---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Walter White’s more remarkable…"
description: "\"“Walter White’s more remarkable achievement in print was the book Rope and Faggot, which distilled his firsthand accounts of more than forty lynchings...."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/70d/nicholas-johnson-37896_books_walter-white-s-more-remarkable-achieveme_1337442.png"
---

#  Walter White’s more remarkable achievement in print was…

![“Walter White’s more remarkable achievement in print was the book Rope and Faggot, which distilled his firsthand accounts of more than forty lynchings. Passing for white, he witnessed the murderous rage, carnival atmosphere, and unfathomable barbarism of the mob. With few discernible Negro…” quote by Nicholas Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/70d/nicholas-johnson-37896_books_walter-white-s-more-remarkable-achieveme_1337442.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/70d/nicholas-johnson-37896_books_walter-white-s-more-remarkable-achieveme_1337442.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/70d/nicholas-johnson-37896_books_walter-white-s-more-remarkable-achieveme_1337442.png)

> ““Walter White’s more remarkable achievement in print was the book Rope and Faggot, which distilled his firsthand accounts of more than forty lynchings. Passing for white, he witnessed the murderous rage, carnival atmosphere, and unfathomable barbarism of the mob. With few discernible Negro characteristics, Walter White stood in the crowds and reported back on the very worst mob violence of the early twentieth century. Some of the details are so gruesome, they read like slasher fiction, doubly horrifying against the new prosperity of the Industrial Revolution and happy images of flappers dancing the Charleston.””

[Nicholas Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-johnson/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

White documents early 20th‑century lynchings, exposing brutal mob violence hidden behind a veneer of progress.

**In simple terms:** He reveals hidden horrors of racial violence.

Key Takeaway

Acknowledge and confront historical racism.

Themes

history racism violence journalism

Mood

somber reflective

Type

historical journalistic

When to use this quote

- education
- museum exhibits
- civil rights activism
- media reporting

Key Concepts

lynching racial terror social critique

Questions to Reflect On

- How does confronting past brutality inform present justice?
- What responsibilities do writers have when depicting violence?

A Different Perspective

The graphic detail may desensitize readers if not contextualized.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Barbarism Mob](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/barbarism-mob-4507706/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Characteristics Walter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/characteristics-walter-4507704/) [Happy Images](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happy-images-217162/) [Industrial revolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/industrial-revolution/) [Mob Discernible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mob-discernible-4507705/) [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) [Walter white](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/walter-white/) [Witnessed Murderous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/witnessed-murderous-4507707/)

## Related quotes

> [I'm always secretly the most pleased when a show just really, really looks good and when my camera guys are really happy with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-bourdain/i-m-always-secretly-the-most-pleased-when-a-show-just-really-really/)

[Anthony Bourdain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-bourdain/)

> [“There's nothing more dangerous in life than not living".”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-white-breaking-bad/there-s-nothing-more-dangerous-in-life-than-not-living/)

[Walter White (Breaking Bad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-white-breaking-bad/)

> [ I think that Walter's \[White\] whole career is indicative of a large degree of egocentricity. Perhaps to be generous, you would have to say… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-baker/i-think-that-walter-s-white-whole-career-is-indicative-of-a-large/)

[Ella Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-baker/)

> [ When I went to the Association \[ National Association for the Advancement of Colored People\] I learned a few things by observation. One of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-baker/when-i-went-to-the-association-national-association-for-the/)

[Ella Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-baker/)

> [The reason I like 'Breaking Bad,' which is still probably my favorite show, is Walter White. You watch him transform, and that's so fascinating.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-dinklage/the-reason-i-like-breaking-bad-which-is-still-probably-my-favorite/)

[Peter Dinklage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-dinklage/)

> [For 'Breaking Bad,' people were with Walter White for 99% of that show, even though that guy is a monster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-mckay/for-breaking-bad-people-were-with-walter-white-for-99-of-that-show/)

[Adam McKay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-mckay/)

> [The sad truth is, there's more Walter White in me than I'd care to admit, because if I truly was as kind as people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/the-sad-truth-is-there-s-more-walter-white-in-me-than-i-d-care-to/)

[Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/)

> [So much television allows for, even centres on, deeply flawed male characters, far less so women. Would anyone give a note asking that 'Breaking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicola-coughlan/so-much-television-allows-for-even-centres-on-deeply-flawed-male/)

[Nicola Coughlan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicola-coughlan/)

> [Eleanor Roosevelt fights for an anti-lynch law with the NAACP, with Walter White and Mary McLeod Bethune. And she begs FDR to say one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blanche-wiesen-cook/eleanor-roosevelt-fights-for-an-anti-lynch-law-with-the-naacp-with/)

[Blanche Wiesen Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blanche-wiesen-cook/)

> [Having a son with a disability helps makes Walter White a more sympathetic character. There's no story line that shows Walt Jr. going through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/having-a-son-with-a-disability-helps-makes-walter-white-a-more/)

[Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

> [I was just infused with ideas and I would dream about it and wake up and go, "Oh, I have another idea about Walter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-cranston/i-was-just-infused-with-ideas-and-i-would-dream-about-it-and-wake-up/)

[Bryan Cranston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-cranston/)

> [ \[Walter White\] was also one of the best lobbyist of the period. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-baker/walter-white-was-also-one-of-the-best-lobbyist-of-the-period/)

[Ella Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-baker/)

> [We all put on faces, as Walter White does. We put on faces when we meet our friends, when we meet new people, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/we-all-put-on-faces-as-walter-white-does-we-put-on-faces-when-we-meet/)

[Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/)

> [With TV season structures - and I'm a huge TV watcher - you look at shows like 'Breaking Bad,' which is my favorite show…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-esmail/with-tv-season-structures-and-i-m-a-huge-tv-watcher-you-look-at-shows/)

[Sam Esmail](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-esmail/)

> [I mean, I love Walter White.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deandre-jordan/i-mean-i-love-walter-white/)

[DeAndre Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deandre-jordan/)

## More by Nicholas Johnson

> [“Self-defense is a universal exception to the state’s monopoly on legitimate violence. State failure drives the self-defense doctrine through the imminence requirement. Private violence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-johnson/self-defense-is-a-universal-exception-to-the-state-s-monopoly-on/)

[Nicholas Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-johnson/)

> [All television is educational television. The question is: what is it teaching?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-johnson/all-television-is-educational-television-the-question-is-what-is-it/)

[Nicholas Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-johnson/)

> [“By the 1780s, Florida was home to Spanish-speaking Africans, fugitive slaves from the colonies, and indigenous and migrated Indian tribes, including the Seminoles. Fugitive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-johnson/by-the-1780s-florida-was-home-to-spanish-speaking-africans-fugitive/)

[Nicholas Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-johnson/)

> [“Following the July 1919 race riot in Washington, DC, Johnson investigated and offered this assessment of how and why peace was restored. “The Negroes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-johnson/following-the-july-1919-race-riot-in-washington-dc-johnson/)

[Nicholas Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-johnson/)

> [“Backed by Klan-type organizations dubbed “Red Shirts” and “Rough Riders,” Democrats summoned thirty-two of the city’s prominent blacks and laid out their demands: All…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-johnson/backed-by-klan-type-organizations-dubbed-red-shirts-and-rough-riders/)

[Nicholas Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-johnson/)

> [Taxing poor families runs counter to decades of effort to help people lift themselves out of poverty through work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-johnson/taxing-poor-families-runs-counter-to-decades-of-effort-to-help-people/)

[Nicholas Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-johnson/)

> [A viewer who skips the advertising is the moral equivalent of a shoplifter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-johnson/a-viewer-who-skips-the-advertising-is-the-moral-equivalent-of-a/)

[Nicholas Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-johnson/)

> [It used to be that people needed products to survive. Now products need people to survive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-johnson/it-used-to-be-that-people-needed-products-to-survive-now-products/)

[Nicholas Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-johnson/)

> [The problem is not that you can buy a congressman for $10000 but that you can buy a Washington lawyer for $100000.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-johnson/the-problem-is-not-that-you-can-buy-a-congressman-for-10000-but-that/)

[Nicholas Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-johnson/)

> [“Perhaps as many as two hundred thousand black men were snared into the convict labor system on a variety of pretexts. One of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-johnson/perhaps-as-many-as-two-hundred-thousand-black-men-were-snared-into/)

[Nicholas Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-johnson/)

> [“By 1870, roughly 284,000 blacks accounted for 12 percent of the population of sixteen Western states and territories. But Negroes actually show up as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-johnson/by-1870-roughly-284-000-blacks-accounted-for-12-percent-of-the/)

[Nicholas Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-johnson/)

[Explore all 12 Nicholas Johnson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-johnson/)

## More Books quotes

> [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/)

[Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/)

> [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/)

[Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/)

> [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/)

[Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/)

> [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/)

[Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/)

> [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/)

[Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/)

> [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/)

[Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/)

> [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/)

[Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/)

> [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/)

[Christopher K. Krebs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-k-krebs/)

> [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/)

[Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/)

> [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/)

[Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/)

> [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/)

[Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/)

> [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/)

[Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/)

> [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/)

[Markus Herz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-herz/)

> [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/)

[Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/)

[Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Walter White’s more remarkable achievement in print was the book Rope and Faggot, which distilled his firsthand accounts of more than forty lynchings. Passing for white, he witnessed the murderous rage, carnival atmosphere, and unfathomable barbarism of the mob. With few discernible Negro characteristics, Walter White stood in the crowds and reported back on the very worst mob violence of the early twentieth century. Some of the details are so gruesome, they read like slasher fiction, doubly horrifying against the new prosperity of the Industrial Revolution and happy images of flappers dancing the Charleston.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Nicholas Johnson"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-johnson/walter-white-s-more-remarkable-achievement-in-print-was-the-book-rope/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Books"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-johnson/walter-white-s-more-remarkable-achievement-in-print-was-the-book-rope/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/70d/nicholas-johnson-37896_books_walter-white-s-more-remarkable-achieveme_1337442.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/70d/nicholas-johnson-37896_books_walter-white-s-more-remarkable-achieveme_1337442.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/70d/nicholas-johnson-37896_books_walter-white-s-more-remarkable-achieveme_1337442.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Walter White’s more remarkable achievement in print was the book Rope and Faggot, which distilled his…” — Nicholas Johnson",
                "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": "Nicholas Johnson",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-johnson/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Walter White’s more remarkable achievement in...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-johnson/walter-white-s-more-remarkable-achievement-in-print-was-the-book-rope/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-johnson/walter-white-s-more-remarkable-achievement-in-print-was-the-book-rope/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
