--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Wake up, you idiots! Whatever made you…" description: "\"“Wake up, you idiots! Whatever made you think paper was so valuable?”\" — Kurt Vonnegut" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9f/kurt-vonnegut-41_quote_wake-up-you-idiots-whatever-made-you-thi_1796766.jpg" --- # Wake up, you idiots! Whatever made you think paper was so… ![“Wake up, you idiots! Whatever made you think paper was so valuable?” quote by Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9f/kurt-vonnegut-41_quote_wake-up-you-idiots-whatever-made-you-thi_1796766.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9f/kurt-vonnegut-41_quote_wake-up-you-idiots-whatever-made-you-thi_1796766.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9f/kurt-vonnegut-41_quote_wake-up-you-idiots-whatever-made-you-thi_1796766.jpg) > ““Wake up, you idiots! Whatever made you think paper was so valuable?”” [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Question the value placed on paper and material wealth, urging critical thinking. **In simple terms:** Don’t accept material value without questioning. Key Takeaway Reevaluate what you consider valuable. Themes materialism critical thinking skepticism Mood cynical thought‑provoking Type satirical philosophical When to use this quote - budgeting - environmental activism - education reform Key Concepts economics philosophy culture Questions to Reflect On - What modern items do we overvalue? - How can you reduce reliance on them? A Different Perspective Some may view paper as essential for records. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [“They were suddenly saying to people with nothing but paper representations of wealth, “Wake up, you idiots! Whatever made you think paper was so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/they-were-suddenly-saying-to-people-with-nothing-but-paper/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [Wake up, you idiots! Whatever made you think that money was so valuable?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/wake-up-you-idiots-whatever-made-you-think-that-money-was-so-valuable/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“Whenever you think seriously to achieve something, just take one advise : Think on Paper”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manoj-arora/whenever-you-think-seriously-to-achieve-something-just-take-one/) [Manoj Arora](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manoj-arora/) > [Don't think and then write it down. Think on paper.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-kemelman/don-t-think-and-then-write-it-down-think-on-paper/) [Harry Kemelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-kemelman/) > [It's always good to see what people think, but you can't go off paper. You got to work hard to get what you want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markelle-fultz/it-s-always-good-to-see-what-people-think-but-you-can-t-go-off-paper/) [Markelle Fultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markelle-fultz/) > [I've just finished my book, I wrote it on penguins. Come to think of it, paper would have been better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-jones/i-ve-just-finished-my-book-i-wrote-it-on-penguins-come-to-think-of-it/) [Milton Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-jones/) > [“The problem with engineers today is that they don’t think on paper.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-r-lallo/the-problem-with-engineers-today-is-that-they-don-t-think-on-paper/) [Joseph R. Lallo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-r-lallo/) > [“Logan shot to his feet. "I can't keep quiet anymore. You all are stupid idiots if you think that. Don't you know her? Don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tijan/logan-shot-to-his-feet-i-can-t-keep-quiet-anymore-you-all-are-stupid/) [Tijan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tijan/) > [ I barely trust established sources of information. I have a hard time finding \[Wikipedia\], an encyclopedia that anyone can alter, to be a safe… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-k-milholland/i-barely-trust-established-sources-of-information-i-have-a-hard-time/) [R. K. Milholland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-k-milholland/) > [A dog will stay stupid. That's why we love them so much. The entire time we know them, they're idiots. Think of your dog.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-seinfeld/a-dog-will-stay-stupid-that-s-why-we-love-them-so-much-the-entire/) [Jerry Seinfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-seinfeld/) > [We are such idiots, We think everyone else has it all figured out. But we're all stumbling around in dark rooms bumping into furniture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-ryan/we-are-such-idiots-we-think-everyone-else-has-it-all-figured-out-but/) [Joan Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-ryan/) > [“I don’t care what other people think about me. Most people are idiots, and they can think whatever they want.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ida-l-k-s/i-don-t-care-what-other-people-think-about-me-most-people-are-idiots/) [Ida Løkås](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ida-l-k-s/) > [They say God looks after kids and idiots, and I think actors are probably a combination of the two.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-glenn/they-say-god-looks-after-kids-and-idiots-and-i-think-actors-are/) [Scott Glenn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-glenn/) > [Mere opinions, in fact, were as likely to govern people's actions as hard evidence, and were subject to sudden reversals as hard evidence could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/mere-opinions-in-fact-were-as-likely-to-govern-people-s-actions-as/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [If you make people laugh or cry about little black marks on sheets of white paper, what is that but a practical joke? All…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/if-you-make-people-laugh-or-cry-about-little-black-marks-on-sheets-of/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) ## More by Kurt Vonnegut > [“You must bloom as a writer and I must bloom as a painter. Everything else about us is uninteresting.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/you-must-bloom-as-a-writer-and-i-must-bloom-as-a-painter-everything/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“People aren't supposed to look back.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/people-aren-t-supposed-to-look-back/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“Have a good nap, did you?” said the porter. “Yes,” said Billy. “Man,” said the porter, “you sure had a hard-on.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/have-a-good-nap-did-you-said-the-porter-yes-said-billy-man-said-the/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“I told him that if we doubted that we are demons in Hell, he should read The Mysterious Stranger, which Mark Twain wrote in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/i-told-him-that-if-we-doubted-that-we-are-demons-in-hell-he-should/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [ “Thomas Jefferson High School \[..\] His high school was named after a slave owner who was also one of the world’s greatest theoreticians on… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/thomas-jefferson-high-school-his-high-school-was-named-after-a-slave/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“I had a certain amount of skill as a dramatist, and Dr. Goebbels wanted me to use it”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/i-had-a-certain-amount-of-skill-as-a-dramatist-and-dr-goebbels-wanted/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [I was some of the mud that got to sit up and look around. Lucky me, lucky mud.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/i-was-some-of-the-mud-that-got-to-sit-up-and-look-around-lucky-me/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“The town was Newport, Rhode Island, U.S.A., Earth, Solar System, Milky Way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/the-town-was-newport-rhode-island-u-s-a-earth-solar-system-milky-way/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“Her face was one of a kind, a surprising variation that made observers think, Yes--that would be another very nice way for people to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/her-face-was-one-of-a-kind-a-surprising-variation-that-made-observers/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“You finally fell in love, I see,” said Salo. “Only an Earthling year ago,” said Constant. “It took us that long to realize that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/you-finally-fell-in-love-i-see-said-salo-only-an-earthling-year-ago/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“Like all Earthlings at the point of death, Mary Young sent faint reminders of herself to those who had known her. She released a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/like-all-earthlings-at-the-point-of-death-mary-young-sent-faint/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“And contrast Mary Kathleen, if you will, with my wife Ruth, the Ophelia of the death camps, who believed that even the most intelligent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/and-contrast-mary-kathleen-if-you-will-with-my-wife-ruth-the-ophelia/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [Someday, someday, this crazy world will have to end, And our God will take things back that He to us did lend. And if,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/someday-someday-this-crazy-world-will-have-to-end-and-our-god-will/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“They were going back to the slaughterhouse for souvenirs of the war.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/they-were-going-back-to-the-slaughterhouse-for-souvenirs-of-the-war/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“There are plenty of good reasons for fighting," I said, "but no good reason ever to hate without reservation, to imagine that God Almighty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/there-are-plenty-of-good-reasons-for-fighting-i-said-but-no-good/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) [Explore all 2,089 Kurt Vonnegut quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) ## More Paper quotes > [“Our world will not die as a result of the bomb, as the papers say, it will die of laughter, of banality, of making a joke…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/our-world-will-not-die-as-a-result-of-the-bomb-as-the-papers-say-it/) [Carlos Ruiz Zafon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/) > [I've been in a serious conversation with one of my children, and a fan has come up. I've been in a public bathroom and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-reddy/i-ve-been-in-a-serious-conversation-with-one-of-my-children-and-a-fan/) [Helen Reddy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-reddy/) > [My writing routine is: get son off to school and sit down at 8 A.M. I read what I wrote the day before, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-chevalier/my-writing-routine-is-get-son-off-to-school-and-sit-down-at-8-a-m-i/) [Tracy Chevalier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-chevalier/) > [On paper, it looks rough, but I had a great childhood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-morton/on-paper-it-looks-rough-but-i-had-a-great-childhood/) [Samantha Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-morton/) > [For the time being Scherzer gives Washington a very nice rotation (on paper) with Stephen Strasburg, Jordan Zimmerman, Gio Gonzalez, and Doug Fister, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-scherzer/for-the-time-being-scherzer-gives-washington-a-very-nice-rotation-on/) [Max Scherzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-scherzer/) > [I liked climbing trees and could often be found up one reading a book. I played games with Dad and drew maps for him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhianna-pratchett/i-liked-climbing-trees-and-could-often-be-found-up-one-reading-a-book/) [Rhianna Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhianna-pratchett/) > [Why did I become a writer? Because I grew up in New York City, and there were seven newspapers in New York City, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/why-did-i-become-a-writer-because-i-grew-up-in-new-york-city-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The spectacle of a great, solvent government paying a fictitious price for gold it did not want and did not need and doing it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garet-garrett/the-spectacle-of-a-great-solvent-government-paying-a-fictitious-price/) [Garet Garrett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garet-garrett/) > [In luggage claim at the Minneapolis airport, the guy came up to me and said, "Maybe you're wrong, maybe stories do matter." I wrote…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/in-luggage-claim-at-the-minneapolis-airport-the-guy-came-up-to-me-and/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [I'm a total technophobe. What is wrong with paper and pen? I was delighted when I learnt the word 'Luddite,' as I thought it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasmine-guinness/i-m-a-total-technophobe-what-is-wrong-with-paper-and-pen-i-was/) [Jasmine Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasmine-guinness/) > [Metallica's the only band i've ever been in. I'm not sure that when it ends in five, ten years, I'm going to put an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lars-ulrich/metallica-s-the-only-band-i-ve-ever-been-in-i-m-not-sure-that-when-it/) [Lars Ulrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lars-ulrich/) > [In a library we are surrounded by many hundreds of dear friends, but they are imprisoned by an enchanter in these paper and leathern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/in-a-library-we-are-surrounded-by-many-hundreds-of-dear-friends-but/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Sometimes change came all at once, with a sound like a fire taking hold of dry wood and paper, with a roar that rose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/sometimes-change-came-all-at-once-with-a-sound-like-a-fire-taking/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [You know what really made me sick? I was in Washington, D.C. at another time reading in a paper where the U.S. gives Byron…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fannie-lou-hamer/you-know-what-really-made-me-sick-i-was-in-washington-d-c-at-another/) [Fannie Lou Hamer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fannie-lou-hamer/) > [I'm a crumbled up piece of paper lying here, 'cause I remember it all too well](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-swift/i-m-a-crumbled-up-piece-of-paper-lying-here-cause-i-remember-it-all/) [Taylor Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-swift/) Browse all 4,015 Paper quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Wake up, you idiots! Whatever made you think paper was so valuable?”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kurt Vonnegut" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/wake-up-you-idiots-whatever-made-you-think-paper-was-so-valuable/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Paper" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/wake-up-you-idiots-whatever-made-you-think-paper-was-so-valuable/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9f/kurt-vonnegut-41_quote_wake-up-you-idiots-whatever-made-you-thi_1796766.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9f/kurt-vonnegut-41_quote_wake-up-you-idiots-whatever-made-you-thi_1796766.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9f/kurt-vonnegut-41_quote_wake-up-you-idiots-whatever-made-you-thi_1796766.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Wake up, you idiots! Whatever made you think paper was so valuable?” — Kurt Vonnegut", "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": "Kurt Vonnegut", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Wake up, you idiots! Whatever made...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/wake-up-you-idiots-whatever-made-you-think-paper-was-so-valuable/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/wake-up-you-idiots-whatever-made-you-think-paper-was-so-valuable/#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 } } ] } ```