--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Nothing is more humiliating than to have…" description: "\"Nothing is more humiliating than to have to beg for work, and a system in which any man has to beg for work stands condemned. No man can defend it.\" — ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08b/eugene-v-debs-7814_humiliating_nothing-is-more-humiliating-than-to-have_1440950.jpg" --- # Nothing is more humiliating than to have to beg for work… ![“Nothing is more humiliating than to have to beg for work, and a system in which any man has to beg for work stands condemned. No man can defend it.” quote by Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08b/eugene-v-debs-7814_humiliating_nothing-is-more-humiliating-than-to-have_1440950.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08b/eugene-v-debs-7814_humiliating_nothing-is-more-humiliating-than-to-have_1440950.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08b/eugene-v-debs-7814_humiliating_nothing-is-more-humiliating-than-to-have_1440950.jpg) > “Nothing is more humiliating than to have to beg for work, and a system in which any man has to beg for work stands condemned. No man can defend it.” [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A society forcing anyone to beg for work is immoral and must be rejected. **In simple terms:** Beggars for work is condemned. Key Takeaway Advocate for dignified employment for all. Themes labor justice economics human dignity Mood determined hopeful Type political inspirational When to use this quote - unemployment - welfare reform - job creation - union organizing Key Concepts socialism workers’ rights economic theory Questions to Reflect On - How can societies ensure work dignity? - What alternatives exist to traditional employment? A Different Perspective Economic constraints may limit universal employment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beg Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beg-work-1498146/) [Condemned Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/condemned-man-384162/) [Humiliating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humiliating/) [Humiliating Beg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humiliating-beg-2297860/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Stands Condemned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stands-condemned-5156766/) ## Related quotes > [“Not to have a thing is less humiliating than to beg it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-ibn-abi-talib-a-s/not-to-have-a-thing-is-less-humiliating-than-to-beg-it/) [Ali Ibn Abi Talib A.S](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-ibn-abi-talib-a-s/) > [Ralph Bunche, who is an internationally recognized and respected diplomat, can't stay in a hotel in Georgia, which means that no matter what the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/ralph-bunche-who-is-an-internationally-recognized-and-respected/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [I began to learn what poverty meant. It was burnt in my heart then that my father had to beg for work and there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-carnegie/i-began-to-learn-what-poverty-meant-it-was-burnt-in-my-heart-then/) [Andrew Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-carnegie/) > [I can't beg for work. One day or the other, you will get work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tripti-dimri/i-can-t-beg-for-work-one-day-or-the-other-you-will-get-work/) [Tripti Dimri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tripti-dimri/) > [In all the history of organized labor, from the earliest times to the present day, no body of union workingmen ever served in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/in-all-the-history-of-organized-labor-from-the-earliest-times-to-the/) [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) > [A man should take to himself no discomfort from an opinion expressed or implied by his adversary, but it is difficult, and oftentimes humiliating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/a-man-should-take-to-himself-no-discomfort-from-an-opinion-expressed/) [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) > [“In the darkest region of the political field the condemned man represents the symmetrical, inverted figure of the king.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-foucault/in-the-darkest-region-of-the-political-field-the-condemned-man/) [Michel Foucault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-foucault/) > [In psychiatry there is a certain condition known as delusion of reprieve. The condemned man, immediately before his execution, gets the illusion that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viktor-e-frankl/in-psychiatry-there-is-a-certain-condition-known-as-delusion-of/) [Viktor E. Frankl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viktor-e-frankl/) > [“No noose is good noose’—as the condemned man said on the scaffold.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/no-noose-is-good-noose-as-the-condemned-man-said-on-the-scaffold/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [The absurd man will not commit suicide; he wants to live, without relinquishing any of his certainty, without a future, without hope, without illusions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-absurd-man-will-not-commit-suicide-he-wants-to-live-without/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Prayers for the condemned man will be offered on an adding machine. Numbers constitute the only universal language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathanael-west/prayers-for-the-condemned-man-will-be-offered-on-an-adding-machine/) [Nathanael West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathanael-west/) > [“At the age he had attained with his life span short before him he had begun to look upon the human world with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulette-jiles/at-the-age-he-had-attained-with-his-life-span-short-before-him-he-had/) [Paulette Jiles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulette-jiles/) > [When you see a condemned man on his way to the gallows, it moves you to pity. If you could do something to free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-mary-claret/when-you-see-a-condemned-man-on-his-way-to-the-gallows-it-moves-you/) [Anthony Mary Claret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-mary-claret/) > [“He had awakened at five that morning, as the condemned man awakens at dawn on the day of his execution,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/he-had-awakened-at-five-that-morning-as-the-condemned-man-awakens-at/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The intelligent man who is proud of his intelligence is like the condemned man who is proud of his large cell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-weil/the-intelligent-man-who-is-proud-of-his-intelligence-is-like-the/) [Simone Weil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-weil/) ## More by Eugene V. Debs > [Too long have the workers of the world waited for some Moses to lead them out of bondage. I would not lead you out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/too-long-have-the-workers-of-the-world-waited-for-some-moses-to-lead/) [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) > [From the crown of my head to the soles of my feet I am Bolshevik, and proud of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/from-the-crown-of-my-head-to-the-soles-of-my-feet-i-am-bolshevik-and/) [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) > [“I left that church with rich and royal hatred of the priest as a person, and a loathing for the church as an institution,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/i-left-that-church-with-rich-and-royal-hatred-of-the-priest-as-a/) [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) > [“I have no country to fight for; my country is the earth; I am a citizen of the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/i-have-no-country-to-fight-for-my-country-is-the-earth-i-am-a-citizen/) [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) > [The class which has the power to rob upon a large scale has also the power to control the government and legalize their robbery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/the-class-which-has-the-power-to-rob-upon-a-large-scale-has-also-the/) [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) > [Wherever capitalism appears, in pursuit of its mission of exploitation, there will Socialism, fertilized by misery, watered by tears, and vitalized by agitation be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/wherever-capitalism-appears-in-pursuit-of-its-mission-of-exploitation/) [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) > [Intelligent discontent is the mainspring of civilization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/intelligent-discontent-is-the-mainspring-of-civilization/) [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) > [The Republican and Democratic parties, or, to be more exact, the Republican-Democratic party, represent the capitalist class in the class struggle. They are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/the-republican-and-democratic-parties-or-to-be-more-exact-the/) [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) > [I would rather a thousand times be a free soul in jail than to be a sycophant and coward in the streets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/i-would-rather-a-thousand-times-be-a-free-soul-in-jail-than-to-be-a/) [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) > [The American people can have anything they want; the trouble is, they don't know what they want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/the-american-people-can-have-anything-they-want-the-trouble-is-they/) [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) > [Capitalism needs and must have the prison to protect itself from the criminals it has created.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/capitalism-needs-and-must-have-the-prison-to-protect-itself-from-the/) [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) > [“{Letter from Debbs to Eva Ingersoll, husband of Robert Ingersoll , just after the news of Robert's death} We were inexpressibly shocked to hear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/letter-from-debbs-to-eva-ingersoll-husband-of-robert-ingersoll-just/) [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) > [The issue is Socialism versus Capitalism. I am for Socialism because I am for humanity. We have been cursed with the reign of gold…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/the-issue-is-socialism-versus-capitalism-i-am-for-socialism-because-i/) [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) > [If you go to the city of Washington, you will find that almost all of those corporation lawyers and cowardly politicians, members of congress,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/if-you-go-to-the-city-of-washington-you-will-find-that-almost-all-of/) [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) > [The truth has always been dangerous to the rule of the rogue, the exploiter, the robber. So the truth must be supressed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/the-truth-has-always-been-dangerous-to-the-rule-of-the-rogue-the/) [Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) [Explore all 87 Eugene V. Debs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/) ## More Humiliating quotes > [Fly-fishing for wild trout on quiet waters must be one of the toughest and craziest ways to catch fish ever invented by man, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-voelker/fly-fishing-for-wild-trout-on-quiet-waters-must-be-one-of-the/) [John D. 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But many of the same adults think nothing of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-steinberg/most-adults-would-not-dream-of-belittling-humiliating-or-bullying/) [Laurence Steinberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-steinberg/) > [“The bastard. It's bad enough knowing he's stolen our money,but it's humiliating having to watch him spend it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-archer/the-bastard-it-s-bad-enough-knowing-he-s-stolen-our-money-but-it-s/) [Jeffrey Archer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-archer/) > [ My father would never have come to visit, he detested Eva's \[Braun\] choice in a man and the fact \[Adolf\] Hitler had set her… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gretl-braun/my-father-would-never-have-come-to-visit-he-detested-eva-s-braun/) [Gretl Braun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gretl-braun/) > [Repulsive, humiliating advice usually comes from bad intentions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/repulsive-humiliating-advice-usually-comes-from-bad-intentions/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I was a bedwetter until I was about 15, and it was humiliating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-silverman/i-was-a-bedwetter-until-i-was-about-15-and-it-was-humiliating/) [Sarah Silverman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-silverman/) > [ By needlessly provoking him \[Vladimir Putin\] and humiliating him, we empower far worse possibilities in Russia. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/by-needlessly-provoking-him-vladimir-putin-and-humiliating-him-we/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [There can be nothing more humiliating for a writer of fiction to have to do than restate a case that has already been made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/there-can-be-nothing-more-humiliating-for-a-writer-of-fiction-to-have/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [I think a huge amount of it is because of the Internet. Every single thing in the world is accessible with a few clicks.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-schwimmer/i-think-a-huge-amount-of-it-is-because-of-the-internet-every-single/) [David Schwimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-schwimmer/) > [“Humiliating for my freedom … will not never be been something that gets used to it!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hesham-nebr/humiliating-for-my-freedom-will-not-never-be-been-something-that-gets/) [Hesham Nebr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hesham-nebr/) > [It's humiliating, being told you're not responsible enough to make your own choices in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marti-noxon/it-s-humiliating-being-told-you-re-not-responsible-enough-to-make/) [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) > [If the motive of writing is for some people a kind of exercise in dirty laundry, that's one thing. 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