--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The difference between a man who faces…" description: "\"The difference between a man who faces death for the sake of an idea and an imitator who goes in search of martyrdom is that whilst the former expresse..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a84/soren-kierkegaard-578_bitterness_the-difference-between-a-man-who-faces-d_210228.jpg" --- # The difference between a man who faces death for the sake… ![“The difference between a man who faces death for the sake of an idea and an imitator who goes in search of martyrdom is that whilst the former expresses his idea most fully in death it is the strange feeling of bitterness which comes from failure that the latter really enjoys; the former rejoices…” quote by Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a84/soren-kierkegaard-578_bitterness_the-difference-between-a-man-who-faces-d_210228.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a84/soren-kierkegaard-578_bitterness_the-difference-between-a-man-who-faces-d_210228.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a84/soren-kierkegaard-578_bitterness_the-difference-between-a-man-who-faces-d_210228.jpg) > “The difference between a man who faces death for the sake of an idea and an imitator who goes in search of martyrdom is that whilst the former expresses his idea most fully in death it is the strange feeling of bitterness which comes from failure that the latter really enjoys; the former rejoices in his victory, the latter in his suffering.” [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. True martyrdom is driven by sincere conviction, while false martyrdom seeks suffering for its own sake, reveling in bitterness. **In simple terms:** Real sacrifice vs. seeking pain. Key Takeaway Seek authentic purpose, not suffering for its own Themes martyrdom authenticity suffering conviction Mood reflective serious Type philosophical critical When to use this quote - political protest - religious zealotry - personal sacrifice - ideological extremism Key Concepts Existentialism ethical paradox Questions to Reflect On - Do you value the idea behind your sacrifice? - What drives you to seek suffering? A Different Perspective False martyrdom can glorify pain, undermining genuine causes. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bitterness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bitterness/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Differences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/differences/) [Enjoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enjoy/) [Faces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faces/) [Feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feelings/) [Former](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/former/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Imitator](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imitator/) [Latter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/latter/) [Martyr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/martyr/) [Martyrdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/martyrdom/) [Martyrdom Whilst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/martyrdom-whilst-2171259/) [Martyred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/martyred/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Rejoice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rejoice/) [Sake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sake/) [Search Martyrdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/search-martyrdom-2171260/) [Strange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strange/) [Strange feeling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strange-feeling/) [Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering/) [Victory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/victory/) [Victory Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/victory-suffering-1803952/) ## Related quotes > [“The victory of his suffering love upon the Cross does not merely set me an example, showing me what I myself may achieve if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kallistos-ware/the-victory-of-his-suffering-love-upon-the-cross-does-not-merely-set/) [Kallistos Ware](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kallistos-ware/) > [No Victory Without Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/no-victory-without-suffering/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [No man dies for what he knows to be true. Men die for what they want to be true, for what some terror in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/no-man-dies-for-what-he-knows-to-be-true-men-die-for-what-they-want/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“he has martyred me, but for no cause”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-smart/he-has-martyred-me-but-for-no-cause/) [Elizabeth Smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-smart/) > [We ourselves were well conversant with war, murder and everything evil, but all of us throughout the whole wide earth have traded in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-martyr/we-ourselves-were-well-conversant-with-war-murder-and-everything-evil/) [Justin Martyr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-martyr/) > [Play the man, Mastre Ridley; we shall this day light such a cndle, by God's grace in England, as I trust shall never be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-latimer/play-the-man-mastre-ridley-we-shall-this-day-light-such-a-cndle-by/) [Hugh Latimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-latimer/) > [No human beings are more dangerous than those who have suffered for a belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-m-cioran/no-human-beings-are-more-dangerous-than-those-who-have-suffered-for-a/) [Emile M. Cioran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-m-cioran/) > [“The Bible also affirms that in the end times God’s people will be martyred by beheading.            “And I saw the souls of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-price/the-bible-also-affirms-that-in-the-end-times-god-s-people-will-be/) [John Price](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-price/) > [We are not here to triumph by fighting, by strata gem, or by resistance, not to fight with beasts as men. We have fought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/we-are-not-here-to-triumph-by-fighting-by-strata-gem-or-by-resistance/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [Sir Thomas More was a victim of injustice and irony. Generously and meekly, just as he was about to be martyred, he said: Paul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/sir-thomas-more-was-a-victim-of-injustice-and-irony-generously-and/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [If Jesus didn't rise from the dead, an even greater miracle happened: 12 relatively uneducated guys changed the world and were martyred to protect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-hart/if-jesus-didn-t-rise-from-the-dead-an-even-greater-miracle-happened/) [Mark Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-hart/) > [I have been astonished that men could die martyrs for their religion-- I have shuddered at it, I shudder no more. I could be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/i-have-been-astonished-that-men-could-die-martyrs-for-their-religion-2/) [John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/) > [“Christians are being martyred across the globe at alarmingly increasing rates. The ‘Voices of the Martyrs’ website reveals just how serious this killing of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-price/christians-are-being-martyred-across-the-globe-at-alarmingly/) [John Price](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-price/) > [As her sons have seen her: the mother in patriarchy: controlling, erotic, castrating, heart-suffering, guilt-ridden, and guilt-provoking; a marble brow, a huge breast, an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/as-her-sons-have-seen-her-the-mother-in-patriarchy-controlling-erotic/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [Martyrdom has always been a proof of the intensity, never of the correctness of a belief.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schnitzler/martyrdom-has-always-been-a-proof-of-the-intensity-never-of-the/) [Arthur Schnitzler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schnitzler/) ## More by Soren Kierkegaard > [Christianity does not oppose debauchery and uncontrollable passions and the like as much as it opposes... flat mediocrity, this nauseating atmosphere, this homey, civil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/christianity-does-not-oppose-debauchery-and-uncontrollable-passions/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [Christians remind me of schoolboys who want to look up the answers to their math problems in the back of the book rather than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/christians-remind-me-of-schoolboys-who-want-to-look-up-the-answers-to/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [People commonly travel the world over to see rivers and mountains, new stars, garish birds, freak fish, grotesque breeds of human; they fall into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/people-commonly-travel-the-world-over-to-see-rivers-and-mountains-new/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [“A strange thing happened to me in my dream. I was rapt into the Seventh Heaven. There sat all the gods assembled. As a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/a-strange-thing-happened-to-me-in-my-dream-i-was-rapt-into-the/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [That which is truly human no generation learns from the one before it. No generation learns from another how to love. No generation has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/that-which-is-truly-human-no-generation-learns-from-the-one-before-it/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [A man may perform astonishing feats and comprehend a vast amount of knowledge, and yet have no understanding of himself. But suffering directs a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/a-man-may-perform-astonishing-feats-and-comprehend-a-vast-amount-of/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [Be that self which one truly is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/be-that-self-which-one-truly-is/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [I go fishing for a thousand monsters in the depths of my own self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/i-go-fishing-for-a-thousand-monsters-in-the-depths-of-my-own-self/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [In addition to my other numerous acquaintances, I have one more intimate confidant… My depression is the most faithful mistress I have known —…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/in-addition-to-my-other-numerous-acquaintances-i-have-one-more/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [The greatest danger to Christianity is, I contend, not heresies, not heterodoxies, not atheists, not profane secularism - no, but the kind of orthodoxy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/the-greatest-danger-to-christianity-is-i-contend-not-heresies-not/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [Future is everything that past has forgotten.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/future-is-everything-that-past-has-forgotten/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [Without risk, faith is an impossibility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/without-risk-faith-is-an-impossibility/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [I have only one confidant, and that is the silence of night.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/i-have-only-one-confidant-and-that-is-the-silence-of-night/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [A road well begun is the battle half won. The important thing is to make a beginning and get under way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/a-road-well-begun-is-the-battle-half-won-the-important-thing-is-to/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [I have, I believe, the courage to doubt everything; I have, I believe, the courage to fight against everything; but I do not have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/i-have-i-believe-the-courage-to-doubt-everything-i-have-i-believe-the/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) [Explore all 462 Soren Kierkegaard quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) ## More Bitterness quotes > [You should be angry. You must not be bitter. Bitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host. It doesn't do anything to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/you-should-be-angry-you-must-not-be-bitter-bitterness-is-like-cancer/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [If Japanese tea 'stands,' it acquires a coarse bitterness and an unwholesome astringency. Milk and sugar are not used.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabella-bird/if-japanese-tea-stands-it-acquires-a-coarse-bitterness-and-an/) [Isabella Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabella-bird/) > [Stronger than alcohol, vaster than poetry, Ferment the freckled red bitterness of love!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-rimbaud/stronger-than-alcohol-vaster-than-poetry-ferment-the-freckled-red/) [Arthur Rimbaud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-rimbaud/) > [“What?" I ask. I try not to get snappy with her. She hasn't really done anything wrong. Falling in love with Turner isn't a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-m-stunich/what-i-ask-i-try-not-to-get-snappy-with-her-she-hasn-t-really-done/) [C.M. Stunich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-m-stunich/) > [“The fairest things have fleetest end, Their scent survives their close: But the rose’s scent is bitterness To him that loved the rose. —Francis…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-rule/the-fairest-things-have-fleetest-end-their-scent-survives-their-close/) [Ann Rule](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-rule/) > [Life appears to me too short to be spent in nursing animosity, or registering wrongs. With this creed, revenge never worries my heart, degradation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/life-appears-to-me-too-short-to-be-spent-in-nursing-animosity-or/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [“No," I say. "I didn't know that," and as I say it I feel flooded with bitterness at all the things Ingrid kept secret…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-lacour/no-i-say-i-didn-t-know-that-and-as-i-say-it-i-feel-flooded-with/) [Nina LaCour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-lacour/) > [Forgiving someone who've done you wrong or didn't treat you right could mean that you are allowing yourself to end up away from bitterness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/april-t-pascua/forgiving-someone-who-ve-done-you-wrong-or-didn-t-treat-you-right/) [April T Pascua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/april-t-pascua/) > [You cannot be inspired if you are surrounded with negativity, open the door and step into the inspirational garden of nature. Do not let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemmy-nola/you-cannot-be-inspired-if-you-are-surrounded-with-negativity-open-the/) [Kemmy Nola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemmy-nola/) > [It's not the load that breaks you down, it's the way you carry it. Carry it by the comfortable handles of gratitude for what's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-horne/it-s-not-the-load-that-breaks-you-down-it-s-the-way-you-carry-it/) [Lena Horne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-horne/) > [Not forgiving prolongs hurt and anger and leads to smoldering resentment, which will make us miserable until it kills us. Resentment destroys the perception…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-walters/not-forgiving-prolongs-hurt-and-anger-and-leads-to-smoldering/) [Richard Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-walters/) > [Let us not give in to pessimism, to that bitterness that the devil offers us every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/let-us-not-give-in-to-pessimism-to-that-bitterness-that-the-devil/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [“Sometimes it is good to remind ourselves how bitterness tastes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rin-chupeco/sometimes-it-is-good-to-remind-ourselves-how-bitterness-tastes/) [Rin Chupeco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rin-chupeco/) > [What folly made young people, even those in middle age, think they were immortal? How much better, their lives, if they could remember the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rohinton-mistry/what-folly-made-young-people-even-those-in-middle-age-think-they-were/) [Rohinton Mistry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rohinton-mistry/) > [Be sure there is something waiting for you after much patience, to astonish you to a degree, that you forget the bitterness of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/be-sure-there-is-something-waiting-for-you-after-much-patience-to/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) [Browse all 1,210 Bitterness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bitterness/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The difference between a man who faces death for the sake of an idea and an imitator who goes in search of martyrdom is that whilst the former expresses his idea most fully in death it is the strange feeling of bitterness which comes from failure that the latter really enjoys; the former rejoices in his victory, the latter in his suffering.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Soren Kierkegaard" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/the-difference-between-a-man-who-faces-death-for-the-sake-of-an-idea/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bitterness" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/the-difference-between-a-man-who-faces-death-for-the-sake-of-an-idea/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a84/soren-kierkegaard-578_bitterness_the-difference-between-a-man-who-faces-d_210228.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a84/soren-kierkegaard-578_bitterness_the-difference-between-a-man-who-faces-d_210228.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a84/soren-kierkegaard-578_bitterness_the-difference-between-a-man-who-faces-d_210228.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The difference between a man who faces death for the sake of an idea and an imitator who goes in search of…” — Soren Kierkegaard", "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": "Soren Kierkegaard", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The difference between a man who...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/the-difference-between-a-man-who-faces-death-for-the-sake-of-an-idea/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/the-difference-between-a-man-who-faces-death-for-the-sake-of-an-idea/#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 } } ] } ```