Hate hurts the hater more'n the hated.

The line frames hatred as a self-inflicted wound: whatever harm the hater intends for another rebounds inward as corrosive fixation, bitterness, and spiritual diminishment. By using colloquial diction ("more'n"), it sounds like a homespun moral truth rather than an abstract maxim, underscoring its practical, lived wisdom. The claim also implies an ethical strategy: refusing hatred is not merely altruistic but protective of one’s own integrity and freedom. In L’Engle’s broader moral imagination—where love is often portrayed as the only force capable of resisting darkness—hatred becomes a form of captivity that shrinks the self and distorts perception.