--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Oh shame, shame! Oh crying shame! How can…" description: "\"“Oh shame, shame! Oh crying shame! How can we? Why do we allow ourselves? What are we doing? The last little room of dirt is waiting. Without windows. ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de5/saul-bellow-558_shame_oh-shame-shame-oh-crying-shame-how-can-w_143512.png" --- # Oh shame, shame! Oh crying shame! How can we? Why do we… ![“Oh shame, shame! Oh crying shame! How can we? Why do we allow ourselves? What are we doing? The last little room of dirt is waiting. Without windows. So for God’s sake make a move, Henderson, put forth effort. You, too, will die of this pestilence. Death will annihilate you and nothing will…” quote by Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de5/saul-bellow-558_shame_oh-shame-shame-oh-crying-shame-how-can-w_143512.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de5/saul-bellow-558_shame_oh-shame-shame-oh-crying-shame-how-can-w_143512.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de5/saul-bellow-558_shame_oh-shame-shame-oh-crying-shame-how-can-w_143512.png) > ““Oh shame, shame! Oh crying shame! How can we? Why do we allow ourselves? What are we doing? The last little room of dirt is waiting. Without windows. So for God’s sake make a move, Henderson, put forth effort. You, too, will die of this pestilence. Death will annihilate you and nothing will remain, and there will be nothing left but junk...While something still is -- now! For the sake of all, get out!”” [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A desperate plea urges action against inevitable decay, urging collective effort before it’s too late. **In simple terms:** Urgent call to act against looming ruin. Key Takeaway Act now to prevent collective decline. Themes existential urgency collective responsibility Mood dramatic urgent Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - public health campaigns - environmental activism - community mobilization Key Concepts mortality social action Questions to Reflect On - What motivates you to act? crisisHow can we inspire collective responsibility? A Different Perspective Fear can paralyze rather than motivate. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Shame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shame/) ## Related quotes > [For God's sake,' the dog is saying, 'open the universe a little more!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/for-god-s-sake-the-dog-is-saying-open-the-universe-a-little-more/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [“I was going to have to kill him. It was a crying shame, but I was going to have to. It was a matter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lia-habel/i-was-going-to-have-to-kill-him-it-was-a-crying-shame-but-i-was-going/) [Lia Habel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lia-habel/) > [Stupid cupid you're a real mean guy, I'd like to pick your wings so you can't fly, I am in love and it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mandy-moore/stupid-cupid-you-re-a-real-mean-guy-i-d-like-to-pick-your-wings-so/) [Mandy Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mandy-moore/) > [“Sugar cane reach up to God And every baby crying Shame the blanket of my night And all my days are dying”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/sugar-cane-reach-up-to-god-and-every-baby-crying-shame-the-blanket-of/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [Done so many evil things in the name of love, it's a crying shame. I never did see no fire that could put out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/done-so-many-evil-things-in-the-name-of-love-it-s-a-crying-shame-i/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [“It was a crying shame!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ru-freeman/it-was-a-crying-shame/) [Ru Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ru-freeman/) > [The only crying shame about it is, when good things happen to you, you run short of time. It takes the same amount of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-mandrell/the-only-crying-shame-about-it-is-when-good-things-happen-to-you-you/) [Barbara Mandrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-mandrell/) > [Hate behind the eyes thats a crying shame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-williams/hate-behind-the-eyes-thats-a-crying-shame/) [Christopher Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-williams/) > [“Toxic shame, the shame that binds us, is experienced as the all-pervasive sense that “I am flawed and defective as a human being.” Toxic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bradshaw/toxic-shame-the-shame-that-binds-us-is-experienced-as-the-all/) [John Bradshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bradshaw/) > [“...it was ludicrous to think that we could just talk our way out of shame, that shame was necessary, that it prevented us from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miriam-toews/it-was-ludicrous-to-think-that-we-could-just-talk-our-way-out-of/) [Miriam Toews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miriam-toews/) > [“The shame attached to rape was men’s shame, shame they were too weak to carry: that their gender could do this, that they could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nevada-barr/the-shame-attached-to-rape-was-men-s-shame-shame-they-were-too-weak/) [Nevada Barr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nevada-barr/) > [“Oh, such a shame, such a shame. Oh, such a shame. What’s it all about anyhow?” “I’ve wondered for a long time.” “But why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/oh-such-a-shame-such-a-shame-oh-such-a-shame-what-s-it-all-about/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) > [Always be yourself. never try to hide who you are. the only shame is to have shame. always stand up for what you believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/always-be-yourself-never-try-to-hide-who-you-are-the-only-shame-is-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [No, not shame on you. Shame on her. She can't see what's right in front of her giving her his all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danialla/no-not-shame-on-you-shame-on-her-she-can-t-see-what-s-right-in-front/) [DaniAlla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danialla/) > [“But focus always on your shame, and your shame will eat you. It will become you. That is the coward's way. A coward never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjorie-m-liu/but-focus-always-on-your-shame-and-your-shame-will-eat-you-it-will/) [Marjorie M. Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjorie-m-liu/) ## More by Saul Bellow > [... a fellow can't predict what he will pick up in the form of influence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/a-fellow-can-t-predict-what-he-will-pick-up-in-the-form-of-influence/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [If I'm out of my mind, it's all right with me, thought Moses Herzog.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/if-i-m-out-of-my-mind-it-s-all-right-with-me-thought-moses-herzog/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [I have begun in old age to understand just how oddly we are all put together. We are so proud of our autonomy that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/i-have-begun-in-old-age-to-understand-just-how-oddly-we-are-all-put/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [“On Broadway it was still bright afternoon and the gassy air was almost motionless under the leaden spokes of sunlight, and sawdust footprints lay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/on-broadway-it-was-still-bright-afternoon-and-the-gassy-air-was/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [There are evils that have the ability to survive identification and go on for ever... money, for instance, or war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/there-are-evils-that-have-the-ability-to-survive-identification-and/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [Myself is thus and so, and will continue thus and so. And why fight it? My balance comes from instability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/myself-is-thus-and-so-and-will-continue-thus-and-so-and-why-fight-it/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [“A strange heart. I myself can't account for it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/a-strange-heart-i-myself-can-t-account-for-it/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [The late philosopher Morris R. Cohen of CCNY was asked by a student in the metaphysics course, Professor Cohen, how do I know that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/the-late-philosopher-morris-r-cohen-of-ccny-was-asked-by-a-student-in/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [“Therefore we didn't talk of genuine things.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/therefore-we-didn-t-talk-of-genuine-things/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [Is our species crazy? Plenty of evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/is-our-species-crazy-plenty-of-evidence/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [“But now the emphasis has shifted to making it. People have surrendered their personal moral objectives to government or schools or psychologists. It’s a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/but-now-the-emphasis-has-shifted-to-making-it-people-have-surrendered/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [There's a kind of emptiness at the center of life ... nothing to form your life on, or by.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/there-s-a-kind-of-emptiness-at-the-center-of-life-nothing-to-form/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [“I don't know how it all at once came to me to talk a lot, tell jokes, kick up, and suddenly have views. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/i-don-t-know-how-it-all-at-once-came-to-me-to-talk-a-lot-tell-jokes/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [There are times when the most practical thing is to lie down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/there-are-times-when-the-most-practical-thing-is-to-lie-down/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [“For knowledge of death makes us wish to extend our lives at the expense of others. And this is the root of the struggle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/for-knowledge-of-death-makes-us-wish-to-extend-our-lives-at-the/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) [Explore all 464 Saul Bellow quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) ## More Shame quotes > [“So she bowed her head and devoted herself to Beartown’s real traditional sports: shame and silence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fredrik-backman/so-she-bowed-her-head-and-devoted-herself-to-beartown-s-real/) [Fredrik Backman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fredrik-backman/) > [It's a shame that when you've actually lived some life and have something to write about, they're saying you're too old to come out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kt-tunstall/it-s-a-shame-that-when-you-ve-actually-lived-some-life-and-have/) [KT Tunstall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kt-tunstall/) > [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/) > [For some reason, we are truly convinced that if we criticize ourselves, the criticism will lead to change. If we are harsh, we believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geneen-roth/for-some-reason-we-are-truly-convinced-that-if-we-criticize-ourselves/) [Geneen Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geneen-roth/) > [Mine would be, "We will stand together, he and I. One in victory, one in shame. Only then can I truly own the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/mine-would-be-we-will-stand-together-he-and-i-one-in-victory-one-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Build a bridge over shame by teaching kids about sexual abuse. Give them a chance to run to us should they encounter it. Be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-byers-ruch/build-a-bridge-over-shame-by-teaching-kids-about-sexual-abuse-give/) [Carolyn Byers Ruch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-byers-ruch/) > [Telling a story of illness, one pulls a thread through a narrow opening flanked on one side by shame and the other by trivia.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-griffin/telling-a-story-of-illness-one-pulls-a-thread-through-a-narrow/) [Susan Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-griffin/) > [ I guarantee you \[Hillary Clinton\] is smoking in humiliation over the idea that she needs to heal and that \[Donald\] Trump's the guy to… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/i-guarantee-you-hillary-clinton-is-smoking-in-humiliation-over-the/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [“There's something energizing about getting what you want, even if that something is shame.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riley-sager/there-s-something-energizing-about-getting-what-you-want-even-if-that/) [Riley Sager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/riley-sager/) > [Most readers, then and now, have at some time experienced the humiliation of being told that their occupation is reprehensible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alberto-manguel/most-readers-then-and-now-have-at-some-time-experienced-the/) [Alberto Manguel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alberto-manguel/) > [My influences are jazz, blues, European classical music; they are rock music and pop music. So many kinds of music. World music from different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rokia-traore/my-influences-are-jazz-blues-european-classical-music-they-are-rock/) [Rokia Traore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rokia-traore/) > [“He stopped at an intersection, panting, rubbing at the twinge in his hamstrings, looking around, though he knew no cars were coming in either…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-mina/he-stopped-at-an-intersection-panting-rubbing-at-the-twinge-in-his/) [Denise Mina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-mina/) > [“Shame is the deepest of the “negative emotions,” a feeling we will do almost anything to avoid. Unfortunately, our abiding fear of shame impairs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/shame-is-the-deepest-of-the-negative-emotions-a-feeling-we-will-do/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [“To shame our sins He blushed in blood; He closed His eyes to show us God; Let all the world fall down and know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-of-clairvaux/to-shame-our-sins-he-blushed-in-blood-he-closed-his-eyes-to-show-us/) [Bernard of Clairvaux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-of-clairvaux/) > [I never wonder to see men wicked, but I often wonder to see them not ashamed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-swift/i-never-wonder-to-see-men-wicked-but-i-often-wonder-to-see-them-not/) [Jonathan Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-swift/) [Browse all 4,033 Shame quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shame/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Oh shame, shame! 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