Quotation by

W. Somerset Maugham

It is not true that suffering ennobles the character happiness does that sometimes, but suffering for the most part, makes men petty and vindictive.

W. Somerset Maugham

Happiness

Understanding this quote AI Analysis

Maugham argues that happiness can occasionally improve a person's character, but suffering usually has the opposite effect by making people mean-spirited and spiteful. He challenges the common belief that hardship naturally leads to personal growth or nobility.

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