Real Life
"What does not kill me, makes me stronger."
"Is despair an excellence or a defect? Purely dialectically, it is both. If only the abstract idea of despair is considered, without the thought of someone in despair, it must be regarded as a surpassing excellence. Consequently, to be able to despair is an infinite advantage over the beasts, and yet to be in despair is not only the worst misfortune and miser; no, it is ruination!"
"The man, who, being really on the Way, falls upon hard times in the world will not, as a consequence, turn to that friend who offers him refuge and comfort and encourages his old self to survive. Rather, he will seek out someone who will faithfully and inexorably help him to risk himself, so that he may endure the suffering and pass courageously through it. Only to the extent that man exposes himself over and over again to annihilation, can that which is indestructible arise within him. In this lies the dignity of daring."
— Karlfried Graf Dürckheim
"Out of suffering emerge the strongest souls. The most massive characters are seared with scars."
— Kahlil Gibran
Gregg: Pronounced differences in solar timing made me understand why seasonal cycles played such a role in European mythology.
Drew: Oh my God, it’s true. When Francisco says "For this relief much thanks: 'tis bitter cold, And I am sick at heart." at the beginning of Hamlet, it's because Denmark is, indeed, cold! That's quite something! But tell me, Greggggggg, how might I apply this new learning to modern ethical lapses?
Gregg: Going back to cool buildings and early bedtimes in winter might be good for our national health.
Drew: Who made this person? How does a person come to be like this? If hanging out in warm buildings and going to bed late helps PREVENT me from being like Greggggggg, I'm all for it.
Drew: Oh my God, it’s true. When Francisco says "For this relief much thanks: 'tis bitter cold, And I am sick at heart." at the beginning of Hamlet, it's because Denmark is, indeed, cold! That's quite something! But tell me, Greggggggg, how might I apply this new learning to modern ethical lapses?
Gregg: Going back to cool buildings and early bedtimes in winter might be good for our national health.
Drew: Who made this person? How does a person come to be like this? If hanging out in warm buildings and going to bed late helps PREVENT me from being like Greggggggg, I'm all for it.
— Drew Magary, "Gregg Easterbrook Is a Haughty Dipshit"
"Finally, I want to congratulate all the fans. We have a proud tradition in Chicago of believing that no matter how long it takes, how much we have to endure, it's only a matter of time before our team finally wins it all. The waiting builds character. We have a lot of character."
— Barack Obama, receiving his hometown Chicago Blackhawks on the White House after they ended a 49 year Stanley Cup drought
Chicago Blackhawks on the White House after they ended a 49 year Stanley Cup drought"But in all, it builds character for both hubby and I. It taught us to be frugal and when we have more money, it was much more enjoyable spending them. There wasn't credit card debt to tie us down or any loans to give us sleepless nights.
Now, if there's going to be another recession. I say bring it on. It may be tough but people will come out of it much wiser."
Now, if there's going to be another recession. I say bring it on. It may be tough but people will come out of it much wiser."
"If one were to say what it is to do good, in a single word it would be to endure suffering. Not enduring is bad without exception."
— Yamamoto Tsumetomo, paraphrasing Master Issei, Hagakure: The Book of Samurai
"All the adversity I've had in my life, all my troubles and obstacles, have strengthened me.. You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you."
Misery builds lots of great characters! The homeless guy who sleeps in a cardboard box, the battered wife, the shell-shocked soldier, the drug addict, the kid who commits suicide at age 10. Oh wait it doesn't, it just makes us miserable.
— Anonymous
"Indeed, some of the support for the Iraq War came from the belief that war builds character by subjecting the pampered citizens of the modern state to a beneficial dose of suffering in the service of a great cause."
— Paul Campos, 'Warrior envy' has drawbacks
"[My husband] has the heating app on his phone, and I don’t, which is a problem because he went to public school, where breaking the ice on your morning basin of water is considered character-forming, not child abuse. We are certainly not allowed the heating on yet."
— Allison Pearson, The Daily Telegraph, autumn 2021.
It is better to enter a house of mourning than a house of feasting, since death is the end of every man, and the living should take this to heart.
Sorrow is better than laughter, for a sad countenance is good for the heart.
The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.
Sorrow is better than laughter, for a sad countenance is good for the heart.
The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.
"Everyone knows winter builds character.
It makes us tough, able to withstand adversity.
It also makes us cold.
I don't know about you, but I've built all the character I can stand this year."
It makes us tough, able to withstand adversity.
It also makes us cold.
I don't know about you, but I've built all the character I can stand this year."
— John Norberg, Impatience for spring building
Fiction
"In order for [my son] to be a responsible adult, he has to be miserable now!"
— Red Forman, That '70s Show
Penny: Without that show, I have nothing!
Prudy: Having nothing builds character!
Prudy: Having nothing builds character!
"Suffering is food for the soul. NOW SUFFER!"
— Evilene, The Wiz
"I don't need luck, though. I don't want it. I've always had to struggle and fight and that's made me strong. It's made me who I am."
"No one is born wise. We get that way only by enduring."
— Loghain, Dragon Age: Origins
"Calvin, go do something you hate! Being miserable builds character!"
— Calvin, doing an impression of his father, Calvin and Hobbes
"The stone cannot know why the chisel cleaves it; the iron cannot know why the fire scorches it. When thy life is cleft and scorched, when death and despair leap at thee, beat not thy breast and curse thy evil fate, but thank the Builder for the trials that shape thee."
— The Hammer Book of Tenets, Thief: The Dark Project
"If you're ever gonna find a silver lining, it's gotta be a cloudy day."
— Kacey Musgraves, "Silver Lining"
Maggie Holt: You gotta own the past, don't you? Own the bad parts as well as the good. Let it make you stronger.
Blake Thorburn: What doesn't kill you makes you stronger?
Maggie: Yes. Exactly.
Blake: I always hated that phrase. No. What doesn't kill you makes you weaker.
Blake Thorburn: What doesn't kill you makes you stronger?
Maggie: Yes. Exactly.
Blake: I always hated that phrase. No. What doesn't kill you makes you weaker.
— Pact
Edd: Should we feel guilty about Jonny's predicament?
Eddy: Nah! You know what they say, a little childhood trauma builds character.
Eddy: Nah! You know what they say, a little childhood trauma builds character.
Kramer: You know when you hold it in like that you can cause a lot of damage to your bladder. That's what happens to truck drivers. They hold it in all the time. Eventually it starts coming out involuntarily.
Jerry: All right.
Kramer: Jerry, are you aware that adult diapers are a six-hundred-million-dollar-a-year industry?
Jerry: Maybe I should just go anytime I get the urge like you … wherever I am. There's too much urinary freedom in this society. I'm proud to hold it in. It builds character.
Jerry: All right.
Kramer: Jerry, are you aware that adult diapers are a six-hundred-million-dollar-a-year industry?
Jerry: Maybe I should just go anytime I get the urge like you … wherever I am. There's too much urinary freedom in this society. I'm proud to hold it in. It builds character.
"I needed to understand what true suffering was, so I could become more compassionate to others... even to people like Kuvira."
— Korra, The Legend of Korra
"I've heard it said that we only gain wisdom through suffering — and tonight I intend to make you very wise."
— Megatron, Transformers: Megatron Origin #4
"It was then I received the Victoria Cross for bravery above and beyond the call of duty. Ha-ha! Those were the days! Discipline. Discipline was the thing. Builds character and all that sort of thing."
— Colonel Hathi, The Jungle Book (1967)
Unfortunately for Eric, his sire felt that struggle best helps focus the young mind and thus breeds the best servants for Set. As a result, the first four months in which Eric has served his new god have been the hardest months of his existence: in the three months following his selection, his master forced him through a series of rigorous tribulations, each designed to remove the blinders placed upon him by the world Set's enemies had created. The first of these tests involved the destruction of Eric's mortal life and the things that made that life comfortable; his master took away his car, his apartment, his job, his finances, and even saw to it that his regular lady friends were offered better-paying, irresistible jobs in different cities. Eric awoke to find everything gone and a clipping from a local newspaper with his own obituary in it. "Nothing of the old life can remain except for you," his masters had written on the clipping, "and it shall be the final test of faith for you to bring yourself up again."
— Vampire: The Masquerade — Children of the Inquisition
"I believe that, as a species, human beings define their reality through misery and suffering."
— Agent Smith, The Matrix
"There's a feeling you can't understand unless you get hurt and cause trouble. There's also a feeling you won't get unless you hit rock bottom. You rebel against the ideals of life, but then everything goes bad, and for the first time, you find yourself yearning for those ideals. Pain would mean nothing without kindness. Darkness can't stand out without the sun. Neither is something to scoff at. Both sides of the equation have meaning. So even if you stumble and make mistakes, it isn't for nothing. If you think to yourself, 'I won't let this be for nothing!', it'll turn into something that will help you grow."
— Kyoko Honda, Fruits Basket
Negasonic Teenage Warhead: What are the perks of being an X-Man anyway? The matching unitards? The house that blows up every few years?
Colossus: Please. House blowing up builds character!
Colossus: Please. House blowing up builds character!
"I know what it means to burn
That's how I began to learn"
That's how I began to learn"
— Masterplan, Spirit Never Die
"I mean, they promised me they'd take me to St. Croix, and then they just decide to go to Tuscany. Art and buildings? I was totally beachless for a month and a half. No one has suffered like I have. Of course I think that that kind of adversity builds character. Well, then I thought, I already have a lot of character. Is it possible to have too much character?"
— Cordelia, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, "When She Was Bad"
"The greatest teacher, failure is."
— Yoda, The Last Jedi
"To quote the great philosopher Nietzsche: 'That which does not kill you, makes you stronger.' Long have I been disturbed—"
"That only applies to a colony of bacteria given an insufficient dose of antibiotics," interrupted Annika.
"That only applies to a colony of bacteria given an insufficient dose of antibiotics," interrupted Annika.
"It is through struggle that humans learn discipline and grow! I will be Mega Man King, for the war that never ends!"
— Atlas, Mega Man ZX Advent
"Otoku says that there is one rule in this house, above all others: what you want, you must earn."
— Kai, The Traveler's Gate
"Falling under the control of the Dark Power was my biggest disgrace...however, because of that mistake, I was then able to be reborn, along with this Bey, Metro L-Drago!"
— Ryuga, Beyblade: Metal Fusion
Ben: There is a... philosophy, in Mandalore; As flowers are grown by rain, so is the soul grown by war. From suffering comes compassion, from cruelty; mercy, from violence; peace. We are not born when we come into this world. We are born when we learn who we are, and we can only learn by being tested. Adversity is the crucible, honor is the way, and enlightenment the reward.
Mace: That's— [shakes his head at how much he finds wrong with that philosophy]
Ben: Not the Jedi way? No. But it is not wrong. There is much we learn through introspection and self-awareness, through quiet and internal reflection. But there is much more you learn in the face of wrath and pain and destruction. Things that can not be learned in peace. Things you can only learn about yourself when you are forced to face the trial of them.
Mace: That's— [shakes his head at how much he finds wrong with that philosophy]
Ben: Not the Jedi way? No. But it is not wrong. There is much we learn through introspection and self-awareness, through quiet and internal reflection. But there is much more you learn in the face of wrath and pain and destruction. Things that can not be learned in peace. Things you can only learn about yourself when you are forced to face the trial of them.
"A person who has never missed a meal a day in their life may believe that hunger is appalling. That no matter one's circumstances, they should not go hungry. But a person who has starved knows it. Their ideals may seem alike, but those two perspectives are not the same."
— Ben Naasade, The Desert Storm
"All is excruciating pain. I breath fire and torment. I birth a world of suffering, to mire and plague. In one fleeting moment, lives come and go. Ever moving towards the unknown. And in that fleeting moment, they cry for the answer to the question: why, given life, are they meant to suffer, to die? As fragmented, imperfect beings, yours is a never-ending quest. A quest to find your purpose, knowing your end is assured. To find the strength to continue, when all strength has left you. To find joy, even as darkness descends. And amidst deepest despair, light everlasting."
— Venat/Hydaelyn, Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker
"Only pain and suffering will make you realize who you are."
— Asami Yamazaki, Audition
Cordelia: Suffering bastard.
Aral: I thought you saw meaning in that sort of thing.
Cordelia: In the abstract. Most days it's just stumbling around in the dark with the rest of creation, smashing into things and wondering why it hurts.
Aral: I thought you saw meaning in that sort of thing.
Cordelia: In the abstract. Most days it's just stumbling around in the dark with the rest of creation, smashing into things and wondering why it hurts.
"A word about my mother, before you meet her. Her name is Sally Jackson and she's the best person in the world, which just proves my theory that the best people have the rottenest luck."
— Percy Jackson, Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief
"Being a little familiar with pain makes a person more caring. So never mistake that for weakness."
— Ryoji Kaji, Evangelion 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance
"A world without misery is not the same as a happy one. Misery shapes men throughout their lives. Hardship makes them strong. Smother them with blessings and they will never learn what happiness is."
Johnny: Sorry I'm late, Mr. Kickenklober. I was practicing all morning, I just lost track of time.
Klaus: Oh, I thought maybe you had been involved in a terrible accident and we'd never have to see you again, but never mind.
Johnny: Seriously? Why do you have to be so mean all the time?
Klaus: 'Cause only when we suffer... [hits a nearby dancer with his stick] ...can we be great.
Klaus: Oh, I thought maybe you had been involved in a terrible accident and we'd never have to see you again, but never mind.
Johnny: Seriously? Why do you have to be so mean all the time?
Klaus: 'Cause only when we suffer... [hits a nearby dancer with his stick] ...can we be great.
— Sing 2
"I must pay my deepest thanks to the disease that once tormented me. Knowledge and will are tempered by pain, and hope is carried in the arms of torment. This is the only route to zohar (radiance)."
— Azwel's research on Aspiration & Tribulation, Soulcalibur VI
Krash: You guys, I have a bunch of good news! Firstly, we're gonna head even higher up the mountain. Secondly, the weather is gonna get even worse. So we probably won't be able to see or feel anything soon.
Chiko: So... Which part's a good news?
Krash: All good! Never before have we had such a surefire test of strength and character.
Chiko: So... Which part's a good news?
Krash: All good! Never before have we had such a surefire test of strength and character.
— KikoRiki, "Great News"
Golf Ball: Well, I guess we'll just use the trebuchet Tennis Ball built before he died.
Blocky: W-Wh— You had this the whole ti— I didn't actually have to climb the tree!
Golf Ball: Physical exertion builds character.
Blocky: Oh! [grabs Golf Ball] You know what else builds character?!
Blocky: W-Wh— You had this the whole ti— I didn't actually have to climb the tree!
Golf Ball: Physical exertion builds character.
Blocky: Oh! [grabs Golf Ball] You know what else builds character?!
— Battle for BFDI, "Getting Teardrop to Talk"
"Take suffering as your companion, fear and unease as friends. If you do, darkness will become light."
— The Hero's Shade, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (2016)
"Pain is weakness leaving the body."
— The Soldier, Team Fortress 2
"Ah yes! I would be happy to beat you until you are cleansed! Now remember, a sanctified person is like a silver bell! The harder they are smitten, the better they sound!!"
—Jedidiah Diligence Breckenridge III, Studio C
