--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I came from an intellectual family. Most…" description: "\"I came from an intellectual family. Most were doctors, preachers, teachers, businessmen. My grandfather was a small businessman. His father was an abol..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c9/pete-seeger-1942_abolitionist_i-came-from-an-intellectual-family-most_1722450.png" --- # I came from an intellectual family. Most were doctors… ![“I came from an intellectual family. Most were doctors, preachers, teachers, businessmen. My grandfather was a small businessman. His father was an abolitionist doctor, and his father was an immigrant from Germany.” quote by Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c9/pete-seeger-1942_abolitionist_i-came-from-an-intellectual-family-most_1722450.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c9/pete-seeger-1942_abolitionist_i-came-from-an-intellectual-family-most_1722450.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c9/pete-seeger-1942_abolitionist_i-came-from-an-intellectual-family-most_1722450.png) > “I came from an intellectual family. Most were doctors, preachers, teachers, businessmen. My grandfather was a small businessman. His father was an abolitionist doctor, and his father was an immigrant from Germany.” [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Coming from a lineage of professionals and activists shaped his worldview, linking personal heritage to broader social movements. **In simple terms:** Family background influences values. Key Takeaway Acknowledge roots to inform activism. Themes family heritage activism music social change Mood reflective inspirational Type biographical cultural When to use this quote - community organizing - songwriting - educational outreach - family storytelling Key Concepts generational influence cultural transmission social responsibility Questions to Reflect On - How does one’s ancestry affect their activism? - In what ways can heritage be a source of strength? A Different Perspective Not all family histories are empowering; some may impose constraints. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abolitionist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abolitionist/) [Businessman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/businessman/) [Businessmen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/businessmen/) [Doctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctor/) [Doctors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctors/) [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Father](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/father/) [Germany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/germany/) [Grandfather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grandfather/) [Immigrant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/immigrant/) [Immigrants](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/immigrants/) [Immigration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/immigration/) [Intellectual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intellectual/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Preacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preacher/) [Preachers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preachers/) [Small business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/small-business/) [Teacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teacher/) [Teachers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teachers/) ## Related quotes > [I came from a very intellectual neighborhood. When we played cowboys and Indians as kids, I had to be Gandhi.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/i-came-from-a-very-intellectual-neighborhood-when-we-played-cowboys/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [My childhood in Arlington, Va., a middle class suburb of Washington, was uneventful. Ours was a very intellectual family, and we were encouraged to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-gross/my-childhood-in-arlington-va-a-middle-class-suburb-of-washington-was/) [David Gross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-gross/) > [I came from an intellectual Parisian family. My father was a watchmaker; my mother was a housewife. We discussed politics, art, sculpture - never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonia-rykiel/i-came-from-an-intellectual-parisian-family-my-father-was-a/) [Sonia Rykiel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonia-rykiel/) > [My father came from an intellectual and studious avenue as opposed to a brawler's avenue. So I had to go further afield and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hardy/my-father-came-from-an-intellectual-and-studious-avenue-as-opposed-to/) [Tom Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hardy/) > [I don't come from an intellectual family.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-cannavale/i-don-t-come-from-an-intellectual-family/) [Bobby Cannavale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-cannavale/) > [I come from a very la-ti-da East Coast intellectual family - or so they think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandra-wentworth/i-come-from-a-very-la-ti-da-east-coast-intellectual-family-or-so-they/) [Alexandra Wentworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandra-wentworth/) > [Some of my ancestors were religious dissenters who came to America over three hundred years ago. Others were abolitionists in New England in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/some-of-my-ancestors-were-religious-dissenters-who-came-to-america/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [You point out that war is only a symptom of the whole horrid business of human behavior, and cannot be isolated. And that, even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-macaulay/you-point-out-that-war-is-only-a-symptom-of-the-whole-horrid-business/) [Rose Macaulay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-macaulay/) > [Many abolitionists have yet to learn the ABC of woman's rights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-b-anthony/many-abolitionists-have-yet-to-learn-the-abc-of-woman-s-rights/) [Susan B. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-b-anthony/) > [Whether by the House or by the People, if an Abolitionist be chosen President of the United States, you will have presented to you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jefferson-davis/whether-by-the-house-or-by-the-people-if-an-abolitionist-be-chosen/) [Jefferson Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jefferson-davis/) > [One of the songs that stayed in my head that I really considered a lot was an old folk song called 'John Brown' -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-tarantino/one-of-the-songs-that-stayed-in-my-head-that-i-really-considered-a/) [Quentin Tarantino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-tarantino/) > [I feel safe even in the midst of my enemies; for the truth is powerful and will prevail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sojourner-truth/i-feel-safe-even-in-the-midst-of-my-enemies-for-the-truth-is-powerful/) [Sojourner Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sojourner-truth/) > [“That was when I realized we weren’t born to be slaves. It was ignorant for any man to think he could be the master…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-grewal/that-was-when-i-realized-we-weren-t-born-to-be-slaves-it-was-ignorant/) [Jay Grewal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-grewal/) > [“I am aware that many object to the severity of my language; but is there not cause for severity? I will be as harsh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-lloyd-garrison/i-am-aware-that-many-object-to-the-severity-of-my-language-but-is/) [William Lloyd Garrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-lloyd-garrison/) > [Nowhere is wisdom more necessary than in the guidance of charitable impulses. Meaning well is only half our duty; Thinking right is the other,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-gridley-howe/nowhere-is-wisdom-more-necessary-than-in-the-guidance-of-charitable/) Samuel Gridley Howe ## More by Pete Seeger > [Honest songs aren't written for money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/honest-songs-aren-t-written-for-money/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [My father, Charles Seeger, got me into the Communist movement. He backed out around '38. I drifted out in the 50's.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/my-father-charles-seeger-got-me-into-the-communist-movement-he-backed/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [In the sixties, during the Vietnam war, when anarchists and pacifists and socialists, Democrats and Republicans, decent-hearted Americans, all recoiled with horror at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/in-the-sixties-during-the-vietnam-war-when-anarchists-and-pacifists/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [Now somebody will ask me, Pete, how can you prove these songs really make a difference? And I have to confess I can't prove…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/now-somebody-will-ask-me-pete-how-can-you-prove-these-songs-really/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [The truth is a rabbit in a bramble patch. All you can do is circle around and say it's somewhere in there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/the-truth-is-a-rabbit-in-a-bramble-patch-all-you-can-do-is-circle/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [I was about 16 years old years when my father took me to a square dance festival in North Carolina. For the first time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/i-was-about-16-years-old-years-when-my-father-took-me-to-a-square/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [It was Rachel Carson's famous book 'Silent Spring' that got me involved with the environment. I read it in The New Yorker, in installments.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/it-was-rachel-carson-s-famous-book-silent-spring-that-got-me-involved/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [When you play the 12-string guitar, you spend half your life tuning the instrument and the other half playing it out of tune.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/when-you-play-the-12-string-guitar-you-spend-half-your-life-tuning/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [Folks out in the country couldn't afford to pay for anybody else to make music. They had to make their own. So the peasantry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/folks-out-in-the-country-couldn-t-afford-to-pay-for-anybody-else-to/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [If there's something wrong, speak up!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/if-there-s-something-wrong-speak-up/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [This world is so full of hypocrisy, the only way you can be honest is to be a hermit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/this-world-is-so-full-of-hypocrisy-the-only-way-you-can-be-honest-is/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [There is a big, beautiful world that could be destroyed by selfishness and foolishness. We musicians have it within our power to help save…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/there-is-a-big-beautiful-world-that-could-be-destroyed-by-selfishness/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [And the people in the houses All went to the University And they got put in boxes Little boxes all the same, Little boxes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/and-the-people-in-the-houses-all-went-to-the-university-and-they-got/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [A good song reminds us what we're fighting for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/a-good-song-reminds-us-what-we-re-fighting-for/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [Most conservatives just want to turn back the clock to a time before the income tax - 100 years or so. I would like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/most-conservatives-just-want-to-turn-back-the-clock-to-a-time-before/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) [Explore all 196 Pete Seeger quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) ## More Abolitionist quotes > [Nowhere is wisdom more necessary than in the guidance of charitable impulses. Meaning well is only half our duty; Thinking right is the other,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-gridley-howe/nowhere-is-wisdom-more-necessary-than-in-the-guidance-of-charitable/) Samuel Gridley Howe > [“I am aware that many object to the severity of my language; but is there not cause for severity? I will be as harsh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-lloyd-garrison/i-am-aware-that-many-object-to-the-severity-of-my-language-but-is/) [William Lloyd Garrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-lloyd-garrison/) > [“That was when I realized we weren’t born to be slaves. It was ignorant for any man to think he could be the master…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-grewal/that-was-when-i-realized-we-weren-t-born-to-be-slaves-it-was-ignorant/) [Jay Grewal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-grewal/) > [I feel safe even in the midst of my enemies; for the truth is powerful and will prevail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sojourner-truth/i-feel-safe-even-in-the-midst-of-my-enemies-for-the-truth-is-powerful/) [Sojourner Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sojourner-truth/) > [One of the songs that stayed in my head that I really considered a lot was an old folk song called 'John Brown' -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-tarantino/one-of-the-songs-that-stayed-in-my-head-that-i-really-considered-a/) [Quentin Tarantino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-tarantino/) > [Whether by the House or by the People, if an Abolitionist be chosen President of the United States, you will have presented to you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jefferson-davis/whether-by-the-house-or-by-the-people-if-an-abolitionist-be-chosen/) [Jefferson Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jefferson-davis/) > [Many abolitionists have yet to learn the ABC of woman's rights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-b-anthony/many-abolitionists-have-yet-to-learn-the-abc-of-woman-s-rights/) [Susan B. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-b-anthony/) > [You point out that war is only a symptom of the whole horrid business of human behavior, and cannot be isolated. And that, even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-macaulay/you-point-out-that-war-is-only-a-symptom-of-the-whole-horrid-business/) [Rose Macaulay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-macaulay/) > [It’s time for a 21st-century abolitionist movement in the U.S and around the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-d-kristof/it-s-time-for-a-21st-century-abolitionist-movement-in-the-u-s-and/) [Nicholas D. Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-d-kristof/) > [If, while I hear the wild shriek of the slave mother robbed of her little ones, I do not open my mouth, am I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-stone/if-while-i-hear-the-wild-shriek-of-the-slave-mother-robbed-of-her/) [Lucy Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-stone/) > [I was in favour of the death penalty, and disposed to regard abolitionists as people whose hearts were bigger than their heads. Four years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gowers/i-was-in-favour-of-the-death-penalty-and-disposed-to-regard/) Ernest Gowers > [There are those who view the abolitionists as just maniacs, apolitical fanatics who helped to cause the war, and Lincoln is the model of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-foner/there-are-those-who-view-the-abolitionists-as-just-maniacs-apolitical/) [Eric Foner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-foner/) > [In such a condition of affairs, the practical difference between the abolitionist and the sympathizer, to the man who lost his slave and could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sergeant-wise/in-such-a-condition-of-affairs-the-practical-difference-between-the/) [John Sergeant Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sergeant-wise/) > [If I had to write down the most important people in the history of this planet, No.1 would be (abolitionist) John Brown. Why? Because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-gregory/if-i-had-to-write-down-the-most-important-people-in-the-history-of/) [Dick Gregory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-gregory/) > [“These men are all talk. What we need is action—action!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-brown/these-men-are-all-talk-what-we-need-is-action-action/) [John Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-brown/) [Browse all 90 Abolitionist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abolitionist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I came from an intellectual family. Most were doctors, preachers, teachers, businessmen. My grandfather was a small businessman. 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