--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The sharecropper may lower his eyes, but…" description: "\"The sharecropper may lower his eyes, but not because he's less of a man. That's just a condition of society that such things exist.\" — Ernest Gaines" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/111/ernest-gaines-15825_eye_the-sharecropper-may-lower-his-eyes-but_3059631.jpg" --- # The sharecropper may lower his eyes, but not because he's… ![“The sharecropper may lower his eyes, but not because he's less of a man. That's just a condition of society that such things exist.” quote by Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/111/ernest-gaines-15825_eye_the-sharecropper-may-lower-his-eyes-but_3059631.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/111/ernest-gaines-15825_eye_the-sharecropper-may-lower-his-eyes-but_3059631.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/111/ernest-gaines-15825_eye_the-sharecropper-may-lower-his-eyes-but_3059631.jpg) > “The sharecropper may lower his eyes, but not because he's less of a man. That's just a condition of society that such things exist.” [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Societal constraints may force humility, but they don't diminish inherent worth. **In simple terms:** Society may limit you, but you remain valuable. Key Takeaway Recognize dignity despite oppression. Themes justice human rights social hierarchy Mood defiant reflective Type inspirational political When to use this quote - civil rights activism - education - community organizing - personal empowerment Key Concepts systemic oppression identity resilience Questions to Reflect On - How do you assert your worth when society devalues you? - What actions challenge oppressive norms? A Different Perspective Power structures can be deeply entrenched, making change hard. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) ## Related quotes > [Never lower your eyes to an enemy. -Tatsu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles/never-lower-your-eyes-to-an-enemy-tatsu/) [Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles/) > [My grandmother was a sharecropper. That wasn't even that long ago! My grandma was a sharecropper.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cordae/my-grandmother-was-a-sharecropper-that-wasn-t-even-that-long-ago-my/) [Cordae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cordae/) > [I was a sharecropper's son. That's as low as you can get on the totem pole.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hal-needham/i-was-a-sharecropper-s-son-that-s-as-low-as-you-can-get-on-the-totem/) [Hal Needham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hal-needham/) > [“He stood there for a moment, surveying the scene before him. Movement from down the mountainside caught his attention and he removed his Raybans,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-england/he-stood-there-for-a-moment-surveying-the-scene-before-him-movement/) [Stephen England](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-england/) > [He that doesnt see the good eyes of God can never see the good eyes of man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samule-kermis/he-that-doesnt-see-the-good-eyes-of-god-can-never-see-the-good-eyes/) [Samule Kermis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samule-kermis/) > [To feminine eyes a man's prestige, or his fame, envelops him in a luminous haze which obscures his faults. The triumphs of an aviator,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-maurois/to-feminine-eyes-a-man-s-prestige-or-his-fame-envelops-him-in-a/) [Andre Maurois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-maurois/) > [I have seen gleams in the face and eyes of the man that have let you look into a higher country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/i-have-seen-gleams-in-the-face-and-eyes-of-the-man-that-have-let-you/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [“How can they look in the eyes of a man and make a slave of him and then quote the Bible?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shaara/how-can-they-look-in-the-eyes-of-a-man-and-make-a-slave-of-him-and/) [Michael Shaara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shaara/) > [“The eyes of a man betrayed his heart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-rodriguez/the-eyes-of-a-man-betrayed-his-heart/) [Deborah Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-rodriguez/) > [The eyes of a man are of no use without the observing power. Telescopes and microscopes are cunning contrivances, but they cannot see of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-paxton-hood/the-eyes-of-a-man-are-of-no-use-without-the-observing-power/) [Edwin Paxton Hood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-paxton-hood/) > [“He was watching my eyes. A man who uses a sword with lethal skill always matches his opponent's eyes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-cornwell/he-was-watching-my-eyes-a-man-who-uses-a-sword-with-lethal-skill/) [Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) > [“If our eyes could see everything, every man would see his own faults.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/if-our-eyes-could-see-everything-every-man-would-see-his-own-faults/) [Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/) > [A girl knows when she looks into the eyes of her man that he sees someone else. -The Notebook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/a-girl-knows-when-she-looks-into-the-eyes-of-her-man-that-he-sees/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [“Everyone should get at least one good look at the eyes of a man who finds himself rising toward what he wants to pull…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-foster-wallace/everyone-should-get-at-least-one-good-look-at-the-eyes-of-a-man-who/) [David Foster Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-foster-wallace/) > [“He had the eyes of a man that had seen things. Eyes that were soulful and wise, yet vibrant and sultry. Eyes that made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-l-jennings/he-had-the-eyes-of-a-man-that-had-seen-things-eyes-that-were-soulful/) [S.L. Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-l-jennings/) ## More by Ernest Gaines > [I try to write something that would interest anybody and keep them turning the page. You must have a plot and good storyline.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/i-try-to-write-something-that-would-interest-anybody-and-keep-them/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [Words mean nothing. Action is the only thing. Doing. That's the only thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/words-mean-nothing-action-is-the-only-thing-doing-that-s-the-only/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [In all my stories and novels, no one ever escapes Louisiana. Maybe that is because my soul never left Louisiana, although my body did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/in-all-my-stories-and-novels-no-one-ever-escapes-louisiana-maybe-that/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [I think I'm a very religious person. I think I believe in God as much as any man does. I don't only believe in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/i-think-i-m-a-very-religious-person-i-think-i-believe-in-god-as-much/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [There will always be men struggling...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/there-will-always-be-men-struggling/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [What for?" I said. "What for, Tante Lou? He treated me the same way he treated her. He wants me to feel guilty, just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/what-for-i-said-what-for-tante-lou-he-treated-me-the-same-way-he/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [We all have much more in common than we have difference. I would say that about people all over the world. They don't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/we-all-have-much-more-in-common-than-we-have-difference-i-would-say/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [I believe that the writer should tell a story. I believe in plot. I believe in creating characters and suspense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/i-believe-that-the-writer-should-tell-a-story-i-believe-in-plot-i/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [A myth is an old lie that people believe in. White people believe that they're better than anyone else on earth - and that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/a-myth-is-an-old-lie-that-people-believe-in-white-people-believe-that/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [I have learned as much about writing about my people by listening to blues and jazz and spirituals as I have by reading novels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/i-have-learned-as-much-about-writing-about-my-people-by-listening-to/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [When I'm sitting in the church alone, I can hear singing of the old people. I can hear their singing and I can hear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/when-i-m-sitting-in-the-church-alone-i-can-hear-singing-of-the-old/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [Question everything. Every stripe, every star, every word spoken. Everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/question-everything-every-stripe-every-star-every-word-spoken/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [Now, about that mulatto teacher and me. There was no love there for each other. There was not even respect. We were enemies if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/now-about-that-mulatto-teacher-and-me-there-was-no-love-there-for/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [Without love for my fellow man and respect for nature, to me, life is an obscenity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/without-love-for-my-fellow-man-and-respect-for-nature-to-me-life-is/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [I knew I wanted to be a writer and I knew if I had a wife and family, I would neglect something, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/i-knew-i-wanted-to-be-a-writer-and-i-knew-if-i-had-a-wife-and-family/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) [Explore all 41 Ernest Gaines quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) ## More Eye quotes > [I need a bath." He chuckled. "You smell of smoke, as do I." The duke turned, leaning heavily on his cane. "Jameson, open the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-hawkins/i-need-a-bath-he-chuckled-you-smell-of-smoke-as-do-i-the-duke-turned/) [Karen Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-hawkins/) > [If you take your eye off the ball or lose focus for even a minute you can lose a game against any team.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-anderson/if-you-take-your-eye-off-the-ball-or-lose-focus-for-even-a-minute-you/) [Felipe Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-anderson/) > [“He blinked. His eyes fell as he processed her response. Then he lifted his chin and attempted a grin that was almost painfully dejected.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marissa-meyer/he-blinked-his-eyes-fell-as-he-processed-her-response-then-he-lifted/) [Marissa Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marissa-meyer/) > [How could anybody confuse truth with beauty, I thought as I looked at him. Truth came with sunken eyes, bony or scarred, decayed. Its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/how-could-anybody-confuse-truth-with-beauty-i-thought-as-i-looked-at/) [Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/) > [I wrote when I was a young teen, but I didn't put an eye on the available markets until I was seventeen. The next…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reed/i-wrote-when-i-was-a-young-teen-but-i-didn-t-put-an-eye-on-the/) [Robert Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reed/) > [Changes before your eyes, things you can do and things you can't. My attitude is always let it keep rolling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terrence-malick/changes-before-your-eyes-things-you-can-do-and-things-you-can-t-my/) [Terrence Malick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terrence-malick/) > [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/) > [Quotations can be valuable, like raisins in the rice pudding, for adding iron as well as eye appeal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peg-bracken/quotations-can-be-valuable-like-raisins-in-the-rice-pudding-for/) [Peg Bracken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peg-bracken/) > [Clearly, when we baptize, our eyes should gaze beyond the baptismal font to the holy temple. The great garner into which the sheaves should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/clearly-when-we-baptize-our-eyes-should-gaze-beyond-the-baptismal/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [At the end of night, before you close your eyes, be content with what you've done and be proud of who you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-almond/at-the-end-of-night-before-you-close-your-eyes-be-content-with-what/) [Steve Almond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-almond/) > [Be neither too early in the fashion, nor too long out of it, nor too precisely in it; what custom hath civilized is become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-quarles/be-neither-too-early-in-the-fashion-nor-too-long-out-of-it-nor-too/) [Francis Quarles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-quarles/) > [It lies around us like a cloud- A world we do not see; Yet the sweet closing of an eye May bring us there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-beecher-stowe/it-lies-around-us-like-a-cloud-a-world-we-do-not-see-yet-the-sweet/) [Harriet Beecher Stowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-beecher-stowe/) > [A man cannot speak but he judges himself. With his will or against his will he draws his portrait to the eye of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-man-cannot-speak-but-he-judges-himself-with-his-will-or-against-his/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [She'd read once that if you ran into a bear in the woods you should avoid eye contact and you shouldn't run away, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-ursu/she-d-read-once-that-if-you-ran-into-a-bear-in-the-woods-you-should/) [Anne Ursu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-ursu/) > [Liesel observed the strangeness of her foster father's eyes. They were made of kindness, and silver.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/liesel-observed-the-strangeness-of-her-foster-father-s-eyes-they-were/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) Browse all 16,237 Eye quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The sharecropper may lower his eyes, but not because he's less of a man. 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