--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is something very morbid about…" description: "\"There is something very morbid about modern sympathy with pain.\" — Oscar Wilde" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c5/oscar-wilde-16_modern_there-is-something-very-morbid-about-mod_483650.jpg" --- # There is something very morbid about modern sympathy with… ![“There is something very morbid about modern sympathy with pain.” quote by Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c5/oscar-wilde-16_modern_there-is-something-very-morbid-about-mod_483650.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c5/oscar-wilde-16_modern_there-is-something-very-morbid-about-mod_483650.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c5/oscar-wilde-16_modern_there-is-something-very-morbid-about-mod_483650.jpg) > “There is something very morbid about modern sympathy with pain.” [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Modern empathy often revels in suffering, turning pain into a spectacle rather than offering genuine compassion. **In simple terms:** Sympathy can become morbid fascination with pain. Key Takeaway Cultivate authentic empathy, not voyeurism. Themes ethics society empathy Mood critical thought‑provoking Type philosophical satirical When to use this quote - media commentary - social media - public discourse Key Concepts spectacle modernity compassion Questions to Reflect On - Why do we gravitate toward tragic stories? - How can we practice true compassion? A Different Perspective Obsessing over pain may desensitize us. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Modern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modern/) [Modern Sympathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modern-sympathy-1449467/) [Morbid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morbid/) [Morbid Modern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morbid-modern-4153617/) [Pain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pain/) [Sympathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sympathy/) [Sympathy Pain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sympathy-pain-364811/) ## Related quotes > [There is something terribly morbid in the modern sympathy with pain. One should sympathise with the colour, the beauty, the joy of life. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/there-is-something-terribly-morbid-in-the-modern-sympathy-with-pain/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [The modern sympathy with invalids is morbid. Illness of any kind is hardly a thing to be encouraged in others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/the-modern-sympathy-with-invalids-is-morbid-illness-of-any-kind-is/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“Nor do I in any way approve of the modern sympathy with invalids.  I consider it morbid.  Illness of any kind is hardly a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/nor-do-i-in-any-way-approve-of-the-modern-sympathy-with-invalids-i/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“It must be remembered that while sympathy with joy intensifies the sum of joy in the world, sympathy with pain does not really diminish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/it-must-be-remembered-that-while-sympathy-with-joy-intensifies-the/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“I can sympathise with everything, except suffering", cried Lord Harry, Shrugging his shoulders. "I cannot sympathise with that. It is too ugly, too horrible,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/i-can-sympathise-with-everything-except-suffering-cried-lord-harry/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Sympathy with joy intensifies the sum of sympathy in the world, sympathy with pain does not really diminish the amount of pain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/sympathy-with-joy-intensifies-the-sum-of-sympathy-in-the-world/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“Experience, or what we call experience, is not the inventory of our pains, but rather the learned sympathy towards the pain of others.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-gabriel-v-squez/experience-or-what-we-call-experience-is-not-the-inventory-of-our-2/) [Juan Gabriel Vásquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juan-gabriel-v-squez/) > [Despite all their fears, we ask very little of the ones who never loved us. We do not ask for sympathy or pain or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-sean-greer/despite-all-their-fears-we-ask-very-little-of-the-ones-who-never/) [Andrew Sean Greer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-sean-greer/) > [No artist is ever morbid. The artist can express everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/no-artist-is-ever-morbid-the-artist-can-express-everything/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [I find that forgiving one's enemies is a most curious morbid pleasure; perhaps I should check it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/i-find-that-forgiving-one-s-enemies-is-a-most-curious-morbid-pleasure/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Where there is sorrow, there is holy ground.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/where-there-is-sorrow-there-is-holy-ground/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Anybody can sympathize with the sufferings of a friend, but it requires a very fine nature to sympathize with a friend's success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/anybody-can-sympathize-with-the-sufferings-of-a-friend-but-it/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [If there was less sympathy in the world, there would be less trouble in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/if-there-was-less-sympathy-in-the-world-there-would-be-less-trouble/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“The emotions of man are stirred more quickly than man's intelligence...it is much more easy to have sympathy with suffering than it is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/the-emotions-of-man-are-stirred-more-quickly-than-man-s-intelligence/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“I remember talking once on this subject to one of the most beautiful personalities I have ever known: a woman, whose sympathy and noble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/i-remember-talking-once-on-this-subject-to-one-of-the-most-beautiful/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) ## More by Oscar Wilde > [How else but through a broken heart may Lord Christ enter in?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/how-else-but-through-a-broken-heart-may-lord-christ-enter-in/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [The books that the world calls immoral are the books that show the world its own shame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/the-books-that-the-world-calls-immoral-are-the-books-that-show-the/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Bachelors should be heavily taxed. It is not fair that some men should be happier than others](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/bachelors-should-be-heavily-taxed-it-is-not-fair-that-some-men-should/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Who, being loved, is poor?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/who-being-loved-is-poor/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“Basil my dear boy puts everything that is charming in him into his work. The consequence is that he has nothing left for life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/basil-my-dear-boy-puts-everything-that-is-charming-in-him-into-his/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Anybody can be good in the country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/anybody-can-be-good-in-the-country/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [I don't at all like knowing what people say of me behind my back. It makes me far too conceited.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/i-don-t-at-all-like-knowing-what-people-say-of-me-behind-my-back-it/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“Alles Populäre ist falsch.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/alles-popul-re-ist-falsch/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“If these elements of beauty are real, the whole thing simply appeals to our sense of dramatic effect. Suddenly we find that we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/if-these-elements-of-beauty-are-real-the-whole-thing-simply-appeals/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [To love one's self is the beginning of a life-long romance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/to-love-one-s-self-is-the-beginning-of-a-life-long-romance/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“Those who find beautiful meanings in beautiful things are the cultivated. For these there is hope.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/those-who-find-beautiful-meanings-in-beautiful-things-are-the/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Men always want to be a womans first love. Women have a more subtle instinct: What they like is to be a mans last…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/men-always-want-to-be-a-womans-first-love-women-have-a-more-subtle/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Why is it that at a bachelor's establishment the servants invariably drink the champagne.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/why-is-it-that-at-a-bachelor-s-establishment-the-servants-invariably/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Moderation is a fatal thing. Enough is as bad as a meal. More than enough is as good as a feast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/moderation-is-a-fatal-thing-enough-is-as-bad-as-a-meal-more-than/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Beauty is the only thing that time cannot harm. Philosophies fall away like sand, creeds follow one another, but what is beautiful is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/beauty-is-the-only-thing-that-time-cannot-harm-philosophies-fall-away/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) [Explore all 3,343 Oscar Wilde quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) ## More Modern quotes > [Forcing modern speakers of English to not - whoops, not to split an infinitive because it isn't done in Latin makes about as much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pinker/forcing-modern-speakers-of-english-to-not-whoops-not-to-split-an/) [Steven Pinker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pinker/) > [A lot of indigenous cultures are deeply involved in working with ancestor spirits, elemental spirits, and demons. 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She believed that daughters, educated though…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosemary-mahoney/though-my-grandmother-had-picked-up-modern-ideas-in-america-she-still/) [Rosemary Mahoney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosemary-mahoney/) > [The popular mind often pictures gigantic flying machines speeding across the Atlantic carrying innumerable passengers in a way analogous to our modern steam ships.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-henry-pickering/the-popular-mind-often-pictures-gigantic-flying-machines-speeding/) [William Henry Pickering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-henry-pickering/) > [I enjoy cooking, but stick to modern dishes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-starkey/i-enjoy-cooking-but-stick-to-modern-dishes/) [David Starkey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-starkey/) > [Like a child exploring the attic of an old house on a rainy day, discovering a trunk full of treasure and then calling all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-h-peterson/like-a-child-exploring-the-attic-of-an-old-house-on-a-rainy-day/) [Eugene H. 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The well-adapted drop off the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elias-canetti/a-modern-man-has-nothing-to-add-to-modernism-if-only-because-he-has/) [Elias Canetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elias-canetti/) [Browse all 5,930 Modern quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modern/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There is something very morbid about modern sympathy with pain.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Oscar Wilde" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/there-is-something-very-morbid-about-modern-sympathy-with-pain/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Modern" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/there-is-something-very-morbid-about-modern-sympathy-with-pain/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c5/oscar-wilde-16_modern_there-is-something-very-morbid-about-mod_483650.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c5/oscar-wilde-16_modern_there-is-something-very-morbid-about-mod_483650.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c5/oscar-wilde-16_modern_there-is-something-very-morbid-about-mod_483650.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There is something very morbid about modern sympathy with pain.” — Oscar Wilde", "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": "Oscar Wilde", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "There is something very morbid about...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/there-is-something-very-morbid-about-modern-sympathy-with-pain/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/there-is-something-very-morbid-about-modern-sympathy-with-pain/#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 } } ] } ```