--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Diamonds are the tears of the poor." description: "\"Diamonds are the tears of the poor.\" — Helen McCloy" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0eb/helen-mccloy-19670_diamond_diamonds-are-the-tears-of-the-poor-53457_534570.png" --- # Diamonds are the tears of the poor. ![“Diamonds are the tears of the poor.” quote by Helen McCloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0eb/helen-mccloy-19670_diamond_diamonds-are-the-tears-of-the-poor-53457_534570.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0eb/helen-mccloy-19670_diamond_diamonds-are-the-tears-of-the-poor-53457_534570.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0eb/helen-mccloy-19670_diamond_diamonds-are-the-tears-of-the-poor-53457_534570.png) > “Diamonds are the tears of the poor.” [Helen McCloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mccloy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Wealth is juxtaposed with poverty, suggesting that precious gems are metaphorically the tears of the destitute. **In simple terms:** Riches are born from suffering. Key Takeaway Consider the cost of luxury. Themes wealth poverty metaphor Mood thoughtful critical Type poetic social commentary When to use this quote - fashion - charity - social justice Key Concepts social critique economics Questions to Reflect On - What does this say about inequality? - Can beauty be ethical? A Different Perspective Luxury can also empower the poor. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/diamond/) [Diamonds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/diamonds/) [Diamonds Tears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/diamonds-tears-4483650/) [Jewels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jewels/) [Poor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poor/) [Poverty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poverty/) [Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rich/) [Rich and poor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rich-and-poor/) [Tears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tears/) [Tears Poor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tears-poor-2379796/) ## Related quotes > [Diamonds talk, and I can stand listenin' to 'em often.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/diamonds-talk-and-i-can-stand-listenin-to-em-often/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) > [Guard your own spare moments. They are like uncut diamonds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/guard-your-own-spare-moments-they-are-like-uncut-diamonds/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“The hungry can't eat your tears. The poor can't spend them. They're no comfort to the afflicted and they don't bring the wicked to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-klavan/the-hungry-can-t-eat-your-tears-the-poor-can-t-spend-them-they-re-no/) [Andrew Klavan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-klavan/) > [The pleasures of the mighty are obtained by the tears of the poor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-richardson/the-pleasures-of-the-mighty-are-obtained-by-the-tears-of-the-poor/) [Samuel Richardson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-richardson/) > [How about "diamonds are a girl's best friends"? Nope. It should be switched around and pointed out, instead, that your best friends are diamonds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-barreca/how-about-diamonds-are-a-girl-s-best-friends-nope-it-should-be/) [Gina Barreca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-barreca/) > [Lots of women are gifting themselves with diamonds for their right hand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-patterson/lots-of-women-are-gifting-themselves-with-diamonds-for-their-right/) [James Patterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-patterson/) > [“Pressure does two things – bursts pipes and creates diamonds. Which one are you?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-cook/pressure-does-two-things-bursts-pipes-and-creates-diamonds-which-one/) [Brian Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-cook/) > [People always ask me if I believe diamonds are a girl's best friend. Frankly, I don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-monroe/people-always-ask-me-if-i-believe-diamonds-are-a-girl-s-best-friend/) [Marilyn Monroe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-monroe/) > [I wear black diamonds instead of regular ones because I’m not flashy, just flossssy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-bieber/i-wear-black-diamonds-instead-of-regular-ones-because-i-m-not-flashy/) [Justin Bieber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-bieber/) > [“Shattered edges of the diamonds rough sets to cut the unsuspecting.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truth-devour/shattered-edges-of-the-diamonds-rough-sets-to-cut-the-unsuspecting/) [Truth Devour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truth-devour/) > [If I collected all the diamonds in the world, I'd have no 'income' but I'd have a lot of 'assets'. Would my company be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vinod-khosla/if-i-collected-all-the-diamonds-in-the-world-i-d-have-no-income-but-i/) [Vinod Khosla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vinod-khosla/) > [Rough diamonds may sometimes be mistaken for worthless pebbles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/rough-diamonds-may-sometimes-be-mistaken-for-worthless-pebbles/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I am a black diamond, unfaceted. Black diamonds are rare, hard to cut, and therefore uncommercial.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-lagerfeld/i-am-a-black-diamond-unfaceted-black-diamonds-are-rare-hard-to-cut/) [Karl Lagerfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-lagerfeld/) > [What do nations care about the cost of war, if by spending a few hundred millions in steel and gunpowder they can gain a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-do-nations-care-about-the-cost-of-war-if-by-spending-a-few/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The sky was a sparkling succession of black diamonds on black velvet made crystal clear by the blackout.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/the-sky-was-a-sparkling-succession-of-black-diamonds-on-black-velvet/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) ## More by Helen McCloy > [what you fear, you invite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/what-you-fear-you-invite/) [Helen McCloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mccloy/) > [the fool is the one true cosmopolite - the one character common to all nationalities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/the-fool-is-the-one-true-cosmopolite-the-one-character-common-to-all/) [Helen McCloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mccloy/) > [... law is a substitute for love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/law-is-a-substitute-for-love/) [Helen McCloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mccloy/) > [Nobody believes in ghosts, but everybody is afraid of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/nobody-believes-in-ghosts-but-everybody-is-afraid-of-them/) [Helen McCloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mccloy/) > [fiction and lies are both works of creative art, and creation always reveals the creator.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/fiction-and-lies-are-both-works-of-creative-art-and-creation-always/) [Helen McCloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mccloy/) > [the unconscious forces that govern accessible memory are the most arbitrary of editors and the absolute masters of our lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/the-unconscious-forces-that-govern-accessible-memory-are-the-most/) [Helen McCloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mccloy/) > [most of our social and educational institutions are designed to weed out or make over people ... until we produce a world where everyone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/most-of-our-social-and-educational-institutions-are-designed-to-weed/) [Helen McCloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mccloy/) > [Even a small, everyday lie is a clue to the personality and preoccupations of the liar, like a dream or any other confection of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/even-a-small-everyday-lie-is-a-clue-to-the-personality-and/) [Helen McCloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mccloy/) > [money is an acquired taste that grows as it is fed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/money-is-an-acquired-taste-that-grows-as-it-is-fed/) [Helen McCloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mccloy/) > [Thunderstorms were rare in California, but when they came they were, like most things in California, larger than life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/thunderstorms-were-rare-in-california-but-when-they-came-they-were/) [Helen McCloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mccloy/) > [Wouldn't it be kinder to say that a lie is a short work of fiction? 'A story' as my daughter says?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/wouldn-t-it-be-kinder-to-say-that-a-lie-is-a-short-work-of-fiction-a/) [Helen McCloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mccloy/) > [Civilization is a fiction which becomes a fact only as long as everyone can believe in it. It is the cynic, rather than the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/civilization-is-a-fiction-which-becomes-a-fact-only-as-long-as/) [Helen McCloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mccloy/) > [That's the one thing a politician mustn't have - political opinions or principles. He can have prejudices - indeed he must have prejudices and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/that-s-the-one-thing-a-politician-mustn-t-have-political-opinions-or/) [Helen McCloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mccloy/) > [That's the worst thing about money - the moment you have some you begin to suspect everyone of trying to take it away from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/that-s-the-worst-thing-about-money-the-moment-you-have-some-you-begin/) [Helen McCloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mccloy/) > [the old ploy of the powerful: never refuse when you can confuse. Distraction and delay are always better than obstruction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/the-old-ploy-of-the-powerful-never-refuse-when-you-can-confuse/) [Helen McCloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mccloy/) [Explore all 32 Helen McCloy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mccloy/) ## More Diamond quotes > [People from all walks of life that you might find as a King Diamond fan - you don't look a certain way; you don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/king-diamond/people-from-all-walks-of-life-that-you-might-find-as-a-king-diamond/) [King Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/king-diamond/) > [Asanas bring perfection in body, beauty in form, grace, strength, compactness, and the hardness and brilliance of a diamond.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patanjali/asanas-bring-perfection-in-body-beauty-in-form-grace-strength/) [Patanjali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patanjali/) > [The brightest and most valuable diamond started life as just a lump of carbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-dilger/the-brightest-and-most-valuable-diamond-started-life-as-just-a-lump/) [Peter Dilger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-dilger/) > [It was an incredible experience performing for the members and attendees at the Diamond Resorts Invitational; it was such an impressive event, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-swindell/it-was-an-incredible-experience-performing-for-the-members-and/) [Cole Swindell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-swindell/) > [Coal lay in ledges under the ground since the Flood, until a laborer with pick and windlass brings it to the surface. We may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/coal-lay-in-ledges-under-the-ground-since-the-flood-until-a-laborer/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The only difference between black coal and a precious diamond is the amount of pressure it endured.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/the-only-difference-between-black-coal-and-a-precious-diamond-is-the/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [I like everything with a heaping dose of feminitity, including my cell phone. I created this phone for the classic woman, who like me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimora-lee-simmons/i-like-everything-with-a-heaping-dose-of-feminitity-including-my-cell/) [Kimora Lee Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimora-lee-simmons/) > [The sky was a sparkling succession of black diamonds on black velvet made crystal clear by the blackout.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/the-sky-was-a-sparkling-succession-of-black-diamonds-on-black-velvet/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“You're the proverbial diamond in the rough.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-paterson/you-re-the-proverbial-diamond-in-the-rough/) [Katherine Paterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-paterson/) > [My crown is in my heart, not on my head; not decked with diamonds and Indian stones, nor to be seen: my crown is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/my-crown-is-in-my-heart-not-on-my-head-not-decked-with-diamonds-and/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Instead of the 1997 film directed, written, by James Cameron with Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, Billy Zane creating a love story and a large…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/instead-of-the-1997-film-directed-written-by-james-cameron-with/) [Tom Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/) > [“I had a dream that my boyfriend went back to his ex…I woke up and giggled because you don’t pick up a rock after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/starley-ard/i-had-a-dream-that-my-boyfriend-went-back-to-his-ex-i-woke-up-and/) [Starley Ard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/starley-ard/) > [I'll just do a round around of the house and make sure the rest of the family are fast asleep. We don't want that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerstin-gier/i-ll-just-do-a-round-around-of-the-house-and-make-sure-the-rest-of/) [Kerstin Gier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerstin-gier/) > [“A diamond's happy ending is on a crown, but its beauty was formed in dirt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/a-diamond-s-happy-ending-is-on-a-crown-but-its-beauty-was-formed-in/) [Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/) > [What do nations care about the cost of war, if by spending a few hundred millions in steel and gunpowder they can gain a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-do-nations-care-about-the-cost-of-war-if-by-spending-a-few/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 1,004 Diamond quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/diamond/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Diamonds are the tears of the poor.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Helen McCloy" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/diamonds-are-the-tears-of-the-poor/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Diamond" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/diamonds-are-the-tears-of-the-poor/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0eb/helen-mccloy-19670_diamond_diamonds-are-the-tears-of-the-poor-53457_534570.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0eb/helen-mccloy-19670_diamond_diamonds-are-the-tears-of-the-poor-53457_534570.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0eb/helen-mccloy-19670_diamond_diamonds-are-the-tears-of-the-poor-53457_534570.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Diamonds are the tears of the poor.” — Helen McCloy", "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": "Helen McCloy", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mccloy/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Diamonds are the tears of the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/diamonds-are-the-tears-of-the-poor/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mccloy/diamonds-are-the-tears-of-the-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 } } ] } ```