---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Is it not when the fall is the lowest…"
description: "\"Is it not when the fall is the lowest that charity ought to be the greatest?\" — Victor Hugo"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42f/victor-hugo-32_charity_is-it-not-when-the-fall-is-the-lowest-th_2381152.jpg"
---

#  Is it not when the fall is the lowest that charity ought…

![“Is it not when the fall is the lowest that charity ought to be the greatest?” quote by Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42f/victor-hugo-32_charity_is-it-not-when-the-fall-is-the-lowest-th_2381152.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42f/victor-hugo-32_charity_is-it-not-when-the-fall-is-the-lowest-th_2381152.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42f/victor-hugo-32_charity_is-it-not-when-the-fall-is-the-lowest-th_2381152.jpg)

> “Is it not when the fall is the lowest that charity ought to be the greatest?”

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

During humanity's lowest points, charity should be most generous and compassionate.

**In simple terms:** Charity is vital in hardship.

Key Takeaway

Give generously when others suffer most.

Themes

compassion poverty humanity

Mood

empathetic inspirational

Type

philosophical motivational

When to use this quote

- disaster relief
- economic crises
- personal hardship
- community support

Key Concepts

altruism social responsibility ethical duty

Questions to Reflect On

- What motivates you to help?
- How can we sustain aid longterm?

A Different Perspective

Charity may be limited by resources.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Charity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/charity/) [Generosity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generosity/)

## Related quotes

> [“there is a point, moreover, at which the unfortunate and the infamous are associated and confounded in a single word, Les Miserables; whose fault…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/there-is-a-point-moreover-at-which-the-unfortunate-and-the-infamous/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [True charity ought to begin in marriage, for it is a relationship that must be rebuilt every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-e-faust/true-charity-ought-to-begin-in-marriage-for-it-is-a-relationship-that/)

[James E. Faust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-e-faust/)

> [We all live upon the hope of pleasing somebody, and the pleasure of pleasing ought to be greatest, and at last always will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/we-all-live-upon-the-hope-of-pleasing-somebody-and-the-pleasure-of/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [To enjoy the things we ought and to hate the things we ought has the greatest bearing on excellence of character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/to-enjoy-the-things-we-ought-and-to-hate-the-things-we-ought-has-the/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [We all live in the hope of pleasing somebody; and the pleasure of pleasing ought to be greatest, and always will be greatest, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/we-all-live-in-the-hope-of-pleasing-somebody-and-the-pleasure-of/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [I have learned from Jesus Christ Himself what charity is, and how we ought to practise it; for He says: "By this shall all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-basil/i-have-learned-from-jesus-christ-himself-what-charity-is-and-how-we/)

[Saint Basil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-basil/)

> [As concerning faith we ought to be invincible, and more hard, if it might be, than the adamant stone; but as touching charity, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/as-concerning-faith-we-ought-to-be-invincible-and-more-hard-if-it/)

[Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/)

> [Idleness, pleasure, what abysses! To do nothing is a dreary course to take, be sure of it. To live idle upon the substance of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/idleness-pleasure-what-abysses-to-do-nothing-is-a-dreary-course-to/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [In the vast cosmical changes, the universal life comes and goes in unknown quantities, ... sowing an animalcule here, crumbling a star there, oscillating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/in-the-vast-cosmical-changes-the-universal-life-comes-and-goes-in/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [Memory is a gulf that a word can move to its lowest depths.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/memory-is-a-gulf-that-a-word-can-move-to-its-lowest-depths/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [Every act of charity, every thought of sympathy, every action of help, every good deed, is taking so much of self-importance away from our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/every-act-of-charity-every-thought-of-sympathy-every-action-of-help/)

[Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/)

> [Now then, if we were to go the lowest road and plaster my face on the bottle of oil and vinegar dressing just to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-newman/now-then-if-we-were-to-go-the-lowest-road-and-plaster-my-face-on-the/)

[Paul Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-newman/)

> [The first proof of charity in a priest, especially a bishop, is poverty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/the-first-proof-of-charity-in-a-priest-especially-a-bishop-is-poverty/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [Vegetables, which are the lowest in the scale of living things, are fed by roots, which, implanted in the native soil, select by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-anthelme-brillat-savarin/vegetables-which-are-the-lowest-in-the-scale-of-living-things-are-fed/)

[Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-anthelme-brillat-savarin/)

> [Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this \[step by step, from humans to apes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us-with-so-extraordinary-a/)

[Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/)

## More by Victor Hugo

> [Houses are like the human beings that inhabit them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/houses-are-like-the-human-beings-that-inhabit-them/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [“There is still a certain grace in a dead festival. It has been happy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/there-is-still-a-certain-grace-in-a-dead-festival-it-has-been-happy/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [He caught her, she fell, he caught her in his arms, he held her tightly unconscious of what he was doing. He held her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/he-caught-her-she-fell-he-caught-her-in-his-arms-he-held-her-tightly/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [“First I loved women, then animals, and now I love stones. They're just as amusing as women and animals and they're much less trecherous.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/first-i-loved-women-then-animals-and-now-i-love-stones-they-re-just/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [Nature is pitiless; she never withdraws her flowers, her music, her fragrance, and her sunlight from before human cruelty or suffering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/nature-is-pitiless-she-never-withdraws-her-flowers-her-music-her/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [“Have courage for the great sorrows of life, and patience for the small ones. And when you have finished your daily task, go to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/have-courage-for-the-great-sorrows-of-life-and-patience-for-the-small/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [The peasants of the Asturias believe that in every litter of wolves there is one pup that is killed by the mother for fear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/the-peasants-of-the-asturias-believe-that-in-every-litter-of-wolves/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [Great blunders are often made, like large ropes, of a multitude of fibres.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/great-blunders-are-often-made-like-large-ropes-of-a-multitude-of/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [“For love is like a tree; it grows of itself; it send its roots deep into our being, and often continues to grow green…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/for-love-is-like-a-tree-it-grows-of-itself-it-send-its-roots-deep/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [“Blacheville smiles with the self-satisfied smugness of a man whose vanity is tickled”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/blacheville-smiles-with-the-self-satisfied-smugness-of-a-man-whose/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [“Loving in ignorance, she loved with all the more passion. She did not know whether it was good or evil, beneficent or dangerous, necessary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/loving-in-ignorance-she-loved-with-all-the-more-passion-she-did-not/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [Laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/laughter-is-the-sun-that-drives-winter-from-the-human-face/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [“Our joys have shadows. The perfect smile belongs to God alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/our-joys-have-shadows-the-perfect-smile-belongs-to-god-alone/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [“When those we love are in question, our prudence invents every sort of madness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/when-those-we-love-are-in-question-our-prudence-invents-every-sort-of/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [Love is a fault; so be it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/love-is-a-fault-so-be-it/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

[Explore all 2,181 Victor Hugo quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

## More Charity quotes

> [The greatest charity you can contribute to is yourself. Instead of spending a dollar to help feed hungry children, why not spend that dollar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/the-greatest-charity-you-can-contribute-to-is-yourself-instead-of/)

[Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/)

> [In this choice of inheritance we have given to our frame of polity the image of a relation in blood; binding up the constitution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/in-this-choice-of-inheritance-we-have-given-to-our-frame-of-polity/)

[Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/)

> [I would have none of that rigid circumspect charity which is never done without scrutiny, and which always mistrusts the truth of the necessities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-baptiste-massillon/i-would-have-none-of-that-rigid-circumspect-charity-which-is-never/)

[Jean Baptiste Massillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-baptiste-massillon/)

> [I'm publicist, patron of nine charities, creative director, food consultant, recipe developer - and mum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-monroe/i-m-publicist-patron-of-nine-charities-creative-director-food/)

[Jack Monroe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-monroe/)

> [The next time you're looking at a charity, don't ask about the rate of their overhead. Ask about the scale of their dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-next-time-you-re-looking-at-a-charity-don-t-ask-about-the-rate-of/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Both fact and logic seem to me to support the view that savings invested in privately owned economic tools of production amount to an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-a-harper/both-fact-and-logic-seem-to-me-to-support-the-view-that-savings/)

F. A. Harper

> [I shall pray God to send charity into this hideous world, and sympathy for the weak, and love for the unhappy and unfortunate. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/i-shall-pray-god-to-send-charity-into-this-hideous-world-and-sympathy/)

[John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/)

> [It is thus only this personal feeling of misery that we get rid of by acts of pity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/it-is-thus-only-this-personal-feeling-of-misery-that-we-get-rid-of-by/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [Considering community support and cost-benefit analysis, I have supported earmarks for projects of high public purpose involving such areas as higher education, alternative energy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-fortenberry/considering-community-support-and-cost-benefit-analysis-i-have/)

[Jeff Fortenberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-fortenberry/)

> [It's always great to be able to give back to the community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikola-vucevic/it-s-always-great-to-be-able-to-give-back-to-the-community/)

[Nikola Vucevic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikola-vucevic/)

> [Slander is a poison which kills charity, both in the slanderer and the one who listens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-of-clairvaux/slander-is-a-poison-which-kills-charity-both-in-the-slanderer-and-the/)

[Bernard of Clairvaux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-of-clairvaux/)

> [I like to give back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-chan/i-like-to-give-back/)

[Jackie Chan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-chan/)

> [We have to restore power to the family, to the neighborhood, and the community with a non-market principle, a principle of equality, of charity,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-brown/we-have-to-restore-power-to-the-family-to-the-neighborhood-and-the/)

[Jerry Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-brown/)

> [“It takes a female to have a baby, It takes a woman to raise a child, It takes a mother to raise them correctly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-l-alder/it-takes-a-female-to-have-a-baby-it-takes-a-woman-to-raise-a-child-it/)

[Shannon L. Alder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-l-alder/)

> [I own about 300 pairs of shoes. When I start to go over 300, I have mini-sales from my closet and give the money…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-london/i-own-about-300-pairs-of-shoes-when-i-start-to-go-over-300-i-have/)

[Stacy London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-london/)

[Browse all 2,477 Charity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/charity/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Is it not when the fall is the lowest that charity ought to be the greatest?",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Victor Hugo"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/is-it-not-when-the-fall-is-the-lowest-that-charity-ought-to-be-the/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Charity"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/is-it-not-when-the-fall-is-the-lowest-that-charity-ought-to-be-the/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42f/victor-hugo-32_charity_is-it-not-when-the-fall-is-the-lowest-th_2381152.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42f/victor-hugo-32_charity_is-it-not-when-the-fall-is-the-lowest-th_2381152.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42f/victor-hugo-32_charity_is-it-not-when-the-fall-is-the-lowest-th_2381152.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Is it not when the fall is the lowest that charity ought to be the greatest?” — Victor Hugo",
                "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": "Victor Hugo",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Is it not when the fall...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/is-it-not-when-the-fall-is-the-lowest-that-charity-ought-to-be-the/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/is-it-not-when-the-fall-is-the-lowest-that-charity-ought-to-be-the/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
