/) > [“Injuries to the body, especially the face, are not treated simply as problems of form. We should rather speak of themas belonging in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/injuries-to-the-body-especially-the-face-are-not-treated-simply-as/) [Kōbō Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/) > [“What we mean when we say "terrible conditions" is conditions which we are aware of as being terrible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/what-we-mean-when-we-say-terrible-conditions-is-conditions-which-we/) [Kōbō Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/) > [“He wanted to believe that his own lack of movement had stopped all movement in the world, the way a hibernating frog abolishes winter.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/he-wanted-to-believe-that-his-own-lack-of-movement-had-stopped-all/) [Kōbō Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/) > [“One could not do without repetition in life, like the beating of the heart, but it was also true that the beating of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/one-could-not-do-without-repetition-in-life-like-the-beating-of-the/) [Kōbō Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/) > [“It is manifestly pregnant and has a bulging white belly heavy with its load of kittens.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/it-is-manifestly-pregnant-and-has-a-bulging-white-belly-heavy-with/) [Kōbō Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/) > [Many people ask why a writer commits suicide. But I think that people who ask don't know the vanity and the nothingness of writing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/many-people-ask-why-a-writer-commits-suicide-but-i-think-that-people/) [Kobo Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/) > [Defeat begins with the fear that one has lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/defeat-begins-with-the-fear-that-one-has-lost/) [Kobo Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/) > [“Being free always involves being lonely.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/being-free-always-involves-being-lonely/) [Kōbō Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/) > [“Everyone has his own philosophy that doesn't hold good for anybody else.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/everyone-has-his-own-philosophy-that-doesn-t-hold-good-for-anybody/) [Kōbō Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/) > [“It would seem that marsupials are poor imitations of full-fledged mammals. Their inadequacy gives them a certain appeal; we’re touched by it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/it-would-seem-that-marsupials-are-poor-imitations-of-full-fledged/) [Kōbō Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/) > [“The suffering of being imprisoned rests in the fact that it is impossible, at any time, to escape from oneself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/the-suffering-of-being-imprisoned-rests-in-the-fact-that-it-is/) [Kōbō Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/) > [When I was young, I could bounce back from things like a brand-new rubber ball.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/when-i-was-young-i-could-bounce-back-from-things-like-a-brand-new/) [Kobo Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/) > [“If there were no risk of a punishment, a getaway would lose the pleasure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/if-there-were-no-risk-of-a-punishment-a-getaway-would-lose-the/) [Kōbō Abe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/) [Explore all 67 Kōbō Abe quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/) ## More Awkwardness quotes > [Well, my intention is to make work about being uncomfortable. About being in a world that isn't always the world you want to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurel-nakadate/well-my-intention-is-to-make-work-about-being-uncomfortable-about/) [Laurel Nakadate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurel-nakadate/) > [It's awkward doing it with anybody, but it's like Twister.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-pattinson/it-s-awkward-doing-it-with-anybody-but-it-s-like-twister/) [Robert Pattinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-pattinson/) > [To combat social awkwardness, I would just act like I couldn't be bothered - that kind of aloof persona or aloof demeanor. It's so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janeane-garofalo/to-combat-social-awkwardness-i-would-just-act-like-i-couldn-t-be/) [Janeane Garofalo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janeane-garofalo/) > [“Awkwardness, thy name is vampire.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chloe-neill/awkwardness-thy-name-is-vampire/) [Chloe Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chloe-neill/) > [“What can one do with one's hands when the camera is interested in other things?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/what-can-one-do-with-one-s-hands-when-the-camera-is-interested-in/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [I work from awkwardness. By that I mean I don't like to arrange things. If I stand in front of something, instead of arranging…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-arbus/i-work-from-awkwardness-by-that-i-mean-i-don-t-like-to-arrange-things/) [Diane Arbus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-arbus/) > [I never wish to offend, but I am so foolishly shy, that I often seem negligent, when I am only kept back by my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/i-never-wish-to-offend-but-i-am-so-foolishly-shy-that-i-often-seem/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [God may forgive sins, he said, but awkwardness has no forgiveness in heaven or earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/god-may-forgive-sins-he-said-but-awkwardness-has-no-forgiveness-in/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [I can't flirt, so I'll just seduce you with my awkwardness: xDDD](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel/i-can-t-flirt-so-i-ll-just-seduce-you-with-my-awkwardness-xddd/) [Rachel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel/) > [They meet in the girls' bathroom. The last time they were forced to meet in a place like this, they took separate, isolated stalls.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/they-meet-in-the-girls-bathroom-the-last-time-they-were-forced-to/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [My position in life has always been to be that person in the room who can make the conversation and break down any awkwardness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/big-narstie/my-position-in-life-has-always-been-to-be-that-person-in-the-room-who/) [Big Narstie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/big-narstie/) > [“Perhaps anything that he did would have pleased Lucy, but his awkwardness went straight to her heart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/perhaps-anything-that-he-did-would-have-pleased-lucy-but-his/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [“Grace and chocolate cake can cover a world of awkwardness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-jo-baker/grace-and-chocolate-cake-can-cover-a-world-of-awkwardness/) [Lisa-Jo Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-jo-baker/) > [The finest manners in the world are awkwardness and fatuity when contrasted with a finer intelligence. They appear but as the fashions of past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-finest-manners-in-the-world-are-awkwardness-and-fatuity-when/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [There's an attraction to emotional clusters or hypocrisies or awkwardness. A desire to expose something or point at something that's already poking out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-chang/there-s-an-attraction-to-emotional-clusters-or-hypocrisies-or/) [Victoria Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-chang/) [Browse all 278 Awkwardness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/awkwardness/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Nothing is so awkward as a demonstration of humanity by the enemy.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kōbō Abe" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/nothing-is-so-awkward-as-a-demonstration-of-humanity-by-the-enemy/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Awkwardness" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/nothing-is-so-awkward-as-a-demonstration-of-humanity-by-the-enemy/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/264/kobo-abe-9863_awkwardness_nothing-is-so-awkward-as-a-demonstration_940005.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/264/kobo-abe-9863_awkwardness_nothing-is-so-awkward-as-a-demonstration_940005.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/264/kobo-abe-9863_awkwardness_nothing-is-so-awkward-as-a-demonstration_940005.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Nothing is so awkward as a demonstration of humanity by the enemy.” — Kōbō Abe", "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": "Kōbō Abe", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobo-abe/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Nothing is so awkward as a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/nothing-is-so-awkward-as-a-demonstration-of-humanity-by-the-enemy/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobo-abe/nothing-is-so-awkward-as-a-demonstration-of-humanity-by-the-enemy/#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 } } ] } ```