--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To know the great men dead is…" description: "\"To know the great men dead is compensation for having to live with the mediocre.\" — Elbert Hubbard" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e25/elbert-hubbard-510_compensation_to-know-the-great-men-dead-is-compensati_2475494.png" --- # To know the great men dead is compensation for having to… ![“To know the great men dead is compensation for having to live with the mediocre.” quote by Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e25/elbert-hubbard-510_compensation_to-know-the-great-men-dead-is-compensati_2475494.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e25/elbert-hubbard-510_compensation_to-know-the-great-men-dead-is-compensati_2475494.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e25/elbert-hubbard-510_compensation_to-know-the-great-men-dead-is-compensati_2475494.png) > “To know the great men dead is compensation for having to live with the mediocre.” [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Knowing about great historical figures helps us appreciate our own ordinary lives. **In simple terms:** Great men give perspective. Key Takeaway Learn from history, accept mediocrity. Themes history humility self‑acceptance Mood reflective inspirational thoughtful Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - personal growth - education - self‑reflection - literary study Key Concepts biography comparative analysis existential reflection Questions to Reflect On - How does learning about great people shape your self‑view? - Can admiration for the past inspire present action? A Different Perspective Focusing on mediocrity may limit ambition; balance admiration with personal goals. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Compensation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compensation/) [Great men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-men/) [Greatness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greatness/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) ## Related quotes > [Many old people receive pensions for no other reason, it seems to me, but as a compensation for having lived a long time ago.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/many-old-people-receive-pensions-for-no-other-reason-it-seems-to-me/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [We must see that we are afraid of the thing we most desire, and so we live a mediocre life, never bringing to consummation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-deida/we-must-see-that-we-are-afraid-of-the-thing-we-most-desire-and-so-we/) [David Deida](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-deida/) > [I actually live a very mediocre lifestyle. So I decided to step back and do things not just for the sake of doing them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mila-kunis/i-actually-live-a-very-mediocre-lifestyle-so-i-decided-to-step-back/) [Mila Kunis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mila-kunis/) > [Too often, executive compensation in the U.S. is ridiculously out of line with performance. That won't change, moreover, because the deck is stacked against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-buffett/too-often-executive-compensation-in-the-u-s-is-ridiculously-out-of/) [Warren Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-buffett/) > [Where are my guards, Teleus?" He was still speaking softly. Three men dead and he wasn't even breathing hard, Costis noted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-whalen-turner/where-are-my-guards-teleus-he-was-still-speaking-softly-three-men/) [Megan Whalen Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-whalen-turner/) > [War doesn't make boys men, it makes men dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-gillespie/war-doesn-t-make-boys-men-it-makes-men-dead/) [Ken Gillespie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-gillespie/) > [“Maybe Shay was right; all eligible men were either dead or traumatized.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hati-bell/maybe-shay-was-right-all-eligible-men-were-either-dead-or-traumatized/) Hati Bell > [Fifteen men on the Dead Man's Chest Yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum! Drink and the devil had done for the rest Yo-ho-ho, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/fifteen-men-on-the-dead-man-s-chest-yo-ho-ho-and-a-bottle-of-rum/) [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) > [“All great men are dead, and I'm not feeling too well myself”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/all-great-men-are-dead-and-i-m-not-feeling-too-well-myself/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [There are two perfectly good men, one dead, and the other unborn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chinese-proverbs/there-are-two-perfectly-good-men-one-dead-and-the-other-unborn/) Chinese Proverbs > [“There breasts were stuck all white with wreath and spray As men's are, dead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilfred-owen/there-breasts-were-stuck-all-white-with-wreath-and-spray-as-men-s-are/) [Wilfred Owen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilfred-owen/) > [“15 men on the dead mans chest - yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/15-men-on-the-dead-mans-chest-yo-ho-ho-and-a-bottle-of-rum/) [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) > [In a wood they call the Rouge Bouquet, There is a new-made grave today, Built by never a spade nor pick, Yet covered with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/in-a-wood-they-call-the-rouge-bouquet-there-is-a-new-made-grave-today/) [Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) > [Men! Dead or alive, they could be exactly the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlaine-harris/men-dead-or-alive-they-could-be-exactly-the-same/) [Charlaine Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlaine-harris/) > [There are only two kinds of men; the dead and the deadly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-rowland/there-are-only-two-kinds-of-men-the-dead-and-the-deadly/) [Helen Rowland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-rowland/) ## More by Elbert Hubbard > [The teacher is one who makes two ideas grow where only one grew before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/the-teacher-is-one-who-makes-two-ideas-grow-where-only-one-grew-before/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [The highest reward that God gives us for good work is the ability to do better](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/the-highest-reward-that-god-gives-us-for-good-work-is-the-ability-to/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [Art is nothing; it's a way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/art-is-nothing-it-s-a-way/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [Library: A place where the dead lie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/library-a-place-where-the-dead-lie/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [“If we cannot be happy and powerful and prey on others, we invent conscience and prey on ourselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/if-we-cannot-be-happy-and-powerful-and-prey-on-others-we-invent/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [The poor and ignorant will continue to lie and steal as long as the rich and educated show them how.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/the-poor-and-ignorant-will-continue-to-lie-and-steal-as-long-as-the/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [So long as governments set the example of killing their enemies, private individuals will occasionally kill theirs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/so-long-as-governments-set-the-example-of-killing-their-enemies/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [If I supply you with a thought, you may remember it and you may not. But if I can make you think a thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/if-i-supply-you-with-a-thought-you-may-remember-it-and-you-may-not/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 A conservative is a man who is too cowardly to fight and too fat to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/1-2-3-4-5-a-conservative-is-a-man-who-is-too-cowardly-to-fight-and/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [The great man is not so great as folks think, and the dull man is not quite so stupid as he seems. The difference…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/the-great-man-is-not-so-great-as-folks-think-and-the-dull-man-is-not/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [Every knock is a boost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/every-knock-is-a-boost/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [What boy well raised can compare with your street gamin who has the knowledge and the shrewdness of a grown-up broker.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/what-boy-well-raised-can-compare-with-your-street-gamin-who-has-the/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [Don't make excuses, make good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/don-t-make-excuses-make-good/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [What people need and what they want may be very different… Teachers are those who educate the people to appreciate the things they need.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/what-people-need-and-what-they-want-may-be-very-different-teachers/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [Men who sit back and pride themselves on their culture haven't any to speak of.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/men-who-sit-back-and-pride-themselves-on-their-culture-haven-t-any-to/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) [Explore all 506 Elbert Hubbard quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) ## More Compensation quotes > [The only place where compensation comes before service is in the dictionary or anywhere the government meddles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orrin-woodward/the-only-place-where-compensation-comes-before-service-is-in-the/) [Orrin Woodward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orrin-woodward/) > [“Time wasted can never be compensated”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/time-wasted-can-never-be-compensated/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [The compensations of calamity are made apparent to the understanding also, after long intervals of time. A fever, a mutilation, a cruel disappointment, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-compensations-of-calamity-are-made-apparent-to-the-understanding/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [A contract is an ask game, and if it asks for an hour, and I submit to an hour, then it's an hour. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-berry/a-contract-is-an-ask-game-and-if-it-asks-for-an-hour-and-i-submit-to/) [Chuck Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-berry/) > [Today there is no symbolic compensation for old age, no recognition of a specific value: wisdom, perceptiveness, experience, vision.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/today-there-is-no-symbolic-compensation-for-old-age-no-recognition-of/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [Providence has given us hope and sleep as a compensation for the many cares of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/providence-has-given-us-hope-and-sleep-as-a-compensation-for-the-many/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Because what happens is, as the economy suffers, tax revenues go down. But unlike businesses, where at least your variable costs go down, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meg-whitman/because-what-happens-is-as-the-economy-suffers-tax-revenues-go-down/) [Meg Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meg-whitman/) > [For the sacrificed, in the hour of sacrifice, only one thing counts: faith-alone among enemies and skeptics. Faith, in spite of the humiliation which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dag-hammarskj-ld/for-the-sacrificed-in-the-hour-of-sacrifice-only-one-thing-counts/) [Dag Hammarskjold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dag-hammarskj-ld/) > [“In other words, what we seek is some kind of compensation for what we put up with”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/in-other-words-what-we-seek-is-some-kind-of-compensation-for-what-we/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [It is a law of nature we overlook, that intellectual versatility is the compensation for change, danger, and trouble. An animal perfectly in harmony…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-a-law-of-nature-we-overlook-that-intellectual-versatility-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only compensation, gained through the influence of nongovernmental organizations, consisted in slightly broadening for private individuals the possibility of access and appeal to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rene-cassin/the-only-compensation-gained-through-the-influence-of-nongovernmental/) [Rene Cassin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rene-cassin/) > [Were God to show grace to all of Adam's descendants, men would at once conclude that He was righteously compelled to take them to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-w-pink/were-god-to-show-grace-to-all-of-adam-s-descendants-men-would-at-once/) [Arthur W. Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-w-pink/) > [What we seek is some kind of compensation for what we put up with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/what-we-seek-is-some-kind-of-compensation-for-what-we-put-up-with/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [We also have no incentive compensation of any kind. And the reason we don’t is because it is detrimental to teamwork.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-bezos/we-also-have-no-incentive-compensation-of-any-kind-and-the-reason-we/) [Jeff Bezos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-bezos/) > [Different artists are talking about the laws that exist and how they need to be fixed so that compensation does happen to a far…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stevie-wonder/different-artists-are-talking-about-the-laws-that-exist-and-how-they/) [Stevie Wonder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stevie-wonder/) [Browse all 369 Compensation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compensation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "To know the great men dead is compensation for having to live with the mediocre.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Elbert Hubbard" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/to-know-the-great-men-dead-is-compensation-for-having-to-live-with/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Compensation" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/to-know-the-great-men-dead-is-compensation-for-having-to-live-with/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e25/elbert-hubbard-510_compensation_to-know-the-great-men-dead-is-compensati_2475494.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e25/elbert-hubbard-510_compensation_to-know-the-great-men-dead-is-compensati_2475494.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e25/elbert-hubbard-510_compensation_to-know-the-great-men-dead-is-compensati_2475494.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“To know the great men dead is compensation for having to live with the mediocre.” — Elbert Hubbard", "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": "Elbert Hubbard", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "To know the great men dead...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/to-know-the-great-men-dead-is-compensation-for-having-to-live-with/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/to-know-the-great-men-dead-is-compensation-for-having-to-live-with/#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 } } ] } ```