--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Among the Conscious, a man is only worth…" description: "\"“Among the Conscious, a man is only worth his latest reading.”\" — Ta-Nehisi Coates" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c0/ta-nehisi-coates-733_conscious_among-the-conscious-a-man-is-only-worth_826052.png" --- # Among the Conscious, a man is only worth his latest reading. ![“Among the Conscious, a man is only worth his latest reading.” quote by Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c0/ta-nehisi-coates-733_conscious_among-the-conscious-a-man-is-only-worth_826052.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c0/ta-nehisi-coates-733_conscious_among-the-conscious-a-man-is-only-worth_826052.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c0/ta-nehisi-coates-733_conscious_among-the-conscious-a-man-is-only-worth_826052.png) > ““Among the Conscious, a man is only worth his latest reading.”” [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A person's value is judged by their most recent intellectual engagement. **In simple terms:** People are measured by what they read now. Key Takeaway Seek continual learning and share insights. Themes knowledge reading identity self-worth culture Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - education - personal development - community discussions - career advancement Key Concepts literature intellectual capital social perception Questions to Reflect On - What does your latest reading say about you? - How can we value people beyond their recent consumption? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on recent reading can ignore deeper character traits. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conscious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscious/) [Conscious Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscious-man-515453/) [Latest Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/latest-reading-515454/) [Man Worth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-worth/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) ## Related quotes > [“Kṛṣṇa conscious man does not take shelter of any person – man or demigod. Whatever he does in Kṛṣṇa consciousness is sufficient in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-c-bhaktivedanta-swami-prabhup-da/k-a-conscious-man-does-not-take-shelter-of-any-person-man-or-demigod/) [A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-c-bhaktivedanta-swami-prabhup-da/) > [Conscious man, to be sure, has at all times been keenly aware that life is an adventure, that life must, forever, be wrested from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/conscious-man-to-be-sure-has-at-all-times-been-keenly-aware-that-life/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [“It is curious, but till that moment I had never realized what it means to destroy a healthy, conscious man. When I saw the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/it-is-curious-but-till-that-moment-i-had-never-realized-what-it-means/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [The standard progressive approach of the moment is to mix color-conscious moral invective with color-blind public policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/the-standard-progressive-approach-of-the-moment-is-to-mix-color/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [I've never known a man worth his salt who, in the long run, deep down in his heart, didn't appreciate the grind, the discipline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-lombardi/i-ve-never-known-a-man-worth-his-salt-who-in-the-long-run-deep-down/) [Vince Lombardi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-lombardi/) > [The fight for equal rights or pay has become this thing where people expect actresses to talk about it. Why they feel that a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaya-scodelario/the-fight-for-equal-rights-or-pay-has-become-this-thing-where-people/) [Kaya Scodelario](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaya-scodelario/) > [We must treat each man on his worth and merits as a man. We must see that each is given a square deal, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-must-treat-each-man-on-his-worth-and-merits-as-a-man-we-must-see/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“An empty pageant; a stage play; flocks of sheep, herds of cattle; a bone flung among a pack of dogs; a crumb tossed into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/an-empty-pageant-a-stage-play-flocks-of-sheep-herds-of-cattle-a-bone/) [Antonio Garcia Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/) > [A man's worth is what he is divided by what he thinks he is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/a-man-s-worth-is-what-he-is-divided-by-what-he-thinks-he-is/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [You are mistaken, my friend, if you think that a man who is worth anything ought to spend his time weighing up the prospects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/you-are-mistaken-my-friend-if-you-think-that-a-man-who-is-worth/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [They say a good man is worth fighting for. But a man who's good for YOU shouldn't make you fight just for the right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyra-davis/they-say-a-good-man-is-worth-fighting-for-but-a-man-who-s-good-for/) [Kyra Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyra-davis/) > [“One man is worth thousand if he is extraordinary”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heraclitus/one-man-is-worth-thousand-if-he-is-extraordinary/) [Heraclitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heraclitus/) > [“No man is worth the pain you’re putting yourself through. Don’t wither away because of someone who is beneath you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-foor/no-man-is-worth-the-pain-you-re-putting-yourself-through-don-t-wither/) [Jennifer Foor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-foor/) > [“If this was the price of benefits, it was too high. He wanted his friend back, because that was a man worth taking an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-p-wayne/if-this-was-the-price-of-benefits-it-was-too-high-he-wanted-his/) [S.P. Wayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-p-wayne/) > [A man's worth is no greater than the worth of his ambitions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-man-s-worth-is-no-greater-than-the-worth-of-his-ambitions/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Ta-Nehisi Coates > [“To Trump whiteness is neither notional nor symbolic but is the very core of his power. In this, Trump is not singular. But whereas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/to-trump-whiteness-is-neither-notional-nor-symbolic-but-is-the-very/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [“The focus on one sector of Trump voters—the white working class—is puzzling, given the breadth of his white coalition. Indeed, there is a kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/the-focus-on-one-sector-of-trump-voters-the-white-working-class-is/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [The greatest reward of this constant interrogation, confrontation with the brutality of my country, is that it has freed me from hosts and myths.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/the-greatest-reward-of-this-constant-interrogation-confrontation-with/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [What I am telling you is that you do not need to know to love, and it is right that you feel it all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/what-i-am-telling-you-is-that-you-do-not-need-to-know-to-love-and-it/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [I think 'Dear White People,' the show, is a tremendous artistic achievement. It's always hinting that there is something beyond the pleading and wokeness,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/i-think-dear-white-people-the-show-is-a-tremendous-artistic/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [ \[Winning the White House was an achievement\], but as an African-American, \[Barack Obama\], I think the symbolism is in how he conducted himself. The… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/winning-the-white-house-was-an-achievement-but-as-an-african-american/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [What sets black people apart is not some deficit in personal responsibility. It's the weight on our shoulders. That is what's actually different. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/what-sets-black-people-apart-is-not-some-deficit-in-personal/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [Like a lot of people, I'm very, very concerned about Senator Clinton's record. I'm very, very concerned about where her positions were in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/like-a-lot-of-people-i-m-very-very-concerned-about-senator-clinton-s/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [“I drove away, as always, thinking of you. I do not believe that we can stop them, Samori, because they must ultimately stop themselves.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/i-drove-away-as-always-thinking-of-you-i-do-not-believe-that-we-can/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [What I’m talking about is more than recompense for past injustices—more than a handout, a payoff, hush money, or a reluctant bribe. What I’m…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/what-i-m-talking-about-is-more-than-recompense-for-past-injustices/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [The mainstream sort of presentation of the civil rights movement was not something that I directly inherited.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/the-mainstream-sort-of-presentation-of-the-civil-rights-movement-was/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [ \[Grew up in Hawaii\] that gave \[Barack Obama\] a kind of optimism, an ability to see things, you know, and frankly, an ability to… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/grew-up-in-hawaii-that-gave-barack-obama-a-kind-of-optimism-an/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [“I sensed the schools were hiding something, drugging us with false morality so that we would not see, so that we did not ask:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/i-sensed-the-schools-were-hiding-something-drugging-us-with-false/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [You don't make a case for reparations thinking, 'Oh yeah, people are gonna love this.' I didn't see that coming.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/you-don-t-make-a-case-for-reparations-thinking-oh-yeah-people-are/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [“And I know that there are black boys and black girls out there lost in a Bermuda triangle of the mind or stranded in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/and-i-know-that-there-are-black-boys-and-black-girls-out-there-lost/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) [Explore all 388 Ta-Nehisi Coates quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) ## More Conscious quotes > [Ye youths and virgins, when your generous blood Has drunk the warmth of fifteen summers, now The loves invite; now to new rapture wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-armstrong/ye-youths-and-virgins-when-your-generous-blood-has-drunk-the-warmth/) [John Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-armstrong/) > [Woman, in short, has an unconscious life, man a conscious life, and the genius the most conscious life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/woman-in-short-has-an-unconscious-life-man-a-conscious-life-and-the/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [Whatever your conscious mind assumes and believes to be true, your subconscious mind will accept and bring to pass. Believe in good fortune, divine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-murphy/whatever-your-conscious-mind-assumes-and-believes-to-be-true-your/) [Joseph Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-murphy/) > [To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-a-negro-in-this-country-and-to-be-relatively-conscious-is-to-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Just as everybody has the vote including women, I think children should, because as a child is conscious of itself then it has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-stein/just-as-everybody-has-the-vote-including-women-i-think-children/) [Gertrude Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-stein/) > [If you are not conscious of all of the different parts of yourself, the part of yourself that is the strongest will win out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-zukav/if-you-are-not-conscious-of-all-of-the-different-parts-of-yourself/) [Gary Zukav](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-zukav/) > [One of the noblest words in our language is "grace," defined as "unearned blessing." We live by grace far more than by anything else.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-elton-trueblood/one-of-the-noblest-words-in-our-language-is-grace-defined-as-unearned/) [D. Elton Trueblood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-elton-trueblood/) > [Repugnant is a creature who would squander the ability To lift an eye to heaven, conscious of his fleeting time here](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maynard-james-keenan/repugnant-is-a-creature-who-would-squander-the-ability-to-lift-an-eye/) [Maynard James Keenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maynard-james-keenan/) > [The goal of the Creator is for each entity to make a conscious choice to again seek Oneness, out of our own free will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wilcock/the-goal-of-the-creator-is-for-each-entity-to-make-a-conscious-choice/) [David Wilcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wilcock/) > [I know one thing: that you can do a lot of things but if you don't educate people into conscious anarchism it gets frittered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-bookchin/i-know-one-thing-that-you-can-do-a-lot-of-things-but-if-you-don-t/) [Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-bookchin/) > [All black people who are even minimally conscious, black people who have ever experienced Europe's technological power crusading in the vanguard of a civilizing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-nkosi/all-black-people-who-are-even-minimally-conscious-black-people-who/) [Lewis Nkosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-nkosi/) > [ A mind conscious of right laughs at the falsehoods of rumour. \[Lat., Conscia mens recti famae mendacia risit.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/a-mind-conscious-of-right-laughs-at-the-falsehoods-of-rumour-lat/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [I don't think my paintings are self-conscious but you feel the consciousness of them. Without them being self-conscious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/i-don-t-think-my-paintings-are-self-conscious-but-you-feel-the/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) [Browse all 3,716 Conscious quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscious/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Among the Conscious, a man is only worth his latest reading.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ta-Nehisi Coates" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/among-the-conscious-a-man-is-only-worth-his-latest-reading/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Conscious" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/among-the-conscious-a-man-is-only-worth-his-latest-reading/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c0/ta-nehisi-coates-733_conscious_among-the-conscious-a-man-is-only-worth_826052.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c0/ta-nehisi-coates-733_conscious_among-the-conscious-a-man-is-only-worth_826052.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c0/ta-nehisi-coates-733_conscious_among-the-conscious-a-man-is-only-worth_826052.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Among the Conscious, a man is only worth his latest reading.” — Ta-Nehisi Coates", "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": "Ta-Nehisi Coates", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Among the Conscious, a man is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/among-the-conscious-a-man-is-only-worth-his-latest-reading/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/among-the-conscious-a-man-is-only-worth-his-latest-reading/#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 } } ] } ```