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Hell Is Quotes

Sharp, literary sayings on what hell really is.

'Hell is other people' may be the most famous line here, but this collection also imagines hell as an Empty place, because every one of the Devils is already out.

Hell is empty and all the devils are here.

William Shakespeare

Hell is paved with good samaritans.

Quotes by William Holden

Hell is a half-filled auditorium.

Robert Frost

The road to hell is paved with works-in-progress.

Philip Roth

Auditorium Quotes

Hell is paved with priests' skulls.

Quotes by John Chrysostom

Hell is other people.

Quotes by Jean-Paul Sartre

Hell is full of good meanings and wishings.

Quotes by George Herbert

I ain't what I used to be, but who the hell is?

Quotes by Dizzy Dean

Hell is indefinite.

Quotes by Charles Williams

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the most famous quote in this "hell is" collection?
"Hell is other people" is likely the best-known line here, a sharp, often-quoted idea suggesting that other people's presence and judgment can itself be a kind of torment. It's used as a philosophical, rather than literal, description of hell.
What does "hell is empty and all the devils are here" mean?
It's a dramatic way of saying that evil isn't confined to some distant underworld; it's already present among us. The line plays on Empty and Devils together to suggest hell has effectively relocated to the world we live in.
How does the "good samaritans" line twist the usual idea of hell?
Normally a version about good intentions gets quoted, but this line swaps in good samaritans directly, suggesting even well-meaning helpers can end up causing harm. It's a darker, more specific spin on a familiar saying.
Is there a religious or clerical angle in this collection?
Yes, one quote imagines hell paved with the skulls of priests, a striking image that critiques religious authority rather than celebrating it. It stands out as the most provocative line among the four.
Do these quotes treat hell as a literal place or a metaphor?
They lean almost entirely metaphorical, using "hell" to comment on people, intentions, and institutions rather than describing any literal Full-fledged underworld. Each line repurposes the concept to say something sharp about human behavior instead.

Sharp and literary, these quotes reimagine hell as paved with good intentions or worse, proving hell is as much about people as it is about a Full underworld.