Ambition Quote by Abraham Lincoln
![“I affect no contempt for the high eminence he [Senator Stephen Douglas] has reached. So reached, that the oppressed of my species,might have shared with me in the elevation, I would rather stand on that eminence, than wear the richest crown that ever pressed a monarch's brow.” quote by Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/0d1/abraham-lincoln-88_ambition_i-affect-no-contempt-for-the-high-eminen_2296058.jpg)
“I affect no contempt for the high eminence he [Senator Stephen Douglas] has reached. So reached, that the oppressed of my species,might have shared with me in the elevation, I would rather stand on that eminence, than wear the richest crown that ever pressed a monarch's brow.”
About This Quote
Source Speech: Lincoln-Douglas Debates, 1858
Lincoln values personal merit over inherited status, preferring earned respect to symbolic power.
In simple terms: Earn respect, not titles.
Key Takeaway
Choose substance over symbols.
Themes
humility
merit
leadership
Mood
reflective
determined
Type
philosophical
inspirational
When to use this quote
- career advancement
- social movements
- personal development
Key Concepts
political philosophy
self‑worth
Questions to Reflect On
- How do you measure true influence?
- What symbols do you value?
A Different Perspective
May overlook practical benefits of formal authority.
![“He [Stephen Douglas] is blowing out the moral lights around us, when he contends that whoever wants slaves has a right to hold them; that he is penetrating, so far as lies in his power, the human soul, and eradicating the light of reason and the love of liberty, when he is in every possible way…” quote by Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/85e/abraham-lincoln-88_human-soul_he-stephen-douglas-is-blowing-out-the-mo_512193.jpg)
![“Senator [Stephen] Douglas is of world-wide renown. All the anxious politicians of his party, or who have been of his party for years past, have been looking upon him as certainly, at no distant day, to be the President of the United States. They have seen in his round, jolly, fruitful face, post…” quote by Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/ad4/abraham-lincoln-88_anxious_senator-stephen-douglas-is-of-world-wide_2804348.jpg)
![“Next came the Patent laws. These began in England in 1624; and, in this country, with the adoption of our constitution. Before then [these?], any man might instantly use what another had invented; so that the inventor had no special advantage from his own invention. The patent system changed this…” quote by Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/449/abraham-lincoln-88_adoption_next-came-the-patent-laws-these-began-in_1828.jpg)
