“ it is fatal to flatter the wicked by letting them see that you are shocked by them. ”
George Orwell, A Clergyman's Daughter (1935). copy citation
| Author | George Orwell |
|---|---|
| Source | A Clergyman's Daughter |
| Topic | shock |
| Date | 1935 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | |
| Weblink | http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks02/0200011.txt |
Context
“The best brothel-scenes in literature have been written, without exception, by pious believers or pious unbelievers. And of course Dorothy, born into the twentieth century, made a point of listening to Mr. Warburton’s blasphemies as calmly as possible; it is fatal to flatter the wicked by letting them see that you are shocked by them. Besides, she was genuinely fond of him. He teased her and distressed her, and yet she got from him, without being fully aware of it, a species of sympathy and understanding which she could not get elsewhere.”
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