--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I've never turned over a fig leaf yet…" description: "\"I've never turned over a fig leaf yet that didn't have a price tag on the other side.\" — Saul Bellow" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83e/saul-bellow-558_figs_i-ve-never-turned-over-a-fig-leaf-yet-th_642128.png" --- # I've never turned over a fig leaf yet that didn't have a… ![“I've never turned over a fig leaf yet that didn't have a price tag on the other side.” quote by Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83e/saul-bellow-558_figs_i-ve-never-turned-over-a-fig-leaf-yet-th_642128.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83e/saul-bellow-558_figs_i-ve-never-turned-over-a-fig-leaf-yet-th_642128.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83e/saul-bellow-558_figs_i-ve-never-turned-over-a-fig-leaf-yet-th_642128.png) > “I've never turned over a fig leaf yet that didn't have a price tag on the other side.” [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Suggests that even seemingly free offers carry hidden costs or obligations. **In simple terms:** Nothing is truly free; everything has a price. Key Takeaway Beware hidden costs. Themes materialism skepticism value Mood cynical thoughtful Type philosophical critical When to use this quote - business deals - personal favors - social interactions - gift giving Key Concepts economics trade morality Questions to Reflect On - What hidden costs do you notice in everyday offers? - Can some gifts be truly selfless? A Different Perspective May overlook genuine generosity that lacks ulterior motives. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Didn Price](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/didn-price-5153595/) [Fig Leaf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fig-leaf-2280291/) [Figs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/figs/) [Leaf Didn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leaf-didn-5153594/) [Leafs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leafs/) [Price tag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/price-tag/) [Sides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sides/) [Tag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tag/) [Turned Fig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turned-fig-5153593/) [Two sides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/two-sides/) ## Related quotes > [Some people need a fig-leaf on their mouths.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/some-people-need-a-fig-leaf-on-their-mouths/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [Guilt pins a fig-leaf; Innocence is its own adorning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-spencer/guilt-pins-a-fig-leaf-innocence-is-its-own-adorning/) [Anne Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-spencer/) > [A woman, even a prude, is not long at a loss, however dire her plight. She would seen always to have in hand the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/honor-de-balzac/a-woman-even-a-prude-is-not-long-at-a-loss-however-dire-her-plight/) [Honore de Balzac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/honor-de-balzac/) > [Democracy is the fig leaf of elitism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-king/democracy-is-the-fig-leaf-of-elitism/) [Florence King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-king/) > [First, I emptied the closets of your clothes, threw out the bowl of fruit, bruised from your touch, left empty the jars you bought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natasha-trethewey/first-i-emptied-the-closets-of-your-clothes-threw-out-the-bowl-of/) [Natasha Trethewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natasha-trethewey/) > [To eat figs off the tree in the very early morning, when they have been barely touched by the sun, is one of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-david/to-eat-figs-off-the-tree-in-the-very-early-morning-when-they-have/) [Elizabeth David](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-david/) > [The man who is ostentatious of his modesty is twin to the statue that wears a fig-leaf.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-man-who-is-ostentatious-of-his-modesty-is-twin-to-the-statue-that/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [“This year, of course, being 1936, there would be no figs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-furst/this-year-of-course-being-1936-there-would-be-no-figs/) [Alan Furst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-furst/) > [Here is a rural fellow that will not be denied your Highness' presence: he brings you figs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/here-is-a-rural-fellow-that-will-not-be-denied-your-highness-presence/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I am once more seated under my own vine and fig tree ... and hope to spend the remainder of my days in peaceful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-washington/i-am-once-more-seated-under-my-own-vine-and-fig-tree-and-hope-to/) [George Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-washington/) > [Shebna scraped the tablet clean and began drawing circles in the soft clay. "Suppose you had six figs and you ate two. How many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-austin/shebna-scraped-the-tablet-clean-and-began-drawing-circles-in-the-soft/) [Lynn Austin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-austin/) > [I eat Fig Newtons by the sleeve!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-regan/i-eat-fig-newtons-by-the-sleeve/) [Brian Regan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-regan/) > [And never since harvests were ripened, / Or laborers born, / Have men gathered figs of the thistle, / Or grapes of the thorn!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phoebe-cary/and-never-since-harvests-were-ripened-or-laborers-born-have-men/) [Phoebe Cary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phoebe-cary/) > [In all lands, sailors form a race apart. They profess a congenital contempt for landlubbers. As for the tradesman, he understands nothing of sailors…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/honor-de-balzac/in-all-lands-sailors-form-a-race-apart-they-profess-a-congenital/) [Honore de Balzac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/honor-de-balzac/) > [When you get honest with God, you can exchange the fig leaves you used to cover your sin with the righteousness of Jesus Christ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-hunt/when-you-get-honest-with-god-you-can-exchange-the-fig-leaves-you-used/) [Johnny Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-hunt/) ## More by Saul Bellow > [... a fellow can't predict what he will pick up in the form of influence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/a-fellow-can-t-predict-what-he-will-pick-up-in-the-form-of-influence/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [If I'm out of my mind, it's all right with me, thought Moses Herzog.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/if-i-m-out-of-my-mind-it-s-all-right-with-me-thought-moses-herzog/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [I have begun in old age to understand just how oddly we are all put together. We are so proud of our autonomy that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/i-have-begun-in-old-age-to-understand-just-how-oddly-we-are-all-put/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [“On Broadway it was still bright afternoon and the gassy air was almost motionless under the leaden spokes of sunlight, and sawdust footprints lay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/on-broadway-it-was-still-bright-afternoon-and-the-gassy-air-was/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [There are evils that have the ability to survive identification and go on for ever... money, for instance, or war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/there-are-evils-that-have-the-ability-to-survive-identification-and/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [Myself is thus and so, and will continue thus and so. And why fight it? My balance comes from instability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/myself-is-thus-and-so-and-will-continue-thus-and-so-and-why-fight-it/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [“A strange heart. I myself can't account for it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/a-strange-heart-i-myself-can-t-account-for-it/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [The late philosopher Morris R. Cohen of CCNY was asked by a student in the metaphysics course, Professor Cohen, how do I know that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/the-late-philosopher-morris-r-cohen-of-ccny-was-asked-by-a-student-in/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [“Therefore we didn't talk of genuine things.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/therefore-we-didn-t-talk-of-genuine-things/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [Is our species crazy? Plenty of evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/is-our-species-crazy-plenty-of-evidence/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [“But now the emphasis has shifted to making it. People have surrendered their personal moral objectives to government or schools or psychologists. It’s a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/but-now-the-emphasis-has-shifted-to-making-it-people-have-surrendered/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [There's a kind of emptiness at the center of life ... nothing to form your life on, or by.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/there-s-a-kind-of-emptiness-at-the-center-of-life-nothing-to-form/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [“I don't know how it all at once came to me to talk a lot, tell jokes, kick up, and suddenly have views. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/i-don-t-know-how-it-all-at-once-came-to-me-to-talk-a-lot-tell-jokes/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [There are times when the most practical thing is to lie down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/there-are-times-when-the-most-practical-thing-is-to-lie-down/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [“For knowledge of death makes us wish to extend our lives at the expense of others. And this is the root of the struggle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/for-knowledge-of-death-makes-us-wish-to-extend-our-lives-at-the/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) [Explore all 464 Saul Bellow quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) ## More Figs quotes > [When you get honest with God, you can exchange the fig leaves you used to cover your sin with the righteousness of Jesus Christ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-hunt/when-you-get-honest-with-god-you-can-exchange-the-fig-leaves-you-used/) [Johnny Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-hunt/) > [In all lands, sailors form a race apart. They profess a congenital contempt for landlubbers. As for the tradesman, he understands nothing of sailors…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/honor-de-balzac/in-all-lands-sailors-form-a-race-apart-they-profess-a-congenital/) [Honore de Balzac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/honor-de-balzac/) > [And never since harvests were ripened, / Or laborers born, / Have men gathered figs of the thistle, / Or grapes of the thorn!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phoebe-cary/and-never-since-harvests-were-ripened-or-laborers-born-have-men/) [Phoebe Cary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phoebe-cary/) > [I eat Fig Newtons by the sleeve!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-regan/i-eat-fig-newtons-by-the-sleeve/) [Brian Regan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-regan/) > [Shebna scraped the tablet clean and began drawing circles in the soft clay. "Suppose you had six figs and you ate two. How many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-austin/shebna-scraped-the-tablet-clean-and-began-drawing-circles-in-the-soft/) [Lynn Austin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-austin/) > [I am once more seated under my own vine and fig tree ... and hope to spend the remainder of my days in peaceful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-washington/i-am-once-more-seated-under-my-own-vine-and-fig-tree-and-hope-to/) [George Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-washington/) > [Here is a rural fellow that will not be denied your Highness' presence: he brings you figs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/here-is-a-rural-fellow-that-will-not-be-denied-your-highness-presence/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“This year, of course, being 1936, there would be no figs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-furst/this-year-of-course-being-1936-there-would-be-no-figs/) [Alan Furst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-furst/) > [The man who is ostentatious of his modesty is twin to the statue that wears a fig-leaf.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-man-who-is-ostentatious-of-his-modesty-is-twin-to-the-statue-that/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Democracy is the fig leaf of elitism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-king/democracy-is-the-fig-leaf-of-elitism/) [Florence King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-king/) > [To eat figs off the tree in the very early morning, when they have been barely touched by the sun, is one of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-david/to-eat-figs-off-the-tree-in-the-very-early-morning-when-they-have/) [Elizabeth David](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-david/) > [First, I emptied the closets of your clothes, threw out the bowl of fruit, bruised from your touch, left empty the jars you bought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natasha-trethewey/first-i-emptied-the-closets-of-your-clothes-threw-out-the-bowl-of/) [Natasha Trethewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natasha-trethewey/) > [Your constitution guarantees to every citizen, even the humblest, the enjoyment of life, liberty, and property. It promises to all, religious freedom, the right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-smith-jr/your-constitution-guarantees-to-every-citizen-even-the-humblest-the/) [Joseph Smith, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-smith-jr/) > [The fallen hazel-nuts, Stripped late of their green sheaths, The grapes, red-purple, Their berries Dripping with wine, Pomegranates already broken, And shrunken fig, And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilda-doolittle/the-fallen-hazel-nuts-stripped-late-of-their-green-sheaths-the-grapes/) [Hilda Doolittle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilda-doolittle/) > [Close to the Gates a spacious Garden lies, From the Storms defended and inclement Skies; Four Acres was the allotted Space of Ground, Fenc'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/close-to-the-gates-a-spacious-garden-lies-from-the-storms-defended/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) [Browse all 108 Figs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/figs/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I've never turned over a fig leaf yet that didn't have a price tag on the other side.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Saul Bellow" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/i-ve-never-turned-over-a-fig-leaf-yet-that-didn-t-have-a-price-tag-on/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Figs" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/i-ve-never-turned-over-a-fig-leaf-yet-that-didn-t-have-a-price-tag-on/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83e/saul-bellow-558_figs_i-ve-never-turned-over-a-fig-leaf-yet-th_642128.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83e/saul-bellow-558_figs_i-ve-never-turned-over-a-fig-leaf-yet-th_642128.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83e/saul-bellow-558_figs_i-ve-never-turned-over-a-fig-leaf-yet-th_642128.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I've never turned over a fig leaf yet that didn't have a price tag on the other side.” — Saul Bellow", "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": "Saul Bellow", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I've never turned over a fig...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/i-ve-never-turned-over-a-fig-leaf-yet-that-didn-t-have-a-price-tag-on/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/i-ve-never-turned-over-a-fig-leaf-yet-that-didn-t-have-a-price-tag-on/#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 } } ] } ```