--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The Frenchman works until he can play…" description: "\"The Frenchman works until he can play. The American works until he can’t play; and then thanks the devil, his master, that he is donkey enough to die i..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b84/anonymous-1_devil_the-frenchman-works-until-he-can-play-th_1162871.jpg" --- # The Frenchman works until he can play. The American works… ![“The Frenchman works until he can play. The American works until he can’t play; and then thanks the devil, his master, that he is donkey enough to die in harness. But the Englishman, as he has since become, works until he can pretend that he never worked at all.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b84/anonymous-1_devil_the-frenchman-works-until-he-can-play-th_1162871.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b84/anonymous-1_devil_the-frenchman-works-until-he-can-play-th_1162871.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b84/anonymous-1_devil_the-frenchman-works-until-he-can-play-th_1162871.jpg) > “The Frenchman works until he can play. The American works until he can’t play; and then thanks the devil, his master, that he is donkey enough to die in harness. But the Englishman, as he has since become, works until he can pretend that he never worked at all.” [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Different cultures view work and leisure differently, reflecting values and attitudes toward labor. **In simple terms:** Work ethic varies by culture. Key Takeaway Understand cultural work attitudes. Themes culture work ethic leisure Mood analytical critical Type sociological observational When to use this quote - International business - travel - education Key Concepts Sociology comparative analysis Questions to Reflect On - How do cultural narratives shape work habits? - Can you recognize your own work bias? A Different Perspective Stereotypes can oversimplify. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Devil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devil/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) ## Related quotes > [If I knew of something that could serve my nation but would ruin another, I would not propose it to my prince, for I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-i-knew-of-something-that-could-serve-my-nation-but-would-ruin/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I've played American characters so many times now, it's so natural to me. But when I play American, I stay in the American accent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregg-sulkin/i-ve-played-american-characters-so-many-times-now-it-s-so-natural-to/) [Gregg Sulkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregg-sulkin/) > [I think it's a little bit easier to play in front of the American crowds because when things aren't going well, you do have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shelton/i-think-it-s-a-little-bit-easier-to-play-in-front-of-the-american/) [Ben Shelton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shelton/) > [I'm mixed race - my dad's Caucasian, and my mom's Mexican - so I want to play anything and everything, from American to Latino,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lela-loren/i-m-mixed-race-my-dad-s-caucasian-and-my-mom-s-mexican-so-i-want-to/) [Lela Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lela-loren/) > [In Australia, kids play in American accents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yael-stone/in-australia-kids-play-in-american-accents/) [Yael Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yael-stone/) > [I have an accent, I'm limited, I have to play foreign parts - I would love to play American parts but I can't because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivier-martinez/i-have-an-accent-i-m-limited-i-have-to-play-foreign-parts-i-would/) [Olivier Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivier-martinez/) > [The culturally specific, in particular, the American porch play that American writers have cherished and loved for many years in terms of their new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-daldry/the-culturally-specific-in-particular-the-american-porch-play-that/) [Stephen Daldry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-daldry/) > [I play American and World music, Texas style.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-gatemouth-brown/i-play-american-and-world-music-texas-style/) Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown > [I think a politician would be very, very cool to play. Or an American musician of some sort, or like an American pioneer like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-abel/i-think-a-politician-would-be-very-very-cool-to-play-or-an-american/) [Jake Abel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-abel/) > [We'd play the American bases and found all these wonderful records by Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, Fats Domino, Sam Cooke. Without American music, there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-clark/we-d-play-the-american-bases-and-found-all-these-wonderful-records-by/) [Dave Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-clark/) > [Just to have the opportunity to play an American in America is a dream come true for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lincoln/just-to-have-the-opportunity-to-play-an-american-in-america-is-a/) [Andrew Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lincoln/) > [“And the reason you play American Football, Hiruma-san?" "Because it's fun." (Translated)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riichiro-inagaki/and-the-reason-you-play-american-football-hiruma-san-because-it-s-fun/) Riichiro Inagaki > [Actually, until a few years ago, my English was very poor. I wasn't thinking of my American roots at all, until I went to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergino-dest/actually-until-a-few-years-ago-my-english-was-very-poor-i-wasn-t/) [Sergino Dest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergino-dest/) > [I didn't know if I would be good enough to play for an American college team. But I wanted to try.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuta-watanabe/i-didn-t-know-if-i-would-be-good-enough-to-play-for-an-american/) [Yuta Watanabe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuta-watanabe/) > [The mouse is a fair treat but this one would talk the hind legs off a donkey.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-mouse-is-a-fair-treat-but-this-one-would-talk-the-hind-legs-off-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Anonymous > [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Devil quotes > [“The Devil can cite Scripture for his purpose, Sergeant,’ Anthony Payne replied. ‘That is from The Merchant of Venice, but it holds great truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-arnold/the-devil-can-cite-scripture-for-his-purpose-sergeant-anthony-payne/) Michael Arnold > [Alimony - the ransom that the happy pay to the devil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/alimony-the-ransom-that-the-happy-pay-to-the-devil/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [“Beauty is not only a terrible thing, it is also a mysterious thing. There God and the Devil strive for mastery, and the battleground…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/beauty-is-not-only-a-terrible-thing-it-is-also-a-mysterious-thing/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [The devil has been defeated, stop trying to defeat him. What we have left is the fight of faith, and it's a good fight!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-oyakhilome/the-devil-has-been-defeated-stop-trying-to-defeat-him-what-we-have/) [Chris Oyakhilome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-oyakhilome/) > [You gonna take the case?" It's not a case. It's a missing person. Sort of." You're gonna have a devil of a time finding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-evanovich/you-gonna-take-the-case-it-s-not-a-case-it-s-a-missing-person-sort-of/) [Janet Evanovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-evanovich/) > [Your head's like mine, like all our heads; big enough to contain every god and devil there ever was. Big enough to hold the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grant-morrison/your-head-s-like-mine-like-all-our-heads-big-enough-to-contain-every/) [Grant Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grant-morrison/) > [And so it is, that both the Devil and the angelic Spirit present us with objects of desire to awaken our power of choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/and-so-it-is-that-both-the-devil-and-the-angelic-spirit-present-us/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Remember that Abraham Lincoln was a Whig far longer than he was a Republican. As a whole, the Whigs looked upon banks and corporations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-c-guelzo/remember-that-abraham-lincoln-was-a-whig-far-longer-than-he-was-a/) [Allen C. Guelzo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-c-guelzo/) > [Wine is the first weapon that devils use in attacking the young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-jerome/wine-is-the-first-weapon-that-devils-use-in-attacking-the-young/) [St. Jerome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-jerome/) > [“I tend to agree with that little devil more and more these days.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-casey/i-tend-to-agree-with-that-little-devil-more-and-more-these-days/) [Elle Casey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-casey/) > [This is the gift of your species and this is the danger, because you do not choose to control your imaginings. You imagine wonderful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-crichton/this-is-the-gift-of-your-species-and-this-is-the-danger-because-you/) [Michael Crichton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-crichton/) > [“The devil?” Jason heaved the tick over his shoulder like a collier with his sack. “Satan. The adversary. The enemy of the plan of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/the-devil-jason-heaved-the-tick-over-his-shoulder-like-a-collier-with/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [God never talks. But the devil keeps advertising, Father. The devil does a lot of commercials.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-peter-blatty/god-never-talks-but-the-devil-keeps-advertising-father-the-devil-does/) [William Peter Blatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-peter-blatty/) > [If it was a sin for you to choose me . . . then I would go to the Devil himself and bless him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-gabaldon/if-it-was-a-sin-for-you-to-choose-me-then-i-would-go-to-the-devil/) [Diana Gabaldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-gabaldon/) > [“The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist”—Charles Baudelaire “The second greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-baudelaire/the-greatest-trick-the-devil-ever-pulled-was-convincing-the-world-he/) [Charles Baudelaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-baudelaire/) [Browse all 4,283 Devil quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devil/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The Frenchman works until he can play. 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