--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: unfeeling tyrants” who cared no more for…" description: "\"“unfeeling tyrants” who cared no more for their subjects’ lives “than…so many caterpillars upon an apple tree.”\" — Michael B. Oren" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d68/michael-b-oren-42234_caterpillars_unfeeling-tyrants-who-cared-no-more-for_2735973.jpg" --- # unfeeling tyrants” who cared no more for their subjects’… ![“unfeeling tyrants” who cared no more for their subjects’ lives “than…so many caterpillars upon an apple tree.” quote by Michael B. Oren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d68/michael-b-oren-42234_caterpillars_unfeeling-tyrants-who-cared-no-more-for_2735973.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d68/michael-b-oren-42234_caterpillars_unfeeling-tyrants-who-cared-no-more-for_2735973.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d68/michael-b-oren-42234_caterpillars_unfeeling-tyrants-who-cared-no-more-for_2735973.jpg) > ““unfeeling tyrants” who cared no more for their subjects’ lives “than…so many caterpillars upon an apple tree.”” [Michael B. Oren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-b-oren/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Tyrants who lack empathy are likened to indifferent insects, highlighting their moral blindness. **In simple terms:** Tyrants are indifferent like insects. Key Takeaway Recognize and oppose empathetic void in leaders. Themes politics empathy tyranny Mood critical concerned Type political philosophical When to use this quote - activism - policy analysis - public discourse Key Concepts moral philosophy psychology Questions to Reflect On - How does empathy affect governance? - What signs indicate a leader’s moral blindness? A Different Perspective Some may argue tyrants act for order. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Apple Tree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apple-tree/) [Caterpillars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/caterpillars/) [Caterpillars Apple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/caterpillars-apple-2990268/) [Trees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trees/) [Tyrants](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tyrants/) [Tyrants Cared](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tyrants-cared-2990267/) [Unfeeling Tyrants](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unfeeling-tyrants-2990266/) ## Related quotes > [A comely sight indeed it is to see, a world of blossoms on an apple tree.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bunyan/a-comely-sight-indeed-it-is-to-see-a-world-of-blossoms-on-an-apple/) [John Bunyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bunyan/) > [All of us who grew up reading comics love the memory of sitting under an apple tree with a comic book in one hand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-waid/all-of-us-who-grew-up-reading-comics-love-the-memory-of-sitting-under/) [Mark Waid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-waid/) > [“Claire lifted her glass after everyone had eaten. "Everyone make a toast. To food and flowers," she said. "To love and laughter," Tyler said.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-addison-allen/claire-lifted-her-glass-after-everyone-had-eaten-everyone-make-a/) [Sarah Addison Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-addison-allen/) > [“Every plant is an individual. Wrong again. We are not individuals at all, we are all connected. We are individuals the way each blossom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-pendell/every-plant-is-an-individual-wrong-again-we-are-not-individuals-at/) [Dale Pendell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-pendell/) > [“She was careful with her apple tree. She did not ask too much of it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-barnaby/she-was-careful-with-her-apple-tree-she-did-not-ask-too-much-of-it/) [Hannah Barnaby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-barnaby/) > [“This story was written many moons ago under an apple tree in an orchard in Kent, which is one of England's prettiest counties .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-story-was-written-many-moons-ago-under-an-apple-tree-in-an/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The apple tree never asks the beech how he shall grow, nor the lion, the horse, how he shall take his prey.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/the-apple-tree-never-asks-the-beech-how-he-shall-grow-nor-the-lion/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [“The world is ripe, and we'll pluck it like an apple from a tree.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/the-world-is-ripe-and-we-ll-pluck-it-like-an-apple-from-a-tree/) [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) > [She had learned, in her life, that time lived inside you. You are time, you breathe time. When she'd been young, she'd had an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wroblewski/she-had-learned-in-her-life-that-time-lived-inside-you-you-are-time/) [David Wroblewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wroblewski/) > [It is remarkable how closely the history of the apple tree is connected with that of man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/it-is-remarkable-how-closely-the-history-of-the-apple-tree-is/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“In my poetry a rhyme Would seem to me almost insolent. Inside me contend Delight at the apple tree in blossom And horror at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertolt-brecht/in-my-poetry-a-rhyme-would-seem-to-me-almost-insolent-inside-me/) [Bertolt Brecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertolt-brecht/) > [Life will break you. Nobody can protect you from that, and living alone won't either, for solitude will also break you with its yearning.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-will-break-you-nobody-can-protect-you-from-that-and-living-alone/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A good woman is like an apple on a tree, the best ones are on the top of the tree.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-good-woman-is-like-an-apple-on-a-tree-the-best-ones-are-on-the-top/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Therefore all seasons shall be sweet to thee, Whether the summer clothe the general earth With greenness, or the redbreast sit and sing Betwixt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-taylor-coleridge/therefore-all-seasons-shall-be-sweet-to-thee-whether-the-summer/) [Samuel Taylor Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-taylor-coleridge/) > [Life rises out of death, death rises out of life; in being opposite they yearn to each other, they give birth to each other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/life-rises-out-of-death-death-rises-out-of-life-in-being-opposite/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) ## More by Michael B. Oren > [“an “ominous” figure suggestive of “pestilence and war.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-b-oren/an-ominous-figure-suggestive-of-pestilence-and-war/) [Michael B. Oren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-b-oren/) > [ “detested the missionaries who made people “permanently miserable by telling them…how blissful a place heaven is, and \[how\] nearly impossible it is to get… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-b-oren/detested-the-missionaries-who-made-people-permanently-miserable-by/) [Michael B. Oren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-b-oren/) > [“Before terminating at the Berlin Wall, the front in the Cold War ran through the hellish jungles of Vietnam to the oases and deceptively…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-b-oren/before-terminating-at-the-berlin-wall-the-front-in-the-cold-war-ran/) [Michael B. Oren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-b-oren/) > [“such banditti who might for half the sum that is paid them be exterminated from the Earth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-b-oren/such-banditti-who-might-for-half-the-sum-that-is-paid-them-be/) [Michael B. Oren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-b-oren/) > [“And while generally loyal to the United States, ibn Saud displayed no reservations about negotiating with Britain and France in order to extract higher…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-b-oren/and-while-generally-loyal-to-the-united-states-ibn-saud-displayed-no/) [Michael B. Oren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-b-oren/) > [“Those who tried to escape received the customary punishment, as Nicholson harrowingly described: After they had stripped the sufferer naked, they inserted the iron…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-b-oren/those-who-tried-to-escape-received-the-customary-punishment-as/) [Michael B. Oren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-b-oren/) > [“an angel sent on this business…could have done nothing”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-b-oren/an-angel-sent-on-this-business-could-have-done-nothing/) [Michael B. Oren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-b-oren/) [Explore all 8 Michael B. Oren quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-b-oren/) ## More Caterpillars quotes > [Do you remember how you felt at seventeen? I do and I don't (...) Imagine you came from outer space and someone showed you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/do-you-remember-how-you-felt-at-seventeen-i-do-and-i-don-t-imagine/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [Why is Caterpillar bad if we create a new job in India or China to receive U.S. exports? It makes no sense to me.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-r-oberhelman/why-is-caterpillar-bad-if-we-create-a-new-job-in-india-or-china-to/) [Douglas R. Oberhelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-r-oberhelman/) > [“...the summer of the gypsy moths when all the trees in their yard were bare, the leaves chewed by caterpillars. You could hear crunching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/the-summer-of-the-gypsy-moths-when-all-the-trees-in-their-yard-were/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [Afraid? Me? A man who's licked his weight in wild caterpillars?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/afraid-me-a-man-who-s-licked-his-weight-in-wild-caterpillars/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) > [I will defend the absolute value of Mozart over Miley Cyrus, of course I will, but we should be wary of false dichotomies. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/i-will-defend-the-absolute-value-of-mozart-over-miley-cyrus-of-course/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [James Davison took me out to show me where Karl is living right now and where hes going to build. Karl wasnt at home.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-bradshaw/james-davison-took-me-out-to-show-me-where-karl-is-living-right-now/) [Terry Bradshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-bradshaw/) > [On every stem, on every leaf,... and at the root of everything that grew, was a professional specialist in the shape of grub, caterpillar,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/on-every-stem-on-every-leaf-and-at-the-root-of-everything-that-grew/) [Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/) > [True transformation occurs only when we can look at ourselves squarely and face our attachments and inner demons, free from the buzz of commercial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-hill/true-transformation-occurs-only-when-we-can-look-at-ourselves/) [Julia Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-hill/) > [You are afraid to die?' Yes, everyone is.' But to die as lovers may - to die together, so that they may live together.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sheridan-le-fanu/you-are-afraid-to-die-yes-everyone-is-but-to-die-as-lovers-may-to-die/) [Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sheridan-le-fanu/) > [I like - it's not that I want to be someone different from me, but I suppose it partly is that. I love creating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wilder/i-like-it-s-not-that-i-want-to-be-someone-different-from-me-but-i/) [Gene Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wilder/) > [The great loneliness- like the loneliness a caterpillar endures when she wraps herself in a silky shroud and begins the long transformation from chrysalis…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-lesser/the-great-loneliness-like-the-loneliness-a-caterpillar-endures-when/) [Elizabeth Lesser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-lesser/) > [Look, I guess it's natural, you're teenagers, its springtime,everyone's thoughts are turning to birds and bees and caterpillars and moths… - Iggy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-patterson/look-i-guess-it-s-natural-you-re-teenagers-its-springtime-everyone-s/) [James Patterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-patterson/) > [You cannot use butterfly language to communicate with caterpillars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-leary/you-cannot-use-butterfly-language-to-communicate-with-caterpillars/) [Timothy Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-leary/) > [“Caterpillars can fly, if they just lighten up.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-j-simmerman-ph-d/caterpillars-can-fly-if-they-just-lighten-up/) [Scott J. Simmerman Ph.D](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-j-simmerman-ph-d/) > [That author who draws a character, even though to common view incongruous in its parts, as the flying-squirrel, and, at differentperiods, as much at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/that-author-who-draws-a-character-even-though-to-common-view/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) [Browse all 154 Caterpillars quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/caterpillars/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“unfeeling tyrants” who cared no more for their subjects’ lives “than…so many caterpillars upon an apple tree.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael B. 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