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Who really said it

Each of us is responsible for everything and to every human being

Adapted from words by Fyodor Dostoevsky 1821–1881 · Russian novelist
Disputed Rights unconfirmed

The underlying passage is Dostoevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov. Wikiquote explains that Beauvoir used it as an epigraph in The Blood of Others; this does not make her its author. The exact English wording above has not been tied to an inspected translation edition.

Last verified 9 Nov 2026 · how we verify · spot an error?

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Disputed credit — copy with the correction

“Each of us is responsible for everything and to every human being” Adapted from Fyodor Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov; used as an epigraph by Simone de Beauvoir. Exact English translator and edition unconfirmed. · Verbatim: “every one is really responsible to all men for all men and for everything”

The slide-ready mistake: crediting this to Simone de Beauvoir. Use the credit shown above instead.

Can you use it?

We couldn’t establish where this was first published, so there’s no rights status to give. Credit it as shown above — just don’t present it as public domain, and get permission for commercial or published reuse.

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In context

Evoking the world of Fyodor Dostoevsky — Russian novelist. Theme: "Each of us is responsible for everything and to every human being". Atmospheric and restrained, cinematic directional light, a muted period-appropriate palette, fine grain and texture. Compose with generous empty space for the quote and a small credit line. No lettering in the image itself.

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Minimalist editorial slide for the quote "Each of us is responsible for everything and to every human being". Clean background, a single muted accent color, generous negative space, subtle paper or linen texture, no literal illustration — let the words carry it. Reserve clear space for a serif quote and a small credit line. No lettering in the image itself.

Provenance

The source

Underlying work
The Brothers Karamazov, Book VI, chapter II
Source of confusion
An epigraph to Beauvoir’s The Blood of Others, according to Wikiquote
Translation limit
Garnett’s inspected English version differs from the circulating sentence

every one is really responsible to all men for all men and for everything

The epigraph miscredit

How we verified this

  • Wikiquote ↗ identifies the epigraph confusion and Dostoevsky’s novel.
  • Garnett’s translation ↗ contains the related words in Zosima’s account of his brother Markel; it is not passed off as the exact headline translation.

The Russian novel is old, and the Garnett comparison text is public domain, but the precise English wording in the headline may belong to a later translation. Its translator and edition are unestablished here, so that wording is not declared public domain.

Rights status is our research, not legal advice — and copyright varies by country and edition. For commercial or published use, confirm with the rightsholder. See terms.

Fact-check

An epigraph mistaken for the novelist’s own words

Beauvoir is the quoting author, not the author of the underlying passage.

Simone de Beauvoir

Wikiquote ↗ explains the epigraph in The Blood of Others and redirects authorship to Dostoevsky.

Credit Dostoevsky for the underlying passage and identify the English translation before treating the exact wording as established.

Context

Why it mattered

In Dostoevsky’s novel, Zosima recalls his dying brother’s sense of responsibility for other people. The passage joins moral accountability to an expansive religious vision, rather than presenting responsibility as a narrow legal debt.

Beauvoir’s use of such a thought as an epigraph suits a novel concerned with the consequences of people’s choices for others. Quotation at the front of her book, however, preserves a relationship to another writer rather than transferring authorship to her.

Explore

Filed under

More provenance-checked quotes on the same theme, each with its reuse status.

Character Kindness Hope

Go further

Dig deeper

Trusted places to keep pulling the thread — primary archives, fact-checks, and scholarship. We show how we used each one before you leave.

The epigraph miscrediten.wikiquote.org

Wikiquote identifies Dostoevsky as author and Beauvoir’s epigraph as the route of misattribution.
The underlying novelwww.gutenberg.org

Garnett’s translation contains the responsibility passage in Book VI chapter II, in Markel’s speech recalled by Zosima.
Beauvoir’s novel and translationplato.stanford.edu

Stanford lists The Blood of Others as the 1945 novel and its 1948 English translation by Yvonne Moyse and Roger Senhouse; this bibliographic fact does not establish the exact epigraph wording.
Dostoevsky’s biographyen.wikipedia.org

Biographical reference identifies Dostoevsky’s dates and novels.

The author

About Fyodor Dostoevsky

Fyodor Dostoevsky

1821–1881 · Russian novelist

Fyodor Dostoevsky explored conscience, faith and moral responsibility through novels including Crime and Punishment and The Brothers Karamazov. The latter sets its philosophical arguments inside a family’s conflicts and the teachings surrounding the elder Zosima.

For writers & researchers

Cite this

The primary source (Chicago)

Dostoevsky, Fyodor. The Brothers Karamazov, Book VI, chapter II. Comparison text: Constance Garnett translation, Project Gutenberg 28054. Exact headline translation unidentified; epigraph connection documented by Wikiquote.

This verification page

Quotle.info. “Who really said ‘Each of us is responsible for everything and to every human being’?” Last verified 9 Nov 2026. https://quotle.info/who-said/each-of-us-is-responsible-for-everything-and-to-every-human/

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