--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If a man is indolent, let him be poor. If…" description: "\"If a man is indolent, let him be poor. If he is drunken, let him be poor… Also--somewhat inconsistently--blessed are the poor!\" — George Bernard Shaw" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc8/george-bernard-shaw-68_blessed_if-a-man-is-indolent-let-him-be-poor-if_1897926.png" --- # If a man is indolent, let him be poor. If he is drunken… ![“If a man is indolent, let him be poor. If he is drunken, let him be poor… Also--somewhat inconsistently--blessed are the poor!” quote by George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc8/george-bernard-shaw-68_blessed_if-a-man-is-indolent-let-him-be-poor-if_1897926.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc8/george-bernard-shaw-68_blessed_if-a-man-is-indolent-let-him-be-poor-if_1897926.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc8/george-bernard-shaw-68_blessed_if-a-man-is-indolent-let-him-be-poor-if_1897926.png) > “If a man is indolent, let him be poor. If he is drunken, let him be poor… Also--somewhat inconsistently--blessed are the poor!” [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Indolence and drunkenness are linked to poverty, yet the poor are paradoxically praised. **In simple terms:** Poor are blamed for laziness, yet praised for virtue. Key Takeaway Recognize the irony in moral judgments about poverty. Themes poverty morality hypocrisy social critique Mood critical reflective Type philosophical social commentary When to use this quote - social policy debates - charitable work - personal finance - public discourse Key Concepts class ethics social justice Questions to Reflect On - How do societal attitudes shape our view of poverty? - Can virtue be separated from material condition? A Different Perspective The statement oversimplifies complex socioeconomic factors. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Blessed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blessed/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) ## Related quotes > [“The only word these corporations know is more,” wrote Chris Hedges, former correspondent for the Christian Science Monitor, National Public Radio, and the New York…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-marrs/the-only-word-these-corporations-know-is-more-wrote-chris-hedges/) [Jim Marrs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-marrs/) > [Above all, let the poor hang up the amulet of temperance in their homes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-mann/above-all-let-the-poor-hang-up-the-amulet-of-temperance-in-their-homes/) [Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/) > [There are many poor men and poor women: set apart some one constantly to remain there: let the poor man be though but as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-john-chrysostom/there-are-many-poor-men-and-poor-women-set-apart-some-one-constantly/) [Saint John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-john-chrysostom/) > [As each Sister is to become a Co-Worker of Christ in the slums, each ought to understand what God and the Missionaries of Charity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-teresa/as-each-sister-is-to-become-a-co-worker-of-christ-in-the-slums-each/) [Mother Teresa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mother-teresa/) > [“Do not let the oppressed turn away in shame; let the poor and needy praise Your name. Psalm 74:21”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/do-not-let-the-oppressed-turn-away-in-shame-let-the-poor-and-needy/) [Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/) > [ \[Let\] the poor the needy and oppressed of the Earth, and those who want Land, resort to the fertile lands of our western country,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-washington/let-the-poor-the-needy-and-oppressed-of-the-earth-and-those-who-want/) [George Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-washington/) > [If you want to be a rich person... don't let the poor person inside of you do your talking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kiyosaki/if-you-want-to-be-a-rich-person-don-t-let-the-poor-person-inside-of/) [Robert Kiyosaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kiyosaki/) > [Let the poor man mind his tongue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/let-the-poor-man-mind-his-tongue/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > ['Blessed are the poor in spirit, for they shall see God' suggested to me a heavenly welfare program for the meek. Today that saying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/huston-smith/blessed-are-the-poor-in-spirit-for-they-shall-see-god-suggested-to-me/) [Huston Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/huston-smith/) > [The beatitudes say, "Blessed are the poor". They don't say, "Blessed are those who care for the poor."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/the-beatitudes-say-blessed-are-the-poor-they-don-t-say-blessed-are/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [“The way to deeper knowledge of God is through the lonely valleys of soul poverty and abnegation of all things. The blessed ones who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-w-tozer/the-way-to-deeper-knowledge-of-god-is-through-the-lonely-valleys-of-2/) [A.W. Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-w-tozer/) > [Blessed are the poor in spirit." Blessed are they who are stripped of every thing, even of their own wills, that they may no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-fenelon/blessed-are-the-poor-in-spirit-blessed-are-they-who-are-stripped-of/) [Francois Fenelon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-fenelon/) > [“God is not looking for heroic figures, wonderful people who captivate others with their charisma. It must have been quite baffling to the educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christoph-friedrich-blumhardt/god-is-not-looking-for-heroic-figures-wonderful-people-who-captivate/) Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt > [“In the Gospel, there is a sentence that expresses the same ethical imperative in a more fascinating way: “Blessed are the poor in spirit:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luigi-giussani/in-the-gospel-there-is-a-sentence-that-expresses-the-same-ethical/) [Luigi Giussani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luigi-giussani/) > [“It would take many centuries before Christian preachers started to teach that when Christ said, 'Blessed are the poor for theirs in the Kingdom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-f-cantor/it-would-take-many-centuries-before-christian-preachers-started-to/) [Norman F. Cantor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-f-cantor/) ## More by George Bernard Shaw > [I love little children too but I don't cut off their heads and stick them in vases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/i-love-little-children-too-but-i-don-t-cut-off-their-heads-and-stick/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Blasphemy and sedition (meaning the truth about Church and State).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/blasphemy-and-sedition-meaning-the-truth-about-church-and-state/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [In the arts of life, man invents nothing; but in the arts of death he outdoes Nature herself, and produces by chemistry and machinery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/in-the-arts-of-life-man-invents-nothing-but-in-the-arts-of-death-he/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“My religious convictions and scientific views cannot at present be more specifically defined than as those of a believer in creative evolution. I desire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/my-religious-convictions-and-scientific-views-cannot-at-present-be/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [What a man believes may be ascertained, not from his creed, but from the assumptions on which he habitually acts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/what-a-man-believes-may-be-ascertained-not-from-his-creed-but-from/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [You are my inspiration and my folly. You are my light across the sea, my million nameless joys, and my day's wage. You are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/you-are-my-inspiration-and-my-folly-you-are-my-light-across-the-sea/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Men have to do some awfully mean things to keep up their respectability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/men-have-to-do-some-awfully-mean-things-to-keep-up-their/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The schoolmaster is the person who takes the children off the parents' hands for a consideration. That is to say, he establishes a child…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-schoolmaster-is-the-person-who-takes-the-children-off-the-parents/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [As long as I have a want, I have a reason for living. Satisfaction is death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/as-long-as-i-have-a-want-i-have-a-reason-for-living-satisfaction-is/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The camera can represent flesh so superbly that, if I dared, I would never photograph a figure without asking that figure to take its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-camera-can-represent-flesh-so-superbly-that-if-i-dared-i-would/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [A man who is not a communist at the age of twenty is a fool. Any man who is still communist at the age…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/a-man-who-is-not-a-communist-at-the-age-of-twenty-is-a-fool-any-man/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [But to admire a strong person and to live under that strong person’s thumb are two different things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/but-to-admire-a-strong-person-and-to-live-under-that-strong-person-s/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Socialism is the same as Communism, only better English.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/socialism-is-the-same-as-communism-only-better-english/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The person who is ignorant enough to believe that his nourishment depends on meat is in a horrible dilemma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-person-who-is-ignorant-enough-to-believe-that-his-nourishment/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [In the arts of peace Man is a bungler.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/in-the-arts-of-peace-man-is-a-bungler/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) [Explore all 1,640 George Bernard Shaw quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## More Blessed quotes > [And I have been very blessed, having coached some of the greatest that have ever played the game. But if I had to start…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/red-auerbach/and-i-have-been-very-blessed-having-coached-some-of-the-greatest-that/) [Red Auerbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/red-auerbach/) > [I think I've had the longest career of strength, focus, and still being able to sell records. I think I'm that guy. I'm still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/i-think-i-ve-had-the-longest-career-of-strength-focus-and-still-being/) [Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/) > [Peace is the first thing the angels sang. Peace is the mark of the children of God. Peace is the nurse of love. Peace…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-leo-i/peace-is-the-first-thing-the-angels-sang-peace-is-the-mark-of-the/) [Pope Leo I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-leo-i/) > [As in any machine, all the wires must be connected to the mains through one main wire. In the same way, you all must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nirmala-srivastava/as-in-any-machine-all-the-wires-must-be-connected-to-the-mains/) [Nirmala Srivastava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nirmala-srivastava/) > [Literally every person in my life is so amazing. I even don't understand how I am so blessed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/literally-every-person-in-my-life-is-so-amazing-i-even-don-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I had a very blessed journey with the upbringing I had. When you're working on sets as a stuntman, you have a firsthand account…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ric-roman-waugh/i-had-a-very-blessed-journey-with-the-upbringing-i-had-when-you-re/) [Ric Roman Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ric-roman-waugh/) > [You know, I'm blessed. 'Blessed' is a better way of saying 'rich.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roseanne-barr/you-know-i-m-blessed-blessed-is-a-better-way-of-saying-rich/) [Roseanne Barr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roseanne-barr/) > [All the dangers in our world are like a blessed wake up call. They tell us to live life NOW... not tomorrow, not when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jeffers/all-the-dangers-in-our-world-are-like-a-blessed-wake-up-call-they/) [Susan Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jeffers/) > [Of course the Dharma-body of the Buddha was the hedge at the bottom of the garden. At the same time, and no less obviously,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/of-course-the-dharma-body-of-the-buddha-was-the-hedge-at-the-bottom/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [I've been blessed to have a body that's durable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-millsap/i-ve-been-blessed-to-have-a-body-that-s-durable/) [Paul Millsap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-millsap/) > [I feel that I'm very blessed. But with great blessings come great responsibility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kanye-west/i-feel-that-i-m-very-blessed-but-with-great-blessings-come-great/) [Kanye West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kanye-west/) > [Benny Carter came up to me and said to me, "You know, in the whole history of the alto, I think Phil is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-gordon/benny-carter-came-up-to-me-and-said-to-me-you-know-in-the-whole/) [Jon Gordon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-gordon/) > [I feel as if I have been blessed to undergo a transformation from 'gangster' to 'redeemed sinner with gangster proclivities.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/i-feel-as-if-i-have-been-blessed-to-undergo-a-transformation-from/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [“The blood of Jesus Christ is as blessed and divine a payment for the transgressions of blaspheming Peter as for the shortcomings of loving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-h-spurgeon/the-blood-of-jesus-christ-is-as-blessed-and-divine-a-payment-for-the/) [Charles H. Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-h-spurgeon/) > [Without a trace of irony I can say I have been blessed with brilliant enemies. I owe them a great debt, because they redoubled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/without-a-trace-of-irony-i-can-say-i-have-been-blessed-with-brilliant/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) [Browse all 4,183 Blessed quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blessed/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If a man is indolent, let him be poor. If he is drunken, let him be poor… Also--somewhat inconsistently--blessed are the poor!", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "George Bernard Shaw" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/if-a-man-is-indolent-let-him-be-poor-if-he-is-drunken-let-him-be-poor/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Blessed" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/if-a-man-is-indolent-let-him-be-poor-if-he-is-drunken-let-him-be-poor/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc8/george-bernard-shaw-68_blessed_if-a-man-is-indolent-let-him-be-poor-if_1897926.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc8/george-bernard-shaw-68_blessed_if-a-man-is-indolent-let-him-be-poor-if_1897926.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc8/george-bernard-shaw-68_blessed_if-a-man-is-indolent-let-him-be-poor-if_1897926.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If a man is indolent, let him be poor. If he is drunken, let him be poor… Also--somewhat…” — George Bernard Shaw", "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": "George Bernard Shaw", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If a man is indolent, let...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/if-a-man-is-indolent-let-him-be-poor-if-he-is-drunken-let-him-be-poor/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/if-a-man-is-indolent-let-him-be-poor-if-he-is-drunken-let-him-be-poor/#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 } } ] } ```