--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Man has no foothold that is not also a…" description: "\"“Man has no foothold that is not also a bargain. So be it!”\" — Djuna Barnes" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/655/djuna-barnes-3957_bargain_man-has-no-foothold-that-is-not-also-a-b_663721.png" --- # Man has no foothold that is not also a bargain. So be it! ![“Man has no foothold that is not also a bargain. So be it!” quote by Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/655/djuna-barnes-3957_bargain_man-has-no-foothold-that-is-not-also-a-b_663721.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/655/djuna-barnes-3957_bargain_man-has-no-foothold-that-is-not-also-a-b_663721.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/655/djuna-barnes-3957_bargain_man-has-no-foothold-that-is-not-also-a-b_663721.png) > ““Man has no foothold that is not also a bargain. So be it!”” [Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human existence is transactional; every claim to stability is a negotiated bargain. **In simple terms:** Life is a series of bargains. Key Takeaway Recognize the trade‑offs in every decision. Themes existential transaction reality Mood introspective critical Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - relationships - business deals - personal choices Key Concepts philosophy social contract Questions to Reflect On - What bargains shape your daily life? - Are you aware of hidden costs? A Different Perspective Not all bargains are equal; power imbalances exist. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bargain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bargain/) [Foothold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/foothold-1143634/) [Foothold Bargain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/foothold-bargain-5283752/) [Man Foothold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-foothold-5283751/) [Negotiation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/negotiation/) ## Related quotes > [Experience is never at bargain price.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-b-toklas/experience-is-never-at-bargain-price/) [Alice B. Toklas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-b-toklas/) > [“When a man is discontented with himself, it has one advantage however, that it puts him into an excellent frame of mind for making…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-sterne/when-a-man-is-discontented-with-himself-it-has-one-advantage-however/) [Lawrence Sterne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-sterne/) > [I think there's a bargain in every garage sale - not as much as there used to be, but they're still there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-miller/i-think-there-s-a-bargain-in-every-garage-sale-not-as-much-as-there/) [Judith Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-miller/) > [A bargain ain't a bargain unless it's something you need.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-carroll/a-bargain-ain-t-a-bargain-unless-it-s-something-you-need/) [Sidney Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-carroll/) > [Never bargain, only negotiate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tasneem-hameed/never-bargain-only-negotiate/) [Tasneem Hameed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tasneem-hameed/) > [My heart is a bargain today. Will you take it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/my-heart-is-a-bargain-today-will-you-take-it/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) > [A bargain is something you dont need at a price you cant resist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sangfroid-stalker/a-bargain-is-something-you-dont-need-at-a-price-you-cant-resist/) [SangFroid Stalker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sangfroid-stalker/) > [On a good bargain think twice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-herbert/on-a-good-bargain-think-twice/) [George Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-herbert/) > [Never trade a secret, you'll always get the short end of the bargain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/never-trade-a-secret-you-ll-always-get-the-short-end-of-the-bargain/) [John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) > [I'm a bargain shopper.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheyenne-kimball/i-m-a-bargain-shopper/) [Cheyenne Kimball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheyenne-kimball/) > [For many people, and particularly in communities of color, the basic bargain of America - that if you work hard and play by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-many-people-and-particularly-in-communities-of-color-the-basic/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“We are not always aware of the help we may give by accepting aid, that in this way we may establish a foothold for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/finn-carling/we-are-not-always-aware-of-the-help-we-may-give-by-accepting-aid-that/) [Finn Carling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/finn-carling/) > [Once ESPN leaves you, and you don't have a foothold anywhere else, you're done. It's very hard to do anything else, because in some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-magary/once-espn-leaves-you-and-you-don-t-have-a-foothold-anywhere-else-you/) [Drew Magary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-magary/) > [Directors didn't flood me with offers because I was Subhendu's son. I had to slog to find my foothold.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saswata-chatterjee/directors-didn-t-flood-me-with-offers-because-i-was-subhendu-s-son-i/) [Saswata Chatterjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saswata-chatterjee/) > [It's good to have a foothold in reality, a base somewhere that's always been a base. Sharman Macdonald once said she needs life to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-biggerstaff/it-s-good-to-have-a-foothold-in-reality-a-base-somewhere-that-s/) [Sean Biggerstaff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-biggerstaff/) ## More by Djuna Barnes > [“There goes the dismantled—Love has fallen off her wall. A religious woman,” he thought to himself, “without the joy and safety of the Catholic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djuna-barnes/there-goes-the-dismantled-love-has-fallen-off-her-wall-a-religious/) [Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) > [Of course I think of the past and of Paris, what else is there to remember?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djuna-barnes/of-course-i-think-of-the-past-and-of-paris-what-else-is-there-to/) [Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) > [A strong sense of identity gives man an idea he can do no wrong; too little accomplishes the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djuna-barnes/a-strong-sense-of-identity-gives-man-an-idea-he-can-do-no-wrong-too/) [Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) > [My war brought me many things; let yours bring you as much. Life is not to be told, call it as loud as you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djuna-barnes/my-war-brought-me-many-things-let-yours-bring-you-as-much-life-is-not/) [Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) > [When one wants to become cognizant of the color and the texture of the soil, one does not get a ladder; one gets a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djuna-barnes/when-one-wants-to-become-cognizant-of-the-color-and-the-texture-of/) [Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) > [I can draw and write, and you'd be foolish not to hire me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djuna-barnes/i-can-draw-and-write-and-you-d-be-foolish-not-to-hire-me/) [Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) > [“The perfume that her body exhaled was of the quality of that earth-flesh, fungi, which smells of captured dampness and yet is so dry,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djuna-barnes/the-perfume-that-her-body-exhaled-was-of-the-quality-of-that-earth/) [Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) > [God,' she cried, 'what is love? Man seeking his own head? The human head, so rented by misery that even the teeth weigh! She…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djuna-barnes/god-she-cried-what-is-love-man-seeking-his-own-head-the-human-head-so/) [Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) > [Suffering for love is how I have learned practically everything I know, love of grandmother up and on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djuna-barnes/suffering-for-love-is-how-i-have-learned-practically-everything-i/) [Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) > [“No man need curing of his individual sickness; his universal malady is what he should look to.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djuna-barnes/no-man-need-curing-of-his-individual-sickness-his-universal-malady-is/) [Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) > [When autumn shadows throw their patterns across the land, they are not the images of fragile, dying leaves, not the bared arms of lofty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djuna-barnes/when-autumn-shadows-throw-their-patterns-across-the-land-they-are-not/) [Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) > [Our bones ache only while the flesh is on them. Stretch it as thin as the temple flesh of an ailing woman and still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djuna-barnes/our-bones-ache-only-while-the-flesh-is-on-them-stretch-it-as-thin-as/) [Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) > [“I tell you, Madame, if one gave birth to a heart on a plate, it would say “Love” and twitch like the lopped leg…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djuna-barnes/i-tell-you-madame-if-one-gave-birth-to-a-heart-on-a-plate-it-would/) [Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) > [“Those who turn the day into night, the young, the drug addict, the profligate, the drunken and that most miserable, the lover who watches…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djuna-barnes/those-who-turn-the-day-into-night-the-young-the-drug-addict-the/) [Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) > [I couldn't ever boil potatoes over the heat of your affection. Your love would never bridge a gap; it wouldn't even fill up the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djuna-barnes/i-couldn-t-ever-boil-potatoes-over-the-heat-of-your-affection-your/) [Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) [Explore all 116 Djuna Barnes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) ## More Bargain quotes > [During three decades from 1947 to 1977, the nation implemented what might be called a basic bargain with American workers. Employers paid them enough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reich/during-three-decades-from-1947-to-1977-the-nation-implemented-what/) [Robert Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reich/) > [Part of the bargain of being alive is that one takes a chance at dying a premature or painful death, be it from violence,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pinker/part-of-the-bargain-of-being-alive-is-that-one-takes-a-chance-at/) [Steven Pinker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pinker/) > [“LIFE is the biggest bargain you can get.You get it for FREE! Yiddish saying”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yiddish/life-is-the-biggest-bargain-you-can-get-you-get-it-for-free-yiddish/) [Yiddish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yiddish/) > [“Knowledge was scattered treasure, education organized it into art, commerce and science.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/knowledge-was-scattered-treasure-education-organized-it-into-art/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [Public employees should have the right to bargain for better wages and working conditions, just like all employees do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reich/public-employees-should-have-the-right-to-bargain-for-better-wages/) [Robert Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reich/) > [“Employment bargains your life and time for a piece of currency”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/employment-bargains-your-life-and-time-for-a-piece-of-currency/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [I'm a bargain shopper.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheyenne-kimball/i-m-a-bargain-shopper/) [Cheyenne Kimball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheyenne-kimball/) > [Never trade a secret, you'll always get the short end of the bargain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/never-trade-a-secret-you-ll-always-get-the-short-end-of-the-bargain/) [John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) > [On a good bargain think twice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-herbert/on-a-good-bargain-think-twice/) [George Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-herbert/) > [Bargain disturb our inner peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kishore-bansal/bargain-disturb-our-inner-peace/) [Kishore Bansal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kishore-bansal/) > [A bargain is something you dont need at a price you cant resist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sangfroid-stalker/a-bargain-is-something-you-dont-need-at-a-price-you-cant-resist/) [SangFroid Stalker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sangfroid-stalker/) > [My heart is a bargain today. Will you take it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/my-heart-is-a-bargain-today-will-you-take-it/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) > [The man who sells his health for wealth makes a poor bargain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/the-man-who-sells-his-health-for-wealth-makes-a-poor-bargain/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [If I were God - and I never understand why I'm not - I should say, "Shop around, I don't think you'll find a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/if-i-were-god-and-i-never-understand-why-i-m-not-i-should-say-shop/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [Never bargain, only negotiate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tasneem-hameed/never-bargain-only-negotiate/) [Tasneem Hameed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tasneem-hameed/) [Browse all 110 Bargain quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bargain/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Man has no foothold that is not also a bargain. 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