Inspirational Quotations on Cruelty

Detested sport, that owes its pleasures to another’s pain.
—William Cowper (1731–1800) English Anglican Poet, Hymn writer

I would not enter on my list of friends the man who needlessly sets foot upon a worm.
—William Cowper (1731–1800) English Anglican Poet, Hymn writer

Man’s inhumanity to man, makes countless thousands mourn.
—Robert Burns (1759–96) Scottish Poet, Songwriter

Cruelty and fear shake hands together.
—Honore de Balzac (1799–1850) French Novelist

It’s not a slam at you when people are rude—it’s a slam at the people they’ve met before.
—Unknown

All cruelty springs from hard-heartedness and weakness.
—Seneca the Younger (Lucius Annaeus Seneca) (c.4 BCE–65 CE) Roman Stoic Philosopher, Statesman, Tragedian

Cruelty, like every other vice, requires no motive outside of itself; it only requires opportunity.
—George Eliot (Mary Anne Evans) (1819–80) English Novelist

One of the ill effects of cruelty is that it makes the by-standers cruel.
—Thomas Buxton, 1st Baronet (1786–1845) British Philanthropist, Abolitionist

The only cure for contempt is counter-contempt.
—H. L. Mencken (1880–1956) American Journalist, Literary Critic

A fly may sting a stately horse and make him wince; but one is but an insect, and the other is a horse still.
—Samuel Johnson (1709–84) British Essayist