--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I should rather labor as another's serf…" description: "\"I should rather labor as another's serf, in the home of a man without fortune, one whose livelihood was meager, than rule over all the departed dead.\" ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/577/homer-357_departed_i-should-rather-labor-as-another-s-serf_2013738.png" --- # I should rather labor as another's serf, in the home of a… ![“I should rather labor as another's serf, in the home of a man without fortune, one whose livelihood was meager, than rule over all the departed dead.” quote by Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/577/homer-357_departed_i-should-rather-labor-as-another-s-serf_2013738.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/577/homer-357_departed_i-should-rather-labor-as-another-s-serf_2013738.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/577/homer-357_departed_i-should-rather-labor-as-another-s-serf_2013738.png) > “I should rather labor as another's serf, in the home of a man without fortune, one whose livelihood was meager, than rule over all the departed dead.” [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Serving others in humility is preferable to ruling over the dead. **In simple terms:** Better to serve modestly than dominate lifelessly. Key Takeaway Value humble service over empty authority. Themes humility service leadership Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - workplace - community service - volunteering Key Concepts ancient ethics social hierarchy Questions to Reflect On - What does “rule over the dead” symbolize? - When is humble service more impactful? A Different Perspective Idealism may ignore practical needs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Departed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/departed/) [Fortune](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fortune/) [Home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/home/) [Labor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/labor/) [Livelihood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/livelihood/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Serfs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/serfs/) [Wealth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wealth/) ## Related quotes > [I would rather be tied to the soil as a serf ... than be king of all these dead and destroyed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/i-would-rather-be-tied-to-the-soil-as-a-serf-than-be-king-of-all/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [I would rather be a serf in a poor man's house and be above ground than reign among the dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/i-would-rather-be-a-serf-in-a-poor-man-s-house-and-be-above-ground/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [It is Mind which determines the change of Society, and it was because the mind at work was a Catholic mind that the slave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilaire-belloc/it-is-mind-which-determines-the-change-of-society-and-it-was-because/) [Hilaire Belloc](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilaire-belloc/) > [A serf-supporting and self-respecting democracy can plead no justification for the existence of child labor, no economic reason for chiseling workers' wages or stretching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-d-roosevelt/a-serf-supporting-and-self-respecting-democracy-can-plead-no/) [Franklin D. Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-d-roosevelt/) > [the society which projects and undertakes the technological transformation of nature alters the base of domination by gradually replacing personal dependence (of the slave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-marcuse/the-society-which-projects-and-undertakes-the-technological/) [Herbert Marcuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-marcuse/) > [It was the Faith which gradually and indirectly transformed the slave into the serf, and the serf into the free peasant. . . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilaire-belloc/it-was-the-faith-which-gradually-and-indirectly-transformed-the-slave/) [Hilaire Belloc](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilaire-belloc/) > [For most people, their everyday interaction with power is not with their representative in Congress, but with their boss. And if in your day-to-day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lina-khan/for-most-people-their-everyday-interaction-with-power-is-not-with/) [Lina Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lina-khan/) > [“Let anyone who believes that a high standard of living is the achievement of labor unions and government controls ask himself the following question:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/let-anyone-who-believes-that-a-high-standard-of-living-is-the/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [“Deprived of his trade unions, collective bargaining and the right to strike, the German worker in the Third Reich became an industrial serf, bound…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-l-shirer/deprived-of-his-trade-unions-collective-bargaining-and-the-right-to/) [William L. Shirer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-l-shirer/) > [“Have a care, Sir Tucker, lest you find yourself in the stockades." He scoffs and looks at Mr. Erikson. "She can't do that, can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-hand/have-a-care-sir-tucker-lest-you-find-yourself-in-the-stockades-he/) [Cynthia Hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-hand/) > [“As a serf, poor Christian has already been killed several times in our class. Aside from dying of the Black Plague on the first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-hand/as-a-serf-poor-christian-has-already-been-killed-several-times-in-our/) [Cynthia Hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-hand/) > [I am an artless serf of Cupid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amitava-kumar/i-am-an-artless-serf-of-cupid/) [Amitava Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amitava-kumar/) > [“In the state’s way of thinking, there are only two possible archetypes of the good citizen: the serf and the sycophant. If you fall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-the-state-s-way-of-thinking-there-are-only-two-possible-archetypes/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In antiquity slaves were, in all honesty called slaves. In the middle ages, they took the name of serfs. Nowadays they are called wage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bakunin/in-antiquity-slaves-were-in-all-honesty-called-slaves-in-the-middle/) [Mikhail Bakunin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bakunin/) > [Return to Shaoshan I regret the passing, the dying, of the vague dream: my native orchards thirty-two years ago. Yet red banners roused the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/return-to-shaoshan-i-regret-the-passing-the-dying-of-the-vague-dream/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) ## More by Homer > [He knew the things that were and the things that would be and the things that had been before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/he-knew-the-things-that-were-and-the-things-that-would-be-and-the/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [“Few sons are like their fathers--most are worse, few better.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/few-sons-are-like-their-fathers-most-are-worse-few-better/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [The Lord gives and the Lord takes away, as it pleases him, for he can do all things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/the-lord-gives-and-the-lord-takes-away-as-it-pleases-him-for-he-can/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [“Sing in me, Muse, and through me tell the story of that man skilled in all ways of contending, the wanderer, harried for years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/sing-in-me-muse-and-through-me-tell-the-story-of-that-man-skilled-in/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [Hateful to me as are the gates of hell, Is he who, hiding one thing in his heart, Utters another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/hateful-to-me-as-are-the-gates-of-hell-is-he-who-hiding-one-thing-in/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [“And Zeus said: “Hera, you can choose some other time for paying your visit to Oceanus — for the present let us devote ourselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/and-zeus-said-hera-you-can-choose-some-other-time-for-paying-your/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [Ruin, eldest daughter of Zeus, she blinds us all, that fatal madness—she with those delicate feet of hers, never touching the earth, gliding over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/ruin-eldest-daughter-of-zeus-she-blinds-us-all-that-fatal-madness-she/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [“Scepticism is as much the result of knowledge, as knowledge is of scepticism. To be content with what we at present know, is, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/scepticism-is-as-much-the-result-of-knowledge-as-knowledge-is-of/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [Boy, everyone is stupid except me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/boy-everyone-is-stupid-except-me/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [“With that the dream departed, leaving him there, his heart racing with hopes that would not come to pass. He thought he would take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/with-that-the-dream-departed-leaving-him-there-his-heart-racing-with/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [Tell me, O Muse, of that ingenious hero who travelled far and wide after he had sacked the famous town of Troy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/tell-me-o-muse-of-that-ingenious-hero-who-travelled-far-and-wide/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [Ah, beer, my one weakness. My Achille's heel, if you will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/ah-beer-my-one-weakness-my-achille-s-heel-if-you-will/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [My life is more to me than all the wealth of Ilius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/my-life-is-more-to-me-than-all-the-wealth-of-ilius/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [Being popular is the most important thing in the world!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/being-popular-is-the-most-important-thing-in-the-world/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [Urge him with truth to frame his fair replies And sure he will for Wisdom never lies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/urge-him-with-truth-to-frame-his-fair-replies-and-sure-he-will-for/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) [Explore all 639 Homer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) ## More Departed quotes > [The end result of how I obviously departed from the Cubs wasn't ideal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyle-schwarber/the-end-result-of-how-i-obviously-departed-from-the-cubs-wasn-t-ideal/) [Kyle Schwarber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyle-schwarber/) > [I find very reasonable the Celtic belief that the souls of our dearly departed are trapped in some inferior being, in an animal, aplant,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/i-find-very-reasonable-the-celtic-belief-that-the-souls-of-our-dearly/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [So in the heart, When, fading slowly down the past, Fond memories depart, And each that leaves it seems the last; Long after all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-van-dyke/so-in-the-heart-when-fading-slowly-down-the-past-fond-memories-depart/) [Henry Van Dyke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-van-dyke/) > [Leo couldnt deliver Mr. Martin Scorsese his Oscar with The Aviator, but I will go on record to say I will do so in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-anderson/leo-couldnt-deliver-mr-martin-scorsese-his-oscar-with-the-aviator-but/) [Anthony Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-anderson/) > [Those who grieve frequently find themselves alone. Missed is the laughter of children, the commotion of teenagers, and the tender, loving concern of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-s-monson/those-who-grieve-frequently-find-themselves-alone-missed-is-the/) [Thomas S. Monson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-s-monson/) > [Thus departed Hiawatha, Hiawatha the Beloved, In the glory of the sunset, In the purple mists of evening, To the regions of the home-wind,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/thus-departed-hiawatha-hiawatha-the-beloved-in-the-glory-of-the/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [I am indeed a fortunate man and today's hours are but a bonus, undeserved. Why have I been allowed to live this extra day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/og-mandino/i-am-indeed-a-fortunate-man-and-today-s-hours-are-but-a-bonus/) [Og Mandino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/og-mandino/) > [So I departed and was free from imprisonment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/so-i-departed-and-was-free-from-imprisonment/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I haven't died in a movie in a while,'The Departed,' 'Body of Lies,' 'Revolutionary Road,' 'Shutter Island' and 'Inception.' I guess I did die…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/i-haven-t-died-in-a-movie-in-a-while-the-departed-body-of-lies/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) > [The things that have been and shall be no more, The things that are, and that hereafter shall be, The things that might have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/the-things-that-have-been-and-shall-be-no-more-the-things-that-are/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [When we come face-to-face with one down a dark alley, we're going to be having a shufti to see if it's solid, aren't we,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-we-come-face-to-face-with-one-down-a-dark-alley-we-re-going-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I was broken in body, soul, and spirit. My natural elasticity was crushed, my intellect languished, the disposition to read departed, the cheerful spark…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-was-broken-in-body-soul-and-spirit-my-natural-elasticity-was/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [Here the Frenchman, Spaniard, and Englishman all passed, leaving each his legend; and a brilliant and more or less feudal civilization with its aristocracy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hervey-allen/here-the-frenchman-spaniard-and-englishman-all-passed-leaving-each/) [Hervey Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hervey-allen/) > [Language is in decline. Not only has eloquence departed but simple, direct speech as well, though pomposity and banality have not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-newman/language-is-in-decline-not-only-has-eloquence-departed-but-simple/) [Edwin Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-newman/) > [He who has once stood beside the grave, to look back upon the companionship which has been forever closed, feeling how impotent there are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/he-who-has-once-stood-beside-the-grave-to-look-back-upon-the/) [John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/) [Browse all 201 Departed quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/departed/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I should rather labor as another's serf, in the home of a man without fortune, one whose livelihood was meager, than rule over all the departed dead.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Homer" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/i-should-rather-labor-as-another-s-serf-in-the-home-of-a-man-without/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Departed" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/i-should-rather-labor-as-another-s-serf-in-the-home-of-a-man-without/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/577/homer-357_departed_i-should-rather-labor-as-another-s-serf_2013738.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/577/homer-357_departed_i-should-rather-labor-as-another-s-serf_2013738.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/577/homer-357_departed_i-should-rather-labor-as-another-s-serf_2013738.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I should rather labor as another's serf, in the home of a man without fortune, one whose livelihood was…” — Homer", "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": "Homer", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I should rather labor as another's...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/i-should-rather-labor-as-another-s-serf-in-the-home-of-a-man-without/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/i-should-rather-labor-as-another-s-serf-in-the-home-of-a-man-without/#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 } } ] } ```