--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Nothing better protects a human being…" description: "\"Nothing better protects a human being against the stupidity of prejudice, racism, religious or political sectarianism, and exclusivist nationalism than..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c41/mario-vargas-llosa-1493_books_nothing-better-protects-a-human-being-ag_13945.png" --- # Nothing better protects a human being against the… ![“Nothing better protects a human being against the stupidity of prejudice, racism, religious or political sectarianism, and exclusivist nationalism than this truth that invariably appears in great literature: that men and women of all nations and places are essentially equal, and only injustice…” quote by Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c41/mario-vargas-llosa-1493_books_nothing-better-protects-a-human-being-ag_13945.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c41/mario-vargas-llosa-1493_books_nothing-better-protects-a-human-being-ag_13945.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c41/mario-vargas-llosa-1493_books_nothing-better-protects-a-human-being-ag_13945.png) > “Nothing better protects a human being against the stupidity of prejudice, racism, religious or political sectarianism, and exclusivist nationalism than this truth that invariably appears in great literature: that men and women of all nations and places are essentially equal, and only injustice sows among them discrimination, fear, and exploitation.” [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) ## 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 asserts that the fundamental equality of all people, revealed through literature, counters prejudice, racism, sectarianism, and nationalism, which stem from injustice and lead to discrimination, fear, and exploitation. **In simple terms:** Equality counters prejudice. Key Takeaway Literature reveals universal equality. Themes Equality Prejudice Racism Sectarianism Injustice Mood Reflective Hopeful Type Philosophical Social commentary When to use this quote - Educational curricula - Diversity training - Policy debates - Community dialogues Key Concepts Human dignity Social justice Literary insight Practical Applications - Promoting inclusive policies - Designing anti-bias curricula Questions to Reflect On - How does literature shape our perception of equality? - What mechanisms perpetuate injustice? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Discrimination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discrimination/) [Exploitation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exploitation/) [Great literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-literature/) [Human beings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-beings/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Injustice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/injustice/) [Justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice/) [Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Men and women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-and-women/) [Nationalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nationalism/) [Nations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nations/) [Nature of man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-man/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Prejudice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prejudice/) [Racism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racism/) [Religious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religious/) [Sectarianism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sectarianism/) [Stupidity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stupidity/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) ## Related quotes > [I consider it equal injustice to set our heart against natural pleasures and to set our heart too much on them. We should neither…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/i-consider-it-equal-injustice-to-set-our-heart-against-natural/) [Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/) > [“At least two important conservative thinkers, Ayn Rand and Leo Strauss, were unbelievers or nonbelievers and in any case contemptuous of Christianity. I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/at-least-two-important-conservative-thinkers-ayn-rand-and-leo-strauss/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Become the destroyer of sects - become the breaker of privileges – become the messenger of equality – become the prophet of goodness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/become-the-destroyer-of-sects-become-the-breaker-of-privileges-become/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [I'm fed up with the top-down style of politics, where discussion in our party is stifled because of sectarianism and tribalism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-lewis/i-m-fed-up-with-the-top-down-style-of-politics-where-discussion-in/) [Clive Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-lewis/) > [Sufism is not a religion or a philosophy, it is neither deism nor atheism, nor is it a moral, nor a special kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hazrat-inayat-khan/sufism-is-not-a-religion-or-a-philosophy-it-is-neither-deism-nor/) [Hazrat Inayat Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hazrat-inayat-khan/) > [In America the taint of sectarianism lies broad upon the land. Not content with acknowledging the supremacy as the Diety, and with erecting temples…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-f-cooper/in-america-the-taint-of-sectarianism-lies-broad-upon-the-land-not-2/) [James F. Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-f-cooper/) > [It is notable how little empathy is cultivated or valued in our society. I put this down to our traditional racism and obsessive sectarianism.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/it-is-notable-how-little-empathy-is-cultivated-or-valued-in-our/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [It might be comforting to assume that intolerance is an aberration within Islam but discrimination against Christians or any other non-Muslim is in fact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-coren/it-might-be-comforting-to-assume-that-intolerance-is-an-aberration/) [Michael Coren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-coren/) > [“We've evolved from the jungle, violence is in our DNA. That's not up for debate, it's a biological fact. Question is, will we continue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/we-ve-evolved-from-the-jungle-violence-is-in-our-dna-that-s-not-up/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [The dark shadow we seem to see in the distance is not really a mountain ahead, but the shadow of the mountain behind -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-trimble/the-dark-shadow-we-seem-to-see-in-the-distance-is-not-really-a/) [David Trimble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-trimble/) > [The last thing I would want to do is to create the impression that sectarianism came from only one side of the community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mcaleese/the-last-thing-i-would-want-to-do-is-to-create-the-impression-that/) [Mary McAleese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mcaleese/) > [After the revolution of 1979, Iran embarked on a policy of sectarianism. Iran began a policy of expanding its revolution, of interfering with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adel-al-jubeir/after-the-revolution-of-1979-iran-embarked-on-a-policy-of/) [Adel al-Jubeir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adel-al-jubeir/) > [“The philosophic outlook rises above all sectarian controversy. It finds its own position not only by appreciating and synthesizing what is solidly based in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-brunton/the-philosophic-outlook-rises-above-all-sectarian-controversy-it/) [Paul Brunton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-brunton/) > [“In America the taint of sectarianism lies broad upon the land. Not content with acknowledging the supremacy as the Deity, and with erecting temples…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-fenimore-cooper/in-america-the-taint-of-sectarianism-lies-broad-upon-the-land-not/) [James Fenimore Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-fenimore-cooper/) > [Spirituality can be severed from both vicious sectarianism and thoughtless banalities. Spirituality, I have come to see, is nothing less than the thoughtful love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-c-solomon/spirituality-can-be-severed-from-both-vicious-sectarianism-and/) [Robert C. Solomon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-c-solomon/) ## More by Mario Vargas Llosa > [I think everybody, or the great majority of human beings, have this aspiration to become other: to live a different identity, at least for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/i-think-everybody-or-the-great-majority-of-human-beings-have-this/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [I learnt to read when I was five, and I think that is the most important thing that happened to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/i-learnt-to-read-when-i-was-five-and-i-think-that-is-the-most/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [Death isn't enough. It doesn't remove the stain. But a slap, a whiplash, square on the face, does. Because a man's face is as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/death-isn-t-enough-it-doesn-t-remove-the-stain-but-a-slap-a-whiplash/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [The writer’s job is to write with rigor, with commitment, to defend what they believe with all the talent they have. I think that’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/the-writer-s-job-is-to-write-with-rigor-with-commitment-to-defend/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [The truths that seem most truthful, if you look at them from all sides, if you look at them close up, turn out to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/the-truths-that-seem-most-truthful-if-you-look-at-them-from-all-sides/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [That is one thing I am sure of amid my many uncertainties regarding the literary vocation: deep inside, a writer feels that writing is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/that-is-one-thing-i-am-sure-of-amid-my-many-uncertainties-regarding/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [Revolution will free society of its afflictions, while science will free the individual of his.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/revolution-will-free-society-of-its-afflictions-while-science-will/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [I think if you're impregnated with good literature, with good culture, you're much more difficult to manipulate, and you're much more aware of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/i-think-if-you-re-impregnated-with-good-literature-with-good-culture/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [Each book, for me, has been an adventure, a period of time dedicated to study, to document certain facts, to traveling, and also to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/each-book-for-me-has-been-an-adventure-a-period-of-time-dedicated-to/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [Reading good literature is an experience of pleasure...but it is also an experience of learning what and how we are, in our human integrity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/reading-good-literature-is-an-experience-of-pleasure-but-it-is-also/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [“O comes o te comen, no hay más remedio.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/o-comes-o-te-comen-no-hay-m-s-remedio/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [“they knew what we’re doing for them, they’d kiss our feet. But mentally they are closer to the crocodile and the hippopotamus than to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/they-knew-what-we-re-doing-for-them-they-d-kiss-our-feet-but-mentally/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [Iraq is better without Saddam Hussein than with Saddam Hussein. Without a doubt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/iraq-is-better-without-saddam-hussein-than-with-saddam-hussein/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [When I was growing up, the Spanish-speaking world was Balkanized. We were isolated. We didn't know what was happening in cultural terms in Ecuador,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/when-i-was-growing-up-the-spanish-speaking-world-was-balkanized-we/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [When I was young, when I started to write, we were totally convinced that literature was a kind of weapon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/when-i-was-young-when-i-started-to-write-we-were-totally-convinced/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) [Explore all 166 Mario Vargas Llosa quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. Krebs > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Nothing better protects a human being against the stupidity of prejudice, racism, religious or political sectarianism, and exclusivist nationalism than this truth that invariably appears in great literature: that men and women of all nations and places are essentially equal, and only injustice sows among them discrimination, fear, and exploitation.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mario Vargas Llosa" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/nothing-better-protects-a-human-being-against-the-stupidity-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/nothing-better-protects-a-human-being-against-the-stupidity-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c41/mario-vargas-llosa-1493_books_nothing-better-protects-a-human-being-ag_13945.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c41/mario-vargas-llosa-1493_books_nothing-better-protects-a-human-being-ag_13945.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c41/mario-vargas-llosa-1493_books_nothing-better-protects-a-human-being-ag_13945.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Nothing better protects a human being against the stupidity of prejudice, racism, religious or political…” — Mario Vargas Llosa", "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": "Mario Vargas Llosa", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Nothing better protects a human being...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/nothing-better-protects-a-human-being-against-the-stupidity-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/nothing-better-protects-a-human-being-against-the-stupidity-of/#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 } } ] } ```