--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But he like my mother, had certainly come…" description: "\"But he like my mother, had certainly come to know that those who work the most do not make the most money. It was the fault of the rich, it seemed, but..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d0/agnes-smedley-17303_certainly_but-he-like-my-mother-had-certainly-come_317892.png" --- # But he like my mother, had certainly come to know that… ![“But he like my mother, had certainly come to know that those who work the most do not make the most money. It was the fault of the rich, it seemed, but just how he did not know.” quote by Agnes Smedley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d0/agnes-smedley-17303_certainly_but-he-like-my-mother-had-certainly-come_317892.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d0/agnes-smedley-17303_certainly_but-he-like-my-mother-had-certainly-come_317892.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d0/agnes-smedley-17303_certainly_but-he-like-my-mother-had-certainly-come_317892.png) > “But he like my mother, had certainly come to know that those who work the most do not make the most money. It was the fault of the rich, it seemed, but just how he did not know.” [Agnes Smedley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-smedley/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Observes that hard work doesn’t always yield high earnings; wealth disparity often unrelated to effort. **In simple terms:** Hard work isn’t always rewarded financially. Key Takeaway Recognize limits of effort‑based success. Themes inequality economics labor society Mood critical thought‑provoking Type sociopolitical analytical When to use this quote - job market - policy debate - personal finance Key Concepts marxism social critique Questions to Reflect On - Why do some workers stay poor despite effort? - What policies could address this gap? A Different Perspective May ignore individual agency and skill variance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Certainly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certainly/) [Come](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/come/) [Did](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/did/) [Fault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fault/) [Had](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/had/) [He](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/he/) [How](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/how/) [Just](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/just/) [Know](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know/) [Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like/) [Like Mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-mother/) [Make](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/make/) [Middle class](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-class/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Money Fault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money-fault-1163538/) [Most](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/most/) [Mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mother/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rich/) [Rich Just](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rich-just-1389813/) [Seemed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seemed/) [Those](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/those/) [Who](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/who/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) ## Related quotes > [The Fault is not in the Money… The fault is in the One Who Misuses Money…!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessi/the-fault-is-not-in-the-money-the-fault-is-in-the-one-who-misuses/) [Jessi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessi/) > [I don't think any particular painters have inspired me, except in a general sense. It was more a matter of corroboration. The visual arts,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-g-ballard/i-don-t-think-any-particular-painters-have-inspired-me-except-in-a/) [J. G. Ballard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-g-ballard/) > [The very large brain that humans have, plus the things that go along with it - language, art, science - seemed to have evolved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-very-large-brain-that-humans-have-plus-the-things-that-go-along/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [A misfit like me getting anywhere in Hollywood as I somehow have, seemed, certainly at the time of 'Spanking The Monkey,' kind of out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-davies/a-misfit-like-me-getting-anywhere-in-hollywood-as-i-somehow-have/) [Jeremy Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-davies/) > [If you want to feel rich,just count all the blessings you have that money cannot buy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-want-to-feel-rich-just-count-all-the-blessings-you-have-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The United States has a huge budget deficit so taxes are going to have to go up and I certainly agree they should go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/the-united-states-has-a-huge-budget-deficit-so-taxes-are-going-to/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [If want to feel rich just count all the hings that money can't buy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sushan-sharma/if-want-to-feel-rich-just-count-all-the-hings-that-money-can-t-buy/) [Sushan Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sushan-sharma/) > [I don''t wanna be rich, just live good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patsy-cline/i-don-t-wanna-be-rich-just-live-good/) [Patsy Cline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patsy-cline/) > [A dollar might turn to a million and we all rich that's just how i feel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kendrick-lamar/a-dollar-might-turn-to-a-million-and-we-all-rich-that-s-just-how-i/) [Kendrick Lamar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kendrick-lamar/) > [I don't wanna get rich - just live good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patsy-cline/i-don-t-wanna-get-rich-just-live-good/) [Patsy Cline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patsy-cline/) > [The rich - they just live in another realm, really.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-rich-they-just-live-in-another-realm-really/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [That some should be rich, shows that others may become rich, and, hence, is just encouragement to industry and enterprise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/that-some-should-be-rich-shows-that-others-may-become-rich-and-hence/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [“If you want to feel rich. Just count all the things that you have that money can't buy :)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allec-mallanao/if-you-want-to-feel-rich-just-count-all-the-things-that-you-have-that/) [Allec Mallanao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allec-mallanao/) > [You don't have to have perfect wisdom to get very rich - just a bit better than average over a long period of time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/you-don-t-have-to-have-perfect-wisdom-to-get-very-rich-just-a-bit/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [If you want to feel rich just count the things that money can't buy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-want-to-feel-rich-just-count-the-things-that-money-can-t-buy/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Agnes Smedley > [So I had to be the doctor to these wounded men until we could remove them to the hospital. There were fifty-four women and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-smedley/so-i-had-to-be-the-doctor-to-these-wounded-men-until-we-could-remove/) [Agnes Smedley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-smedley/) > [Yet it is awful to love a person who is a torture to you. And a fascinating person who loves you and won't hear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-smedley/yet-it-is-awful-to-love-a-person-who-is-a-torture-to-you-and-a/) [Agnes Smedley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-smedley/) > [Now, being a girl, I was ashamed of my body and my lack of strength. So I tried to be a man. I shot,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-smedley/now-being-a-girl-i-was-ashamed-of-my-body-and-my-lack-of-strength-so/) [Agnes Smedley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-smedley/) > [To die would have been beautiful. But I belong to those who do not die for the sake of beauty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-smedley/to-die-would-have-been-beautiful-but-i-belong-to-those-who-do-not-die/) [Agnes Smedley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-smedley/) > [“...we live this one brief and precious hour called Life; ...it is not in keeping with the nobility of existence to keep other human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-smedley/we-live-this-one-brief-and-precious-hour-called-life-it-is-not-in/) [Agnes Smedley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-smedley/) > [Thousands of women are crushed and made inarticulate by that system and never develop as their natures would force them to develop were they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-smedley/thousands-of-women-are-crushed-and-made-inarticulate-by-that-system/) [Agnes Smedley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-smedley/) > [What a couple. I'm consumed into ashes. And he's always raking up the ashes and setting them on fire again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-smedley/what-a-couple-i-m-consumed-into-ashes-and-he-s-always-raking-up-the/) [Agnes Smedley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-smedley/) > [New York was a new and strange world. Vast, impersonal, merciless… Always before I had felt like a person, an individual, hopeful that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-smedley/new-york-was-a-new-and-strange-world-vast-impersonal-merciless-always/) [Agnes Smedley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-smedley/) > [No one yet knows what a man's province is, and how far that province, as conceived of today, is artificial.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-smedley/no-one-yet-knows-what-a-man-s-province-is-and-how-far-that-province/) [Agnes Smedley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-smedley/) > [I have loved and bitterness left me for that hour. But there are times when love itself is bitter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-smedley/i-have-loved-and-bitterness-left-me-for-that-hour-but-there-are-times/) [Agnes Smedley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-smedley/) > [Subjection of any kind and in any place is beneath the dignity of man ... the highest joy is to fight by the side…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-smedley/subjection-of-any-kind-and-in-any-place-is-beneath-the-dignity-of-man/) [Agnes Smedley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-smedley/) > [My mother listened to all the news from the camp during the strike. She said little, especially when my father or the men who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-smedley/my-mother-listened-to-all-the-news-from-the-camp-during-the-strike/) [Agnes Smedley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-smedley/) > [But settled things were enemies to me and soon lost their newness and color. The unknown called.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-smedley/but-settled-things-were-enemies-to-me-and-soon-lost-their-newness-and/) [Agnes Smedley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-smedley/) > [For months it seemed that a revolution was certain. But instead, slavery seems more likely now. The working class no longer has the physical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-smedley/for-months-it-seemed-that-a-revolution-was-certain-but-instead/) [Agnes Smedley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-smedley/) > [I joined another circle and the leader gave us a little leaflet in very small print, asking us to read it carefully and then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-smedley/i-joined-another-circle-and-the-leader-gave-us-a-little-leaflet-in/) [Agnes Smedley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-smedley/) [Explore all 37 Agnes Smedley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-smedley/) ## More Certainly quotes > [For not only every democracy, but certainly every republic, bears within itself the seeds of its own destruction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-not-only-every-democracy-but-certainly-every-republic-bears/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Ambition drives you on, ability certainly helps, but the fickle finger of fate and luck are great things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fergus-henderson/ambition-drives-you-on-ability-certainly-helps-but-the-fickle-finger/) [Fergus Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fergus-henderson/) > [I would have done well as a gypsy child, I think. A circus baby. I coulda played a great street urchin or ragamuffin. Or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natasha-lyonne/i-would-have-done-well-as-a-gypsy-child-i-think-a-circus-baby-i/) [Natasha Lyonne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natasha-lyonne/) > [I mean those people who are interested in good government will certainly contribute in order to make certain there's some counter-balance to those whose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-breyer/i-mean-those-people-who-are-interested-in-good-government-will/) [Stephen Breyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-breyer/) > [I'm certainly not a perfect mother, but I'm trying to be what my mother wasn't for me. My mother's battled depression, so I understand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-hamill/i-m-certainly-not-a-perfect-mother-but-i-m-trying-to-be-what-my/) [Dorothy Hamill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-hamill/) > [Design certainly has a cosmetic, aesthetic aim. It always aims at making things beautiful. But relevance is just as important. I often say, 'If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yves-behar/design-certainly-has-a-cosmetic-aesthetic-aim-it-always-aims-at/) [Yves Behar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yves-behar/) > [If we can send a guy to the moon we can certainly go a quarter of a mile and not get hurt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-prudhomme/if-we-can-send-a-guy-to-the-moon-we-can-certainly-go-a-quarter-of-a/) [Don Prudhomme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-prudhomme/) > [I've certainly seen a lot of my cartoonist friends embrace 'Little Lulu' in a much deeper way because their kids love it so much.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth/i-ve-certainly-seen-a-lot-of-my-cartoonist-friends-embrace-little/) [Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth/) > [Righteousness and faith certainly are instrumental in moving mountains - if moving mountains accomplishes God's purposes and is in accordance with His will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-a-bednar/righteousness-and-faith-certainly-are-instrumental-in-moving/) [David A. Bednar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-a-bednar/) > [I have never really been fond of animals. I certainly wasn't an 'animal lover' when I became involved in the movement. 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Certainly not. Are deviations from full employment a social problem? Obviously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-yellen/will-capitalist-economies-operate-at-full-employment-in-the-absence/) [Janet Yellen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-yellen/) [Browse all 1,298 Certainly quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certainly/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "But he like my mother, had certainly come to know that those who work the most do not make the most money. 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