Agony Quote by Rudyard Kipling
“Doctors have been exposed-you always will be exposed-to the attacks of those persons who consider their own undisciplined emotions more important than the world's most bitter agonies-the people who would limit and cripple and hamper research because they fear research may be accompanied by a little pain and suffering.”
About This Quote
Source Essay: "The Ethics of Research", 1910
The author warns that researchers may be hindered by emotional biases and fear of causing pain, limiting scientific progress.
In simple terms: Emotions can block research.
Key Takeaway
Guard against emotional bias.
Themes
science
ethics
emotion
research barriers
Mood
cautionary
analytical
Type
ethical
philosophical
When to use this quote
- clinical trials
- policy making
- public health
- academic debate
Key Concepts
human nature
pain tolerance
scientific integrity
Questions to Reflect On
- How can researchers balance empathy with objectivity?
- What safeguards protect against emotional obstruction?
A Different Perspective
Overemphasis on emotion may ignore necessary risks.
![“Fear is a primal emotion in medicine. Every doctor can tell you of times when she or he was terrified; most can list more episodes than you might wish to hear. [...] It may be sublimated at times, it may wax and wane, but the fear of harming your patients never departs; it is inextricably linked…” quote by Danielle Ofri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/541/danielle-ofri-26196_empathy_fear-is-a-primal-emotion-in-medicine-eve_1331595.jpg)
![“[W]e must learn to accommodate ourselves to the discovery that some of those cunningly-fashioned instruments called human souls have only a very limited range of music, and will not vibrate in the least under a touch that fills others with tremulous rapture or quivering agony.” quote by George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/9be/george-eliot-84_agony_w-e-must-learn-to-accommodate-ourselves_12409.jpg)
