"The martyr sacrifices themselves entirely in vain. Or rather not in vain; for they make the selfish more selfish, the lazy more lazy, the narrow narrower"

In this quote, Florence Nightingale is expressing her belief that martyrs, or those who suffer or crave a cause, do not attain their desired function. She argues that rather of inspiring modification or progress, martyrs only serve to reinforce negative characteristics in others. By sacrificing themselves, martyrs unintentionally make the selfish more self-centered, the lazy more lazy, and the narrow-minded a lot more narrow-minded. This can be seen as a criticism of martyrdom and a call to action for individuals to actively work towards developing positive modification instead of counting on the sacrifice of others. Nightingale's words act as a suggestion that true development and development can just be achieved through collective effort and self-reflection, rather than through the sacrifice of a few.