--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: She's on the stairs, ma'am, getting her…" description: "\"“She's on the stairs, ma'am, getting her breath,' said the young servant, who had not been long up from the country, where my mother had the excellent ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/586/marcel-proust-114_caste_she-s-on-the-stairs-ma-am-getting-her-br_1312158.jpg" --- # She's on the stairs, ma'am, getting her breath,' said the… ![“She's on the stairs, ma'am, getting her breath,' said the young servant, who had not been long up from the country, where my mother had the excellent habit of getting all her servants. Often she had seen them born. That's the only way to get really good ones. And they're the rarest of luxuries.” quote by Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/586/marcel-proust-114_caste_she-s-on-the-stairs-ma-am-getting-her-br_1312158.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/586/marcel-proust-114_caste_she-s-on-the-stairs-ma-am-getting-her-br_1312158.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/586/marcel-proust-114_caste_she-s-on-the-stairs-ma-am-getting-her-br_1312158.jpg) > ““She's on the stairs, ma'am, getting her breath,' said the young servant, who had not been long up from the country, where my mother had the excellent habit of getting all her servants. Often she had seen them born. That's the only way to get really good ones. And they're the rarest of luxuries.”” [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator remarks that servants from the countryside are valued for their authenticity, implying that true quality is rare and hard to find. **In simple terms:** Rural servants are considered genuine and valuable. Key Takeaway Seek authenticity. Themes authenticity class value rarity Mood reflective nostalgic Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - employment - cultural studies - personal relationships Key Concepts social hierarchy human nature Questions to Reflect On - What defines a “good” servant? - How does background affect perception? A Different Perspective Idealizing rural origins may overlook individual differences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Caste](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/caste/) [Class](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/class/) [Elitism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elitism/) [Habits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habits/) [Humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humor/) [Mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mother/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Servant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/servant/) [Society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/society/) ## Related quotes > [ “It was in the defects that they \[servants\] invariably acquired that I learned of my own natural, invariable defects, and their character presented me… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/it-was-in-the-defects-that-they-servants-invariably-acquired-that-i/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [“But the harshness of his steely glare was compensated by the softness of his cotton gloves, so that, as he approached Swann, he seemed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/but-the-harshness-of-his-steely-glare-was-compensated-by-the-softness/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [The time has come to move beyond eco-elitism to eco-populism. 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But as soon as somebody or something stands out as Excellent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-barzun/everybody-keeps-calling-for-excellence-excellence-not-just-in/) [Jacques Barzun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-barzun/) > [“Anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/anti-intellectualism-has-been-a-constant-thread-winding-its-way/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [“As democracy is perfected, the office of president represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. On some great and glorious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken-2/as-democracy-is-perfected-the-office-of-president-represents-more-and/) [H.L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken-2/) > [The person I love would never wear fur. Fur just makes me think of shallow women who have no conscience. The fur industry belongs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-rossdale/the-person-i-love-would-never-wear-fur-fur-just-makes-me-think-of/) [Gavin Rossdale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-rossdale/) ## More by Marcel Proust > [“machinery' of life at Versailles; and was able, too, to persuade herself that her silence, a shade of good humour or of arrogance on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/machinery-of-life-at-versailles-and-was-able-too-to-persuade-herself/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [ “For her \[Françoise\], wealth was like a necessary condition without which virtue would lack both merit and charm. She made so little distinction between… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/for-her-fran-oise-wealth-was-like-a-necessary-condition-without-which/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [Knowing does not always allow us to prevent, but at least the things that we know, we hold them, if not in our hands,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/knowing-does-not-always-allow-us-to-prevent-but-at-least-the-things/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [Death is in truth an illness from which we recover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/death-is-in-truth-an-illness-from-which-we-recover/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [The bonds that unite another person to our self exist only in our mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/the-bonds-that-unite-another-person-to-our-self-exist-only-in-our-mind/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [...a writer's works, like the water in an artesian well, mount to a height which is in proportion to the depth to which suffering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/a-writer-s-works-like-the-water-in-an-artesian-well-mount-to-a-height/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [“Then from those profound slumbers we awake in a dawn, not knowing who we are, being nobody, newly born, ready for anything, the brain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/then-from-those-profound-slumbers-we-awake-in-a-dawn-not-knowing-who/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [“Art extracted from the most familiar reality does indeed exist and its domain is perhaps the largest of any.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/art-extracted-from-the-most-familiar-reality-does-indeed-exist-and/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [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/) > [“When you heard anyone in the middle of a talk which was being deliberately kept off the Affair announce furtively some piece of political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/when-you-heard-anyone-in-the-middle-of-a-talk-which-was-being/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [“We betroth ourselves by proxy, and then feel obliged to marry the intermediary.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/we-betroth-ourselves-by-proxy-and-then-feel-obliged-to-marry-the/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [“But the old lady on the contrary, far from justifying her daughter’s fears, felt every time someone of her own age “disappeared” that she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/but-the-old-lady-on-the-contrary-far-from-justifying-her-daughter-s/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [Often it is just lack of imagination that keeps a man from suffering very much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/often-it-is-just-lack-of-imagination-that-keeps-a-man-from-suffering/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [“When we are nice to others, we generally lose all claim to their respect.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/when-we-are-nice-to-others-we-generally-lose-all-claim-to-their/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [“Nobility is often no more than the inner aspect which our egotistical feelings assume when we have not yet named and classified them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/nobility-is-often-no-more-than-the-inner-aspect-which-our-egotistical/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) [Explore all 1,113 Marcel Proust quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) ## More Caste quotes > [Innumerable lovers of Hindi cinema have lit up the big screen. 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Sionil Jose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-sionil-jos/) > [The soul has neither sex, nor caste nor imperfection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/the-soul-has-neither-sex-nor-caste-nor-imperfection/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [The government is opposed to all statements/speeches which divide the country on the basis of religion, caste, and creed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajnath-singh/the-government-is-opposed-to-all-statements-speeches-which-divide-the/) [Rajnath Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajnath-singh/) > [One thing that was very clear to me is that the young people in a place like Annawadi aren't tripping on caste the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-boo/one-thing-that-was-very-clear-to-me-is-that-the-young-people-in-a/) [Katherine Boo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-boo/) > [If you take into account prisoners, a large majority of African American men in some urban areas, like Chicago, have been labeled felons for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-alexander/if-you-take-into-account-prisoners-a-large-majority-of-african/) [Michelle Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-alexander/) > [“A human being can be great by his or her heart, but not by caste.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manoj-shingtang/a-human-being-can-be-great-by-his-or-her-heart-but-not-by-caste/) Manoj Shingtang > [We all are Indians, and that should be our only religion. What is the need to be called a Hindu, Muslim, or Christian? Does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nana-patekar/we-all-are-indians-and-that-should-be-our-only-religion-what-is-the/) [Nana Patekar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nana-patekar/) > [“Though our castes and institutions are apparently linked with our religion, they are not so. These institutions have been necessary to protect us as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/though-our-castes-and-institutions-are-apparently-linked-with-our/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [This country has moved away from the politics of caste, nepotism, and appeasement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-shah/this-country-has-moved-away-from-the-politics-of-caste-nepotism-and/) [Amit Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-shah/) > [“A chair is not a caste.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/a-chair-is-not-a-caste/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [I have asked Centre for scheduled caste status to 13 backward classes including Kewat, Kahar, Kashyap, Mallah, Nishad, Lonia, Kumhar, Dheevar, Bind, Machhiara, Lohia-Chauhan,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mayawati/i-have-asked-centre-for-scheduled-caste-status-to-13-backward-classes/) [Mayawati](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mayawati/) > [But in view of the constitution, in the eye of the law, there is in this country no superior, dominant, ruling class of citizens.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-marshall-harlan/but-in-view-of-the-constitution-in-the-eye-of-the-law-there-is-in/) [John Marshall Harlan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-marshall-harlan/) > [Terrorism should be seen in the light of the country's security and not from the narrow perspective of caste, creed and religion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-fernandes/terrorism-should-be-seen-in-the-light-of-the-country-s-security-and/) Oscar Fernandes > [Why did Modi not declare his caste if he is from backward community? It makes clear that he is not from backward community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mayawati/why-did-modi-not-declare-his-caste-if-he-is-from-backward-community/) [Mayawati](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mayawati/) [Browse all 121 Caste quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/caste/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“She's on the stairs, ma'am, getting her breath,' said the young servant, who had not been long up from the country, where my mother had the excellent habit of getting all her servants. Often she had seen them born. That's the only way to get really good ones. 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