--- title: "7 Great depression Quotes By Kurt Vonnegut" description: "7 Great depression quotes by Kurt Vonnegut. Plus more from Kurt Vonnegut and more Great depression sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b81/kurt-vonnegut-41_changed_all-that-has-changed-in-my-opinion-is-th_49442.jpg" --- > [all that has changed, in my opinion, is that, thanks to television, we can hide a great depression. we may even be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/all-that-has-changed-in-my-opinion-is-that-thanks-to-television-we/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b81/kurt-vonnegut-41_changed_all-that-has-changed-in-my-opinion-is-th_49442.jpg) > [ One of \[ways being lucky\] was to go to school during the Great Depression because teaching became a plum job. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/one-of-ways-being-lucky-was-to-go-to-school-during-the-great/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75f/kurt-vonnegut-41_education_one-of-ways-being-lucky-was-to-go-to-sch_961363.jpg) > [Oh, sure, we have another world war coming, and another great depression, but where are the leaders this time?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/oh-sure-we-have-another-world-war-coming-and-another-great-depression/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a71/kurt-vonnegut-41_another-world_oh-sure-we-have-another-world-war-coming_1597395.jpg) > [“Many years ago I was so innocent I still considered it possible that we could become the humane and reasonable America so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/many-years-ago-i-was-so-innocent-i-still-considered-it-possible-that/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b83/kurt-vonnegut-41_absolute-power_many-years-ago-i-was-so-innocent-i-still_1807556.jpg) > [ The smartest people in Indianapolis became teachers \[during the Great Depression\]. And, for once, there was something for women to do because… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/the-smartest-people-in-indianapolis-became-teachers-during-the-great/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af4/kurt-vonnegut-41_exciting_the-smartest-people-in-indianapolis-beca_2145292.jpg) > [“Phoebe Hurty hired me to write copy for ads about teen aged clothes. I had to wear the clothes I praised. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/phoebe-hurty-hired-me-to-write-copy-for-ads-about-teen-aged-clothes-i/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/13c/kurt-vonnegut-41_american-history_phoebe-hurty-hired-me-to-write-copy-for_2489223.jpg) > [The Great Depression was going on, so that the station and the streets teemed with homeless people, just as they do today.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/the-great-depression-was-going-on-so-that-the-station-and-the-streets/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a99/kurt-vonnegut-41_changed_the-great-depression-was-going-on-so-tha_2894795.jpg) ## Other authors on Great depression - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b005/author-barack-obama-16275.jpg) Barack Obama 13 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-depression/barack-obama/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b007/author-chuck-palahniuk-24118.jpg) Chuck Palahniuk 12 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-depression/chuck-palahniuk/) - [Jerry Ash 11 quotes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-depression/jerry-ash/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b018/author-milton-friedman-68333.jpg) Milton Friedman 7 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-depression/milton-friedman/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b012/author-irving-fisher-44622.jpg) Irving Fisher 6 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-depression/irving-fisher/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b024/author-will-rogers-95078.jpg) Will Rogers 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-depression/will-rogers/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b018/author-noam-chomsky-71799.jpg) Noam Chomsky 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-depression/noam-chomsky/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b009/author-elizabeth-warren-32649.jpg) Elizabeth Warren 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-depression/elizabeth-warren/) ## More by Kurt Vonnegut > [“You must bloom as a writer and I must bloom as a painter. Everything else about us is uninteresting.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/you-must-bloom-as-a-writer-and-i-must-bloom-as-a-painter-everything/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“People aren't supposed to look back.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/people-aren-t-supposed-to-look-back/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“Have a good nap, did you?” said the porter. “Yes,” said Billy. “Man,” said the porter, “you sure had a hard-on.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/have-a-good-nap-did-you-said-the-porter-yes-said-billy-man-said-the/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“I told him that if we doubted that we are demons in Hell, he should read The Mysterious Stranger, which Mark Twain wrote in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/i-told-him-that-if-we-doubted-that-we-are-demons-in-hell-he-should/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [ “Thomas Jefferson High School \[..\] His high school was named after a slave owner who was also one of the world’s greatest theoreticians on… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/thomas-jefferson-high-school-his-high-school-was-named-after-a-slave/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“I had a certain amount of skill as a dramatist, and Dr. Goebbels wanted me to use it”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/i-had-a-certain-amount-of-skill-as-a-dramatist-and-dr-goebbels-wanted/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [I was some of the mud that got to sit up and look around. Lucky me, lucky mud.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/i-was-some-of-the-mud-that-got-to-sit-up-and-look-around-lucky-me/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“The town was Newport, Rhode Island, U.S.A., Earth, Solar System, Milky Way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/the-town-was-newport-rhode-island-u-s-a-earth-solar-system-milky-way/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“Her face was one of a kind, a surprising variation that made observers think, Yes--that would be another very nice way for people to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/her-face-was-one-of-a-kind-a-surprising-variation-that-made-observers/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“You finally fell in love, I see,” said Salo. “Only an Earthling year ago,” said Constant. “It took us that long to realize that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/you-finally-fell-in-love-i-see-said-salo-only-an-earthling-year-ago/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“Like all Earthlings at the point of death, Mary Young sent faint reminders of herself to those who had known her. She released a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/like-all-earthlings-at-the-point-of-death-mary-young-sent-faint/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“And contrast Mary Kathleen, if you will, with my wife Ruth, the Ophelia of the death camps, who believed that even the most intelligent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/and-contrast-mary-kathleen-if-you-will-with-my-wife-ruth-the-ophelia/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [Someday, someday, this crazy world will have to end, And our God will take things back that He to us did lend. And if,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/someday-someday-this-crazy-world-will-have-to-end-and-our-god-will/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“They were going back to the slaughterhouse for souvenirs of the war.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/they-were-going-back-to-the-slaughterhouse-for-souvenirs-of-the-war/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“There are plenty of good reasons for fighting," I said, "but no good reason ever to hate without reservation, to imagine that God Almighty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/there-are-plenty-of-good-reasons-for-fighting-i-said-but-no-good/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-depression/kurt-vonnegut/#itemlist", "name": "7 Great depression Quotes By Kurt Vonnegut", "numberOfItems": 7, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "all that has changed, in my opinion, is that, thanks to television, we can hide a great depression. we may even be hiding a third world war", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kurt Vonnegut" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/all-that-has-changed-in-my-opinion-is-that-thanks-to-television-we/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b81/kurt-vonnegut-41_changed_all-that-has-changed-in-my-opinion-is-th_49442.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b81/kurt-vonnegut-41_changed_all-that-has-changed-in-my-opinion-is-th_49442.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b81/kurt-vonnegut-41_changed_all-that-has-changed-in-my-opinion-is-th_49442.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“all that has changed, in my opinion, is that, thanks to television, we can hide a great depression. we may…” — Kurt Vonnegut", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "One of [ways being lucky] was to go to school during the Great Depression because teaching became a plum job.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kurt Vonnegut" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/one-of-ways-being-lucky-was-to-go-to-school-during-the-great/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75f/kurt-vonnegut-41_education_one-of-ways-being-lucky-was-to-go-to-sch_961363.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75f/kurt-vonnegut-41_education_one-of-ways-being-lucky-was-to-go-to-sch_961363.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75f/kurt-vonnegut-41_education_one-of-ways-being-lucky-was-to-go-to-sch_961363.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“One of [ways being lucky] was to go to school during the Great Depression because teaching became a plum job.” — Kurt Vonnegut", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Oh, sure, we have another world war coming, and another great depression, but where are the leaders this time?", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kurt Vonnegut" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/oh-sure-we-have-another-world-war-coming-and-another-great-depression/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a71/kurt-vonnegut-41_another-world_oh-sure-we-have-another-world-war-coming_1597395.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a71/kurt-vonnegut-41_another-world_oh-sure-we-have-another-world-war-coming_1597395.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a71/kurt-vonnegut-41_another-world_oh-sure-we-have-another-world-war-coming_1597395.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Oh, sure, we have another world war coming, and another great depression, but where are the leaders this time?” — Kurt Vonnegut", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Many years ago I was so innocent I still considered it possible that we could become the humane and reasonable America so many members of my generation used to dream of. We dreamed of such an America during the Great Depression, when there were no jobs. And then we fought and often died for that dream during the Second World War, when there was no peace. But I know now that there is not a chance in hell of America becoming humane and reasonable. Because power corrupts us, and absolute power corrupts us absolutely. Human beings are chimpanzees who get crazy drunk on power. By saying that our leaders are power-drunk chimpanzees, am I in danger of wrecking the morale of our soldiers fighting and dying in the Middle East? Their morale, like so many lifeless bodies, is already shot to pieces. They are being treated, as I never was, like toys a rich kid got for Christmas.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kurt Vonnegut" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/many-years-ago-i-was-so-innocent-i-still-considered-it-possible-that/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b83/kurt-vonnegut-41_absolute-power_many-years-ago-i-was-so-innocent-i-still_1807556.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b83/kurt-vonnegut-41_absolute-power_many-years-ago-i-was-so-innocent-i-still_1807556.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b83/kurt-vonnegut-41_absolute-power_many-years-ago-i-was-so-innocent-i-still_1807556.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Many years ago I was so innocent I still considered it possible that we could become the humane and…” — Kurt Vonnegut", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 5, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The smartest people in Indianapolis became teachers [during the Great Depression]. 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And, for once, there was…” — Kurt Vonnegut", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 6, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Phoebe Hurty hired me to write copy for ads about teen aged clothes. I had to wear the clothes I praised. That was part of the job. And I became friends with her two sons, who were my age. I was over at their house all the time. She would talk bawdily to me and her sons, and our girlfriends when we brought them around. She was funny. She was liberating. She taught us to be impolite in conversation not only about sexual matters, but about American history and famous heroes, about the distribution of wealth, about school, about everything. I now make my living being impolite. I am clumsy at it. I keep trying to imitate the impoliteness which was so graceful in Phoebe Hurty. I think now that grace was easier for her than it is for me because of the mood of the Great Depression. She believed what so many Americans believed then: that the nation would be happy and just and rational when prosperity came. I never hear that word anymore: Prosperity . It used to be a synonym for Paradise . And Phoebe Hurty was able to believe that the impoliteness she recommended would give shape to an American paradise. Now her sort of impoliteness is in fashion. But nobody believes anymore in a new American paradise. 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