--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Literature deeply stands opposed to the…" description: "\"Literature deeply stands opposed to the dominant value system-the one that rewards money and power. Writers are on the other side-they make us sympathe..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da5/alain-de-botton-221_books_literature-deeply-stands-opposed-to-the_930654.jpg" --- # Literature deeply stands opposed to the dominant value… ![“Literature deeply stands opposed to the dominant value system-the one that rewards money and power. Writers are on the other side-they make us sympathetic to ideas and feelings that are of deep importance but can’t afford airtime in a commercialized, status-consciou s, and cynical world.” quote by Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da5/alain-de-botton-221_books_literature-deeply-stands-opposed-to-the_930654.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da5/alain-de-botton-221_books_literature-deeply-stands-opposed-to-the_930654.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da5/alain-de-botton-221_books_literature-deeply-stands-opposed-to-the_930654.jpg) > “Literature deeply stands opposed to the dominant value system-the one that rewards money and power. Writers are on the other side-they make us sympathetic to ideas and feelings that are of deep importance but can’t afford airtime in a commercialized, status-consciou s, and cynical world.” [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote argues that literature challenges prevailing values that prioritize wealth and authority, offering empathy for profound ideas ignored by commercial culture. **In simple terms:** Literature opposes money‑driven values, giving voice to important but ignored ideas. Key Takeaway Seek out and support works that broaden perspective. Themes literature values empathy culture critique Mood reflective critical hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - reading novels - participating in book clubs - teaching critical thinking - advocating for arts funding Key Concepts humanism social critique artistic resistance Questions to Reflect On - How does literature reshape your view of success? - What barriers prevent important ideas from reaching the public? A Different Perspective Commercial pressures can limit access to diverse voices. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Cynical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cynical/) [Feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feelings/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Money and power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money-and-power/) [Rewards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rewards/) [Sympathetic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sympathetic/) [Value](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/value/) [Value system](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/value-system/) [Value systems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/value-systems/) [Values](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/values/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Perhaps the most significant thing a person can know about himself is to understand his own system of values. Almost every thing we do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacque-fresco/perhaps-the-most-significant-thing-a-person-can-know-about-himself-is/) [Jacque Fresco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacque-fresco/) > [The urge to consume is fathered by the value system which emphasizes the ability of the society to produce.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/the-urge-to-consume-is-fathered-by-the-value-system-which-emphasizes/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [For me, it's all about the youth and us stepping up as a community to embed a set of value systems to help these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-steward/for-me-it-s-all-about-the-youth-and-us-stepping-up-as-a-community-to/) [David Steward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-steward/) > [Animism is not a belief system, but a worldview: The world is a sacred place and we are part of it. The factuality of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/animism-is-not-a-belief-system-but-a-worldview-the-world-is-a-sacred/) [Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) > [I think we have different value systems." —Arthur "Well mine's better." —Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/i-think-we-have-different-value-systems-arthur-well-mine-s-better-ford/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [Television has a conscience. It is how we disseminate our value system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-zalaznick/television-has-a-conscience-it-is-how-we-disseminate-our-value-system/) Lauren Zalaznick > [Muslims, who have a completely different value system, come to the West, then they should accept that there are certain basic values in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cleese/muslims-who-have-a-completely-different-value-system-come-to-the-west/) [John Cleese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cleese/) > [You cannot lecture another people about what you think is right or wrong based on your value system unless you're willing to accept others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adel-al-jubeir/you-cannot-lecture-another-people-about-what-you-think-is-right-or/) [Adel al-Jubeir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adel-al-jubeir/) > [A person who has been seduced by the consumer value system, whose identity is dissolved in an amalgam of the accouterments trappings of mass…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-havel/a-person-who-has-been-seduced-by-the-consumer-value-system-whose/) [Vaclav Havel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-havel/) > [ \[Even the mechanism can be endowed with an image. Thus\] the thermostat has an image of the outside world in the shape of information… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-e-boulding/even-the-mechanism-can-be-endowed-with-an-image-thus-the-thermostat/) [Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) > [Cultures, along with the religions that shape and nurture them, are value systems, sets of traditions and habits clustered around one or several languages,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/cultures-along-with-the-religions-that-shape-and-nurture-them-are/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [I think in rural settings, people have a different appreciation for animals than might the city dweller. In parts of India where poisonous snake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/i-think-in-rural-settings-people-have-a-different-appreciation-for/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [The church has been brought into the same value system as the world: fame, success, materialism and celebrity. We watch the leading churches and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-colson/the-church-has-been-brought-into-the-same-value-system-as-the-world/) [Charles Colson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-colson/) > [The primary role of the church is to reflect God's value system in society and to train people in that value system. It's not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-evans/the-primary-role-of-the-church-is-to-reflect-god-s-value-system-in/) [Tony Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-evans/) > [The culture in which we live stresses looking out for number one. Without adopting such a self-centered value system, we can demand the best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-carson/the-culture-in-which-we-live-stresses-looking-out-for-number-one/) [Benjamin Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-carson/) ## More by Alain de Botton > [“To be mature is, we're told, to move beyond possessiveness. Jealousy is for babies. The mature person knows that no one owns anyone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/to-be-mature-is-we-re-told-to-move-beyond-possessiveness-jealousy-is/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“He feared that by leaving her he would ruin her life - so he stayed, and did just that.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/he-feared-that-by-leaving-her-he-would-ruin-her-life-so-he-stayed-and/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [You have to be quite heavily invested in someone to do them the honour of telling them you're annoyed with them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/you-have-to-be-quite-heavily-invested-in-someone-to-do-them-the/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“The Anxiety of Sunday afternoon: your unlived lives and infinite possibility pressing upon the constraints of reality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/the-anxiety-of-sunday-afternoon-your-unlived-lives-and-infinite/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [Those who divorce aren't necessarily the most unhappy, just those neatly able to believe their misery is caused by one other person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/those-who-divorce-aren-t-necessarily-the-most-unhappy-just-those/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“We could not be fulfilled if we weren't inauthentic some of the time—inauthentic, that is, in relation to such things as our passing desires…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/we-could-not-be-fulfilled-if-we-weren-t-inauthentic-some-of-the-time/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“Insofar as we appreciate order, it is when we perceive it as being accompanied by complexity, when we feel that a variety of elements…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/insofar-as-we-appreciate-order-it-is-when-we-perceive-it-as-being/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [I like the values associated with a medical family - common sense, being practical but also thoughtful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/i-like-the-values-associated-with-a-medical-family-common-sense-being/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“Anyone who urgently needs us deserves, in the true book of love, to be our friend.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/anyone-who-urgently-needs-us-deserves-in-the-true-book-of-love-to-be/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“We can then recognize that we invented religions to serve two central needs which continue to this day and which secular society has not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/we-can-then-recognize-that-we-invented-religions-to-serve-two-central/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“Half the ingratitude and complacency in the world down to how slowly and imperceptibly most good and bad things unfold.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/half-the-ingratitude-and-complacency-in-the-world-down-to-how-slowly/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [It is perhaps when our lives are at their most problematic that we are likely to be most receptive to beautiful things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/it-is-perhaps-when-our-lives-are-at-their-most-problematic-that-we/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“Does what is praised becomes better? Does an emerald become worse if it isn't praised? And what a gold, ivory, a flower or a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/does-what-is-praised-becomes-better-does-an-emerald-become-worse-if/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [The bourgeois thinkers of the eighteenth century thus turned Aristotle's formula on its head: satisfactions which the Greek philosopher had identified with leisure were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/the-bourgeois-thinkers-of-the-eighteenth-century-thus-turned/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [Reputation matters so much only because people so seldom think for themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/reputation-matters-so-much-only-because-people-so-seldom-think-for/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) [Explore all 850 Alain de Botton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. Krebs > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Literature deeply stands opposed to the dominant value system-the one that rewards money and power. Writers are on the other side-they make us sympathetic to ideas and feelings that are of deep importance but can’t afford airtime in a commercialized, status-consciou s, and cynical world.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alain de Botton" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/literature-deeply-stands-opposed-to-the-dominant-value-system-the-one/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/literature-deeply-stands-opposed-to-the-dominant-value-system-the-one/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da5/alain-de-botton-221_books_literature-deeply-stands-opposed-to-the_930654.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da5/alain-de-botton-221_books_literature-deeply-stands-opposed-to-the_930654.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da5/alain-de-botton-221_books_literature-deeply-stands-opposed-to-the_930654.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Literature deeply stands opposed to the dominant value system-the one that rewards money and power. Writers…” — Alain de Botton", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Alain de Botton", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Literature deeply stands opposed to the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/literature-deeply-stands-opposed-to-the-dominant-value-system-the-one/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/literature-deeply-stands-opposed-to-the-dominant-value-system-the-one/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```