--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: you got two feet, Sethe, not four.\" he…" description: "\"you got two feet, Sethe, not four.\" he said, and right then a forest sprang up between them; tactless and quiet.\" — Toni Morrison" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ab/toni-morrison-271_feet_you-got-two-feet-sethe-not-four-he-said_766138.jpg" --- # you got two feet, Sethe, not four." he said, and right… ![“you got two feet, Sethe, not four." he said, and right then a forest sprang up between them; tactless and quiet.” quote by Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ab/toni-morrison-271_feet_you-got-two-feet-sethe-not-four-he-said_766138.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ab/toni-morrison-271_feet_you-got-two-feet-sethe-not-four-he-said_766138.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ab/toni-morrison-271_feet_you-got-two-feet-sethe-not-four-he-said_766138.jpg) > “you got two feet, Sethe, not four." he said, and right then a forest sprang up between them; tactless and quiet.” [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Compassion and humility are essential; arrogance creates barriers. **In simple terms:** Be humble, not boastful. Key Takeaway Cultivate humility in interactions. Themes humility compassion communication Mood thoughtful introspective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - family gatherings - social gatherings - conflict discussions Key Concepts interpersonal dynamics literary symbolism Questions to Reflect On - When does humility become a disadvantage? - How can you balance confidence and humility? A Different Perspective Humility may be perceived as weakness in some cultures. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Feet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feet/) [Forest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forest/) [Forest Sprang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forest-sprang-5931696/) [Forests](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forests/) [Four](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/four/) [Got Feet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/got-feet-304370/) [Quiet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quiet/) [Right Forest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right-forest-5931698/) [Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said/) [Sprang Tactless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sprang-tactless-5931697/) [Two](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/two/) ## Related quotes > [Right now I feel that I've got my feet on the ground as far as my head is concerned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-belinsky/right-now-i-feel-that-i-ve-got-my-feet-on-the-ground-as-far-as-my/) [Bo Belinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-belinsky/) > [I got my feet wet in a couple of shows. I did a cameo on my favorite show, 'The Vampire Diaries.' And I guest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabby-douglas/i-got-my-feet-wet-in-a-couple-of-shows-i-did-a-cameo-on-my-favorite/) [Gabby Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabby-douglas/) > [“got to my feet and stretched. This sitting at a desk for half a day was worse than anything I’d ever done. “O.K., I’ll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-robbins/got-to-my-feet-and-stretched-this-sitting-at-a-desk-for-half-a-day/) [Harold Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-robbins/) > [I've got my feet on the ground because I've got a lovely family waiting for me when I get home, even though they're not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-tyler/i-ve-got-my-feet-on-the-ground-because-i-ve-got-a-lovely-family/) [Bonnie Tyler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-tyler/) > [“Congratulations! Today is your day You're off to great places You're off and away You've got brains in your head You've got feet in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-suess-2/congratulations-today-is-your-day-you-re-off-to-great-places-you-re/) [Dr. Suess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-suess-2/) > [When I got cut from the National Football League, I had nowhere to go. I moved in with my parents until I got on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-layfield/when-i-got-cut-from-the-national-football-league-i-had-nowhere-to-go/) [John Layfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-layfield/) > [I've got my feet firmly on the ground, I can't see life changing too much. I reckon more girls will talk to me at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gareth-gates/i-ve-got-my-feet-firmly-on-the-ground-i-can-t-see-life-changing-too/) [Gareth Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gareth-gates/) > [I think we have got to put fire under the feet of all kinds of people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/i-think-we-have-got-to-put-fire-under-the-feet-of-all-kinds-of-people/) [Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/) > [But once we got them on its feet then they run themselves, unless there's corrections you have to make.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-bruckheimer/but-once-we-got-them-on-its-feet-then-they-run-themselves-unless/) [Jerry Bruckheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-bruckheimer/) > [When you start out somewhere, you've got to get your feet wet. You got to find your place.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheamus/when-you-start-out-somewhere-you-ve-got-to-get-your-feet-wet-you-got/) [Sheamus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheamus/) > [Now I got my feet up cause I'm on top and niggas hoping that I stop but I'm just smoking, living life like in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wiz-khalifa/now-i-got-my-feet-up-cause-i-m-on-top-and-niggas-hoping-that-i-stop/) [Wiz Khalifa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wiz-khalifa/) > [I don't get it , my mom tells me to get her something so I get it .. when I ask her to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/armin-ferizovic/i-don-t-get-it-my-mom-tells-me-to-get-her-something-so-i-get-it-when/) [Armin Ferizovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/armin-ferizovic/) > [And it was out in the theaters in two weeks. This is not, 'We're going to develop twenty-five and maybe one's going to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sayles/and-it-was-out-in-the-theaters-in-two-weeks-this-is-not-we-re-going/) [John Sayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sayles/) > [You got to keep your feet on the ground, and it is what it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-holloway/you-got-to-keep-your-feet-on-the-ground-and-it-is-what-it-is/) [Max Holloway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-holloway/) > [Darkness, air, water, and sky will come together... and shake the forest to its roots.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-hunter/darkness-air-water-and-sky-will-come-together-and-shake-the-forest-to/) [Erin Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-hunter/) ## More by Toni Morrison > [Perhaps that's what all human relationships boiled down to: Would you save my life? or would you take it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/perhaps-that-s-what-all-human-relationships-boiled-down-to-would-you/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [There, in the center of that silence was not eternity but the death of time and a loneliness so profound the word itself had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/there-in-the-center-of-that-silence-was-not-eternity-but-the-death-of/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [In times of dread, artists must never choose to remain silent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/in-times-of-dread-artists-must-never-choose-to-remain-silent/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“Not know it was hard;knowing it was harder”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/not-know-it-was-hard-knowing-it-was-harder/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“Didn’t everything on God’s earth have or acquire defense?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/didn-t-everything-on-god-s-earth-have-or-acquire-defense/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [If you can't count, they can cheat you. If you can't read, they can beat you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/if-you-can-t-count-they-can-cheat-you-if-you-can-t-read-they-can-beat/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“You looked at them and wondered why the were so ugly; you looked closely and could not find the source. Then you realized that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/you-looked-at-them-and-wondered-why-the-were-so-ugly-you-looked/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [All she saw, down in the cellar well beneath the stoop, was a light yellow feather with a tip of green. And she had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/all-she-saw-down-in-the-cellar-well-beneath-the-stoop-was-a-light/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [For me, Art is the restoration of order. It may discuss all sort of terrible things, but there must be satisfaction at the end.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/for-me-art-is-the-restoration-of-order-it-may-discuss-all-sort-of/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“To Sethe, the future was a matter of keeping the past at bay”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/to-sethe-the-future-was-a-matter-of-keeping-the-past-at-bay/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“Hate does that. Burns off everything but itself, so whatever your grievance is, your face looks just like your enemy's.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/hate-does-that-burns-off-everything-but-itself-so-whatever-your/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“You know how a star is supposed to twinkle? We say twinkle because that is how it looks, but when a star feels itself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/you-know-how-a-star-is-supposed-to-twinkle-we-say-twinkle-because/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“There is no bad luck in the world but whitefolks”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/there-is-no-bad-luck-in-the-world-but-whitefolks/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [My father saw two black men lynched on his street in Cartersville, as a child. And I think seeing two black businessmen - not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/my-father-saw-two-black-men-lynched-on-his-street-in-cartersville-as/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“She was fierce in the presence of death, heroic even, as she was at no other time. Its threat gave her direction, clarity, audacity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/she-was-fierce-in-the-presence-of-death-heroic-even-as-she-was-at-no/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) [Explore all 774 Toni Morrison quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) ## More Feet quotes > [The minute you step onstage, you get eight feet taller.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-cooper/the-minute-you-step-onstage-you-get-eight-feet-taller/) [Alice Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-cooper/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [I always step on the plane with my right foot and touch the outside of the plane with my left hand. Sometimes you know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-davis/i-always-step-on-the-plane-with-my-right-foot-and-touch-the-outside/) [Hope Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-davis/) > [The evening's the best part of the day. You've done your day's work. Now you can put your feet up and enjoy it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/the-evening-s-the-best-part-of-the-day-you-ve-done-your-day-s-work/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [We can't love a place or a person if we always have one foot out the door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/we-can-t-love-a-place-or-a-person-if-we-always-have-one-foot-out-the/) [Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/) > [When I was 3, my parents strapped on a pair of Playskool plastic roller skates to my feet, and that's where the story begins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-celski/when-i-was-3-my-parents-strapped-on-a-pair-of-playskool-plastic/) [J. R. Celski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-celski/) > [A man could be a lover and defender of the wilderness without ever in his lifetime leaving the boundaries of asphalt, powerlines, and right-angled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/a-man-could-be-a-lover-and-defender-of-the-wilderness-without-ever-in/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [We never think that our mothers will die. It was like suddenly an abyss opened at my feet - I was standing on nothing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/we-never-think-that-our-mothers-will-die-it-was-like-suddenly-an/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [“Always wash you feet last.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/always-wash-you-feet-last/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My husband really loves my feet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayesha-curry/my-husband-really-loves-my-feet/) [Ayesha Curry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayesha-curry/) > [Can you imagine any better example of divine creative accomplishment that the consummate flying machine that is a bird? The skeleton, very flexible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-murchie/can-you-imagine-any-better-example-of-divine-creative-accomplishment/) [Guy Murchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-murchie/) > [Our duty as Christians is always to keep heaven in our eye and earth under our feet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-henry/our-duty-as-christians-is-always-to-keep-heaven-in-our-eye-and-earth/) [Matthew Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-henry/) > [Griezmann is an exceptional player. He's brimming with talent, and he knows how to keep his feet on the ground.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-matuidi/griezmann-is-an-exceptional-player-he-s-brimming-with-talent-and-he/) [Blaise Matuidi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-matuidi/) > [I thought that I had no time for faith nor time to pray, then I saw an armless man saying his Rosary with his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-locke/i-thought-that-i-had-no-time-for-faith-nor-time-to-pray-then-i-saw-an/) [John Locke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-locke/) > [I could not prove the Years had feet-/Yet confident they run.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-dickinson/i-could-not-prove-the-years-had-feet-yet-confident-they-run/) [Emily Dickinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-dickinson/) [Browse all 6,557 Feet quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feet/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "you got two feet, Sethe, not four.\" he said, and right then a forest sprang up between them; tactless and quiet.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Toni Morrison" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/you-got-two-feet-sethe-not-four-he-said-and-right-then-a-forest/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Feet" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/you-got-two-feet-sethe-not-four-he-said-and-right-then-a-forest/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ab/toni-morrison-271_feet_you-got-two-feet-sethe-not-four-he-said_766138.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ab/toni-morrison-271_feet_you-got-two-feet-sethe-not-four-he-said_766138.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ab/toni-morrison-271_feet_you-got-two-feet-sethe-not-four-he-said_766138.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“you got two feet, Sethe, not four.\" he said, and right then a forest sprang up between them; tactless and…” — Toni Morrison", "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": "Toni Morrison", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "you got two feet, Sethe, not...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/you-got-two-feet-sethe-not-four-he-said-and-right-then-a-forest/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/you-got-two-feet-sethe-not-four-he-said-and-right-then-a-forest/#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 } } ] } ```