--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: the first responsibility of a human being…" description: "\"“the first responsibility of a human being is to be a better ancestor.”\" — John Perry Barlow" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fca/john-perry-barlow-9208_ancestor_the-first-responsibility-of-a-human-bein_65739.jpg" --- # the first responsibility of a human being is to be a… ![“the first responsibility of a human being is to be a better ancestor.” quote by John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fca/john-perry-barlow-9208_ancestor_the-first-responsibility-of-a-human-bein_65739.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fca/john-perry-barlow-9208_ancestor_the-first-responsibility-of-a-human-bein_65739.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fca/john-perry-barlow-9208_ancestor_the-first-responsibility-of-a-human-bein_65739.jpg) > ““the first responsibility of a human being is to be a better ancestor.”” [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Encourages individuals to act with future generations in mind, prioritizing long‑term wellbeing over short‑term gains. **In simple terms:** Think beyond your own lifetime. Key Takeaway Legacy shapes future possibilities. Themes intergenerational ethics responsibility sustainability future‑oriented thinking legacy Mood reflective inspirational Type aphor ethical maxim When to use this quote - environmental policy design - family financial planning - corporate ESG strategy - urban development projects Key Concepts ethical foresight long‑term planning Practical Applications - guiding sustainable product design - informing public‑policy frameworks Questions to Reflect On - How does your daily choice affect people 100 years from now? - What habits could improve our collective future legacy? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ancestor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ancestor/) [Better Ancestor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-ancestor-877963/) [Human Better](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-better-877964/) [Responsibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/responsibility/) [Responsibility Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/responsibility-human-639375/) ## Related quotes > [“If the successor does better than the ancestor world remembers the successor, like the maker of a car, is still remembered but not the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/if-the-successor-does-better-than-the-ancestor-world-remembers-the/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [“Slavery of Human is much better than slavery of Machine. Human have feeling that Machines do not have.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moaz-masood-butt/slavery-of-human-is-much-better-than-slavery-of-machine-human-have/) [Moaz Masood Butt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moaz-masood-butt/) > [A woman is human. She is not better, wiser, stronger, more intelligent, more creative, or more responsible than a man. Likewise, she is never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/a-woman-is-human-she-is-not-better-wiser-stronger-more-intelligent/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [There are things I want to do to be a better human being and a better father.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-owen/there-are-things-i-want-to-do-to-be-a-better-human-being-and-a-better/) [Jake Owen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-owen/) > [I think you can give meaning to any condition; you can be poor or unsuccessful or be so-called successful. But I don't think that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/i-think-you-can-give-meaning-to-any-condition-you-can-be-poor-or/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) > [Some people as a result of adversity are sadder, wiser, kinder, more human. Most of us are better, though, when things go better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-forbes/some-people-as-a-result-of-adversity-are-sadder-wiser-kinder-more-2/) [Malcolm Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-forbes/) > [“All loves have much in common, and any one will offer a useful, if not painless, education in the limitations and possibilities of being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-braestrup/all-loves-have-much-in-common-and-any-one-will-offer-a-useful-if-not/) [Kate Braestrup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-braestrup/) > [I'm human. So you better notice me!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rakii-retondo/i-m-human-so-you-better-notice-me/) [Rakii Retondo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rakii-retondo/) > [The more I grew as a human being, the better I became at my craft.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-a-dickey/the-more-i-grew-as-a-human-being-the-better-i-became-at-my-craft/) [R.A. Dickey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-a-dickey/) > [There's no sense that you can knock on your neighbor's door or be part of a local community group, and that's part of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rashida-jones/there-s-no-sense-that-you-can-knock-on-your-neighbor-s-door-or-be/) [Rashida Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rashida-jones/) > [“Freedom is a school of responsibility for human beings.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dinesh-d-souza/freedom-is-a-school-of-responsibility-for-human-beings/) [Dinesh D'Souza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dinesh-d-souza/) > [I think it's the responsibility of every human being, not just those who wear the identity of poet, activist, voter, religious person... it's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-trudell/i-think-it-s-the-responsibility-of-every-human-being-not-just-those/) [John Trudell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-trudell/) > [“I have a responsibility as a human being to care for animals—including politicians.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-have-a-responsibility-as-a-human-being-to-care-for-animals/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [“Life will be safer for the girl who understands her own nature and reverences her womanhood, who realizes her responsibility towards the human race…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-wood-allen/life-will-be-safer-for-the-girl-who-understands-her-own-nature-and/) [Mary Wood-Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-wood-allen/) > [“It is the responsibility of every human, not just dancers, sports stars, kids, and Olympians—to move. To embrace movement. To become movement. To live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cameron-diaz/it-is-the-responsibility-of-every-human-not-just-dancers-sports-stars/) [Cameron Díaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cameron-diaz/) ## More by John Perry Barlow > [There are a lot of kids out there copying and distributing movies - not because they care about seeing the movies or sharing them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/there-are-a-lot-of-kids-out-there-copying-and-distributing-movies-not/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [Our universities are so determined to impose tolerance that they'll expel you for saying what you think and never notice the irony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/our-universities-are-so-determined-to-impose-tolerance-that-they-ll/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [You do not know our culture, our ethics, or the unwritten codes that already provide our society more order than could be obtained by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/you-do-not-know-our-culture-our-ethics-or-the-unwritten-codes-that/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [The real issue is control. The Internet is too widespread to be easily dominated by any single government. By creating a seamless global economic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/the-real-issue-is-control-the-internet-is-too-widespread-to-be-easily/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [I don't know that I believe in the supernatural, but I do believe in miracles, and our time together was filled with the events…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/i-don-t-know-that-i-believe-in-the-supernatural-but-i-do-believe-in/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [I'm a member of that half of the human race which is inclined to divide the human race into two kinds of people. My…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/i-m-a-member-of-that-half-of-the-human-race-which-is-inclined-to/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [I ... believe that angels, or something like them, sometimes live among us, hidden within our fellow human beings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/i-believe-that-angels-or-something-like-them-sometimes-live-among-us/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [I think that humor is part of what saves us from despair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/i-think-that-humor-is-part-of-what-saves-us-from-despair/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [I personally think intellectual property is an oxymoron. Physical objects have a completely different natural economy than intellectual goods. It's a tricky thing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/i-personally-think-intellectual-property-is-an-oxymoron-physical/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [Any powerful technology has sauce for the goose and the gander... It's just an extension of humanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/any-powerful-technology-has-sauce-for-the-goose-and-the-gander-it-s/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [Art is a service, not a product. Created beauty is a relationship, and a relationship with the Holy at that. Reducing such work to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/art-is-a-service-not-a-product-created-beauty-is-a-relationship-and-a/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [We will create a civilization of the Mind in Cyberspace. May it be more humane and fair than the world your governments have made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/we-will-create-a-civilization-of-the-mind-in-cyberspace-may-it-be/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [Incompetence is a double-edged banana.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/incompetence-is-a-double-edged-banana/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [The first serious infowar is now engaged. The field of battle is WikiLeaks. You are the troops.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/the-first-serious-infowar-is-now-engaged-the-field-of-battle-is/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [Google, Amazon, Apple. Any number of cloud providers and computer service providers who can increasingly limit your access to your own information, control all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/google-amazon-apple-any-number-of-cloud-providers-and-computer/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) [Explore all 74 John Perry Barlow quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) ## More Ancestor quotes > [A lot of indigenous cultures are deeply involved in working with ancestor spirits, elemental spirits, and demons. Many of these cultures feel that, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/a-lot-of-indigenous-cultures-are-deeply-involved-in-working-with/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [Food binds us to our roots as strongly as any song or poem. Many of us have learned more about our ancestors in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-thomas/food-binds-us-to-our-roots-as-strongly-as-any-song-or-poem-many-of-us/) [Anna Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-thomas/) > [Whereas our ancestors (not of choice) were the first successful cultivators of the wilds of America, we their descendants feel ourselves entitled to participate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-allen/whereas-our-ancestors-not-of-choice-were-the-first-successful/) [Richard Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-allen/) > [Going where no man has gone before is more difficult than it sounds. Our cousins and ancestors were no less curious than we are,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-d-wilson/going-where-no-man-has-gone-before-is-more-difficult-than-it-sounds/) [N.D. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-d-wilson/) > [I use the phrase 'sibling society' to suggest a culture fundamentally without fathers, mothers, grandfathers, grandmothers, or ancestors. The thinking is horizontal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-bly/i-use-the-phrase-sibling-society-to-suggest-a-culture-fundamentally/) [Robert Bly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-bly/) > [“A very long time ago, some 2.5 million years B.C., the mother of human species as we know it, our ultimate ancestor, appeared in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-f-cantor/a-very-long-time-ago-some-2-5-million-years-b-c-the-mother-of-human/) [Norman F. Cantor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-f-cantor/) > [High birth is an accident, not a virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pietro-metastasio/high-birth-is-an-accident-not-a-virtue/) [Pietro Metastasio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pietro-metastasio/) > [Southerners, whose ancestors a hundred years ago knew the horrors of a homeland devastated by war, are particularly determined that war shall never come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-carter/southerners-whose-ancestors-a-hundred-years-ago-knew-the-horrors-of-a/) [Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-carter/) > [Two hundred years ago, before the advent of capitalism, a man's social status was fixed from the beginning to the end of his life;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/two-hundred-years-ago-before-the-advent-of-capitalism-a-man-s-social/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [And I saw for the first time how, despite the isolation of our own lives, we are always connected to our ancestors; our bodies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alyson-richman/and-i-saw-for-the-first-time-how-despite-the-isolation-of-our-own/) [Alyson Richman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alyson-richman/) > [There is an ancient Indian saying: "We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children." If we use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-schroeder/there-is-an-ancient-indian-saying-we-do-not-inherit-the-earth-from/) [Patricia Schroeder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-schroeder/) > [It is how it has always been. We will accept the legacy of our ancestors,' Asha says, smiling, and in her smile I do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/it-is-how-it-has-always-been-we-will-accept-the-legacy-of-our/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) > [My ancestors came over from Germany about the time of the Civil War and one of them lost a leg and went back to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/my-ancestors-came-over-from-germany-about-the-time-of-the-civil-war/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [ Now they \[the Powers\] have started the aggression, and the extinction of our nation is imminent. If we just fold our arms and yield… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/empress-dowager-cixi/now-they-the-powers-have-started-the-aggression-and-the-extinction-of/) [Empress Dowager Cixi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/empress-dowager-cixi/) > [A solitary American monk named Thomas Berry writes that in our relationship to nature, we have been autistic for centuries. Wrapped tightly in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janine-benyus/a-solitary-american-monk-named-thomas-berry-writes-that-in-our/) [Janine Benyus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janine-benyus/) [Browse all 767 Ancestor quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ancestor/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“the first responsibility of a human being is to be a better ancestor.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Perry Barlow" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/the-first-responsibility-of-a-human-being-is-to-be-a-better-ancestor/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ancestor" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/the-first-responsibility-of-a-human-being-is-to-be-a-better-ancestor/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fca/john-perry-barlow-9208_ancestor_the-first-responsibility-of-a-human-bein_65739.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fca/john-perry-barlow-9208_ancestor_the-first-responsibility-of-a-human-bein_65739.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fca/john-perry-barlow-9208_ancestor_the-first-responsibility-of-a-human-bein_65739.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“the first responsibility of a human being is to be a better ancestor.” — John Perry Barlow", "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": "John Perry Barlow", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“the first responsibility of a human...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/the-first-responsibility-of-a-human-being-is-to-be-a-better-ancestor/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/the-first-responsibility-of-a-human-being-is-to-be-a-better-ancestor/#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 } } ] } ```