It's because we sense our own anon. While we have convinced ourselves of this/that there have always been those who feel the same things and they feel it because loss or overcoming challenge has forged them into the person they now are who can embrace both sides of the same coin which few can do. It is why "autists" can so easily see through people and can so easily see things other cannot. Because we embrace both sides and do not adhere to one while blinding ourselves.
People who have suffered and people who have failed only to rise beyond it and people who have experienced both glory and failure are the adapted and more understanding of the world around them because they have experienced it and know what to look for, know who to look at.