--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Yes, there are some backs on the street…" description: "\"“Yes, there are some backs on the street which cry for the knife.”\" — Octave Mirbeau" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/396/octave-mirbeau-17305_backs_yes-there-are-some-backs-on-the-street-w_787775.jpg" --- # Yes, there are some backs on the street which cry for the… ![“Yes, there are some backs on the street which cry for the knife.” quote by Octave Mirbeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/396/octave-mirbeau-17305_backs_yes-there-are-some-backs-on-the-street-w_787775.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/396/octave-mirbeau-17305_backs_yes-there-are-some-backs-on-the-street-w_787775.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/396/octave-mirbeau-17305_backs_yes-there-are-some-backs-on-the-street-w_787775.jpg) > ““Yes, there are some backs on the street which cry for the knife.”” [Octave Mirbeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The line suggests that some people on the street are desperate enough to resort to violence, symbolized by a knife. **In simple terms:** Desperation can lead to violent acts. Key Takeaway Address underlying social distress. Themes poverty desperation violence Mood somber urgent Type social commentary cautionary When to use this quote - homelessness - public safety - community outreach Key Concepts social inequality urban decay crime triggers Questions to Reflect On - What societal factors drive people to desperation? - How can communities reduce street violence? A Different Perspective Violence is not inevitable; interventions can help. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Street](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/street/) ## Related quotes > [I don't think anyone went the polls and said, 'I am casting my vote to make sure that Wall Street has better chances to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/i-don-t-think-anyone-went-the-polls-and-said-i-am-casting-my-vote-to/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [I refuse to say things behind people's backs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-manson/i-refuse-to-say-things-behind-people-s-backs/) [Marilyn Manson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-manson/) > [Every guy has different strengths in the NFL. Receivers are different, running backs are different, but they all have that one thing that they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-fitzgerald/every-guy-has-different-strengths-in-the-nfl-receivers-are-different/) [Larry Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-fitzgerald/) > [ \[W\]e must stop trying to protect our planet from every imaginable, exaggerated or imaginary risk. And we must stop trying to protect it on… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niger-innis/w-e-must-stop-trying-to-protect-our-planet-from-every-imaginable/) [Niger Innis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niger-innis/) > [At fullback you have a little bit more defensive responsibility. You have to help out with your center backs a little bit more. As…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deandre-yedlin/at-fullback-you-have-a-little-bit-more-defensive-responsibility-you/) [DeAndre Yedlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deandre-yedlin/) > [The self-made man that some people believe is a myth? It could be, because you do it on the backs of other people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-isaac/the-self-made-man-that-some-people-believe-is-a-myth-it-could-be/) [Oscar Isaac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-isaac/) > [I can consider not only great art, but the context in which that art has been created. I can consider the people who paid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roxane-gay/i-can-consider-not-only-great-art-but-the-context-in-which-that-art/) [Roxane Gay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roxane-gay/) > [“Set backs are bumps in the road, they are not the end of the roads.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-greene/set-backs-are-bumps-in-the-road-they-are-not-the-end-of-the-roads/) [Bob Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-greene/) > [Jules: You scratch our backs, we'll scratch yours. Seth: Well Jules, the funny thing about my back is that it's located on my cock.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/superbad/jules-you-scratch-our-backs-we-ll-scratch-yours-seth-well-jules-the/) Superbad > [When the phonies are expelled from their leadership roles and the Republican Party backs a moderate gubernatorial candidate acceptable to the rank and file…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-paladino/when-the-phonies-are-expelled-from-their-leadership-roles-and-the/) [Carl Paladino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-paladino/) > [~Its funny when your family turn their backs on you when you've done everything for them… ~](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/she-s-gone/its-funny-when-your-family-turn-their-backs-on-you-when-you-ve-done/) She's\_gone > [I don't think running backs have ever been under-valued.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-cowher/i-don-t-think-running-backs-have-ever-been-under-valued/) [Bill Cowher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-cowher/) > [Just as we should never balance the budget on the backs of the poor, so it is an economic delusion to think you can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-osborne/just-as-we-should-never-balance-the-budget-on-the-backs-of-the-poor/) [George Osborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-osborne/) > [We, the artists, make the stuff they sell and they're like ticks on our backs, sucking the life out of us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-wilson/we-the-artists-make-the-stuff-they-sell-and-they-re-like-ticks-on-our/) [Malcolm Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-wilson/) > [placid, adj. Sometimes I love it when we just lie on our backs, gaze off, stay still.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/placid-adj-sometimes-i-love-it-when-we-just-lie-on-our-backs-gaze-off/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) ## More by Octave Mirbeau > [“After two years' absence she finally returned to chilly Europe, a trifle weary, a trifle sad, disgusted by our banal entertainments, our shrunken landscapes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/after-two-years-absence-she-finally-returned-to-chilly-europe-a/) [Octave Mirbeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/) > [The universe appears to me like an immense, inexorable torture-garden…Passions, greed, hatred, and lies; social institutions, justice, love, glory, heroism, and religion: these are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/the-universe-appears-to-me-like-an-immense-inexorable-torture-garden/) [Octave Mirbeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/) > [As soon as I find myself in the presence of a rich man, I cannot help looking upon him as an exceptional and beautiful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/as-soon-as-i-find-myself-in-the-presence-of-a-rich-man-i-cannot-help/) [Octave Mirbeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/) > [Wherever he goes, whatever he does, he will always see that word: murder—immortally inscribed upon the pediment of that vast slaughterhouse—humanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/wherever-he-goes-whatever-he-does-he-will-always-see-that-word-murder/) [Octave Mirbeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/) > [You're obliged to pretend respect for people and institutions you think absurd. You live attached in a cowardly fashion to moral and social conventions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/you-re-obliged-to-pretend-respect-for-people-and-institutions-you/) [Octave Mirbeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/) > [Why, flowers are violent, cruel, terrible, splendid...like love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/why-flowers-are-violent-cruel-terrible-splendid-like-love/) [Octave Mirbeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/) > [Why, flowers are violent, cruel, terrible and splendid... like love!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/why-flowers-are-violent-cruel-terrible-and-splendid-like-love/) [Octave Mirbeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/) > [Sheep run to the slaughterhouse, silent and hopeless, but at least sheep never vote for the butcher who kills them or the people who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/sheep-run-to-the-slaughterhouse-silent-and-hopeless-but-at-least/) [Octave Mirbeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/) > [Solitude does not consist in living alone; it consists in living with others, with people who take no interest in you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/solitude-does-not-consist-in-living-alone-it-consists-in-living-with/) [Octave Mirbeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/) > [“You know how much Annie loved pearls. She owned some incomparable specimens…the most marvelous, I believe, that ever existed. You also remember the almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/you-know-how-much-annie-loved-pearls-she-owned-some-incomparable/) [Octave Mirbeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/) > [“Alas, the gates of life never swing open except upon death, never open except upon the palaces and gardens of death. And the universe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/alas-the-gates-of-life-never-swing-open-except-upon-death-never-open/) [Octave Mirbeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/) > [“I desire her and I hate her. I would like to take her in my arms and embrace her till she smothered, till she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/i-desire-her-and-i-hate-her-i-would-like-to-take-her-in-my-arms-and/) [Octave Mirbeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/) > [Children, by nature, are keen, passionate and curious. What was referred to as laziness is often merely an awakening of sensitivity, a psychological inability…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/children-by-nature-are-keen-passionate-and-curious-what-was-referred/) [Octave Mirbeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/) > [Great ladies ... are like the best sauces -- it is better not to know how they are made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/great-ladies-are-like-the-best-sauces-it-is-better-not-to-know-how/) [Octave Mirbeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/) > [“You're obliged to pretend respect for people and institutions you think absurd. You live attached in a cowardly fashion to moral and social conventions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/you-re-obliged-to-pretend-respect-for-people-and-institutions-you-2/) [Octave Mirbeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/) [Explore all 33 Octave Mirbeau quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/) ## More Backs quotes > [I refuse to say things behind people's backs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-manson/i-refuse-to-say-things-behind-people-s-backs/) [Marilyn Manson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-manson/) > [I don't think anyone went the polls and said, 'I am casting my vote to make sure that Wall Street has better chances to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/i-don-t-think-anyone-went-the-polls-and-said-i-am-casting-my-vote-to/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [We, the artists, make the stuff they sell and they're like ticks on our backs, sucking the life out of us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-wilson/we-the-artists-make-the-stuff-they-sell-and-they-re-like-ticks-on-our/) [Malcolm Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-wilson/) > [Just as we should never balance the budget on the backs of the poor, so it is an economic delusion to think you can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-osborne/just-as-we-should-never-balance-the-budget-on-the-backs-of-the-poor/) [George Osborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-osborne/) > [I don't think running backs have ever been under-valued.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-cowher/i-don-t-think-running-backs-have-ever-been-under-valued/) [Bill Cowher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-cowher/) > [~Its funny when your family turn their backs on you when you've done everything for them… ~](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/she-s-gone/its-funny-when-your-family-turn-their-backs-on-you-when-you-ve-done/) She's\_gone > [When the phonies are expelled from their leadership roles and the Republican Party backs a moderate gubernatorial candidate acceptable to the rank and file…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-paladino/when-the-phonies-are-expelled-from-their-leadership-roles-and-the/) [Carl Paladino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-paladino/) > [Jules: You scratch our backs, we'll scratch yours. Seth: Well Jules, the funny thing about my back is that it's located on my cock.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/superbad/jules-you-scratch-our-backs-we-ll-scratch-yours-seth-well-jules-the/) Superbad > [“Set backs are bumps in the road, they are not the end of the roads.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-greene/set-backs-are-bumps-in-the-road-they-are-not-the-end-of-the-roads/) [Bob Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-greene/) > [I can consider not only great art, but the context in which that art has been created. I can consider the people who paid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roxane-gay/i-can-consider-not-only-great-art-but-the-context-in-which-that-art/) [Roxane Gay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roxane-gay/) > [The self-made man that some people believe is a myth? It could be, because you do it on the backs of other people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-isaac/the-self-made-man-that-some-people-believe-is-a-myth-it-could-be/) [Oscar Isaac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-isaac/) > [At fullback you have a little bit more defensive responsibility. You have to help out with your center backs a little bit more. As…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deandre-yedlin/at-fullback-you-have-a-little-bit-more-defensive-responsibility-you/) [DeAndre Yedlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deandre-yedlin/) > [ \[W\]e must stop trying to protect our planet from every imaginable, exaggerated or imaginary risk. And we must stop trying to protect it on… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niger-innis/w-e-must-stop-trying-to-protect-our-planet-from-every-imaginable/) [Niger Innis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niger-innis/) > [Every guy has different strengths in the NFL. Receivers are different, running backs are different, but they all have that one thing that they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-fitzgerald/every-guy-has-different-strengths-in-the-nfl-receivers-are-different/) [Larry Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-fitzgerald/) > [placid, adj. Sometimes I love it when we just lie on our backs, gaze off, stay still.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/placid-adj-sometimes-i-love-it-when-we-just-lie-on-our-backs-gaze-off/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) Browse all 111 Backs quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Yes, there are some backs on the street which cry for the knife.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Octave Mirbeau" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/yes-there-are-some-backs-on-the-street-which-cry-for-the-knife/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Backs" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/yes-there-are-some-backs-on-the-street-which-cry-for-the-knife/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/396/octave-mirbeau-17305_backs_yes-there-are-some-backs-on-the-street-w_787775.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/396/octave-mirbeau-17305_backs_yes-there-are-some-backs-on-the-street-w_787775.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/396/octave-mirbeau-17305_backs_yes-there-are-some-backs-on-the-street-w_787775.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Yes, there are some backs on the street which cry for the knife.” — Octave Mirbeau", "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": "Octave Mirbeau", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Yes, there are some backs on...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/yes-there-are-some-backs-on-the-street-which-cry-for-the-knife/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/yes-there-are-some-backs-on-the-street-which-cry-for-the-knife/#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 } } ] } ```