---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Such is the Forgotten Man. He works, he…"
description: "\"“Such is the Forgotten Man. He works, he votes, generally he prays—but he always pays—yes, above all, he pays.”\" — William Graham Sumner"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a72/william-graham-sumner-5011_class-struggle_such-is-the-forgotten-man-he-works-he-vo_2495568.png"
---

#  Such is the Forgotten Man. He works, he votes, generally…

![“Such is the Forgotten Man. He works, he votes, generally he prays—but he always pays—yes, above all, he pays.” quote by William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a72/william-graham-sumner-5011_class-struggle_such-is-the-forgotten-man-he-works-he-vo_2495568.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a72/william-graham-sumner-5011_class-struggle_such-is-the-forgotten-man-he-works-he-vo_2495568.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a72/william-graham-sumner-5011_class-struggle_such-is-the-forgotten-man-he-works-he-vo_2495568.png)

> ““Such is the Forgotten Man. He works, he votes, generally he prays—but he always pays—yes, above all, he pays.””

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The common worker bears many duties, especially paying taxes and obligations.

**In simple terms:** The average person carries heavy responsibilities.

Key Takeaway

Recognize and address the burdens on ordinary people.

Themes

economics social responsibility taxation citizenship

Mood

empathetic analytical

Type

sociopolitical reflective

When to use this quote

- public policy
- tax reform
- community support

Key Concepts

social contract economic theory

Questions to Reflect On

- How does society benefit from supporting the “Forgotten Man”?
- What reforms could alleviate his load?

A Different Perspective

Policymakers may overlook these burdens.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Class struggle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/class-struggle/) [Forgotten Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forgotten-man-347992/) [Generally Prays](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generally-prays-1009695/) [Prays](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prays/) [Prays Pays](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prays-pays-1009694/) [Works Votes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/works-votes-1009696/)

## Related quotes

> [“The Forgotten Man works and votes—generally he prays—but his chief business in life is to pay.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/the-forgotten-man-works-and-votes-generally-he-prays-but-his-chief/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [The forgotten man... He works, he votes, generally he prays, but his chief business in life is to pay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/the-forgotten-man-he-works-he-votes-generally-he-prays-but-his-chief/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [The Forgotten Man is delving away in patient industry, supporting his family, paying his taxes, casting his vote, supporting the church and the school,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/the-forgotten-man-is-delving-away-in-patient-industry-supporting-his/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [The Forgotten Man... delving away in patient industry, supporting his family, paying his taxes, casting his vote, supporting the church and the school... but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/the-forgotten-man-delving-away-in-patient-industry-supporting-his/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [The State cannot get a cent for any man without taking it from some other man, and this latter must be a man who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/the-state-cannot-get-a-cent-for-any-man-without-taking-it-from-some/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [Who is the Forgotten Man? He is the clean, quiet, virtuous, domestic citizen, who pays his debts and his taxes and is never heard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/who-is-the-forgotten-man-he-is-the-clean-quiet-virtuous-domestic/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [If any student of social science comes to appreciate the case of the Forgotten Man, he will become an unflinching advocate of strict scientific…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/if-any-student-of-social-science-comes-to-appreciate-the-case-of-the/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [The State, it cannot be too often repeated, does nothing and can give nothing which it does not take from somebody. The Forgotten Man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/the-state-it-cannot-be-too-often-repeated-does-nothing-and-can-give/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [The Forgotten Man... works, he votes, generally he prays-but he always pays-yes, above all, he pays. He does not want an office; his name…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/the-forgotten-man-works-he-votes-generally-he-prays-but-he-always/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [What man ever blamed himself for his misfortune?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/what-man-ever-blamed-himself-for-his-misfortune/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [“The advantage of some is won by an equivalent loss of others.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/the-advantage-of-some-is-won-by-an-equivalent-loss-of-others/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [“Man has not forgotten to be man because man has not yet learned to be man! You can’t forget the thing you haven’t learned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/man-has-not-forgotten-to-be-man-because-man-has-not-yet-learned-to-be/)

[Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

> [“But how could she have forgotten who he was—a man who could lose himself in a single book, not to mention a world-class, open-stack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-masello/but-how-could-she-have-forgotten-who-he-was-a-man-who-could-lose/)

[Robert Masello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-masello/)

> [“Who is the forgotten man...? I know him as intimately as my own undershirt. He is the fellow that is trying to get along…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amity-shlaes/who-is-the-forgotten-man-i-know-him-as-intimately-as-my-own/)

[Amity Shlaes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amity-shlaes/)

> [The forgotten man at the bottom of the economic pyramid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-d-roosevelt/the-forgotten-man-at-the-bottom-of-the-economic-pyramid/)

[Franklin D. Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-d-roosevelt/)

## More by William Graham Sumner

> [The great force for forging a society into a solid mass has always been war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/the-great-force-for-forging-a-society-into-a-solid-mass-has-always/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [One thing must be granted to the rich: they are goodnatured.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/one-thing-must-be-granted-to-the-rich-they-are-goodnatured/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [“Can anyone imagine that the masterfulness, the overbearing disposition, the greed of gain, and the ruthlessness in methods, which are the faults of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/can-anyone-imagine-that-the-masterfulness-the-overbearing-disposition/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [The waste of capital, in proportion to the total capital, in this country between 1800 and 1850, in the attempts which were made to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/the-waste-of-capital-in-proportion-to-the-total-capital-in-this/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [We shall find that every effort to realize equality necessitates a sacrifice of liberty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/we-shall-find-that-every-effort-to-realize-equality-necessitates-a/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [Who is the Forgotten Man? He is the clean, quiet, virtuous, domestic citizen, who pays his debts and his taxes and is never heard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/who-is-the-forgotten-man-he-is-the-clean-quiet-virtuous-domestic/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [The men who start out with the notion that the world owes them a living generally find that the world pays its 'debt' in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/the-men-who-start-out-with-the-notion-that-the-world-owes-them-a/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [The taxing power is especially something after which the reformer's finger always itches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/the-taxing-power-is-especially-something-after-which-the-reformer-s/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [Great captains of industry are as rare as great generals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/great-captains-of-industry-are-as-rare-as-great-generals/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [Whatever capital you divert to the support of a shiftless and good-for-nothing person is so much diverted from some other employment, and that means…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/whatever-capital-you-divert-to-the-support-of-a-shiftless-and-good/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [ The yearning after equality \[in economic outcome\] is the offspring of envy and covetousness, and there is no possible plan for satisfying that yearning… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/the-yearning-after-equality-in-economic-outcome-is-the-offspring-of/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [I never have known a man of ordinary common-sense who did not urge upon his sons, from earliest childhood, doctrines of economy and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/i-never-have-known-a-man-of-ordinary-common-sense-who-did-not-urge/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [Before the tribunal of nature, a man has no more right to life than a rattlesnake; he has no more right to liberty than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/before-the-tribunal-of-nature-a-man-has-no-more-right-to-life-than-a/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [The millionaires are a product of natural selection ... the naturally selected agents of society for certain work. They get high wages and live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/the-millionaires-are-a-product-of-natural-selection-the-naturally/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

> [Perhaps they do not recognize themselves, for a rich man is even harder to define than a poor one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/perhaps-they-do-not-recognize-themselves-for-a-rich-man-is-even/)

[William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

[Explore all 104 William Graham Sumner quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/)

## More Class struggle quotes

> [Starting from the very reasonable, but unfortunately revolutionary concept that social practices which threaten the continuation of life on Earth must be changed, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judi-bari/starting-from-the-very-reasonable-but-unfortunately-revolutionary/)

[Judi Bari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judi-bari/)

> [The class struggle necessarily leads to the dictatorship of the proletariat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-marx/the-class-struggle-necessarily-leads-to-the-dictatorship-of-the/)

[Karl Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-marx/)

> [“As a battle cry against feudalism, the demand for democracy had a progressive character. As time went on, however, the metaphysics of natural law…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/as-a-battle-cry-against-feudalism-the-demand-for-democracy-had-a/)

[Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/)

> [All history has been a history of class struggles between dominated classes at various stages of social development.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-engels/all-history-has-been-a-history-of-class-struggles-between-dominated/)

[Friedrich Engels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-engels/)

> [The same old caveman feeling-greed, envy, violence, and mutual hate, which along the way assumed respectable pseudonyms like class struggle, racial struggle, mass struggle,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/the-same-old-caveman-feeling-greed-envy-violence-and-mutual-hate/)

[Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/)

> [“We in the West are accustomed to thinking that humans are all basically the same underneath our different cultural clothing, that the concerns the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-cushman/we-in-the-west-are-accustomed-to-thinking-that-humans-are-all/)

[Philip Cushman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-cushman/)

> [“The class struggle had a just motive, and Socialism at the beginning was in the right. What has happened is that instead of pursuing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-antonio-rivera/the-class-struggle-had-a-just-motive-and-socialism-at-the-beginning/)

[José Antonio Rivera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-antonio-rivera/)

> [“Totalitarian politics—far from being simply antisemitic or racist or imperialist or communist—use and abuse their own ideological and political elements until the basis of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-arendt/totalitarian-politics-far-from-being-simply-antisemitic-or-racist-or/)

[Hannah Arendt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-arendt/)

> [The Latin American Left, the criollos, direct descendents of Spaniards, they don't want to accept that they are the whites of Latin America. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bocafloja/the-latin-american-left-the-criollos-direct-descendents-of-spaniards/)

[Bocafloja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bocafloja/)

> [Wherever capitalism appears, in pursuit of its mission of exploitation, there will Socialism, fertilized by misery, watered by tears, and vitalized by agitation be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/wherever-capitalism-appears-in-pursuit-of-its-mission-of-exploitation/)

[Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/)

> [The Republican and Democratic parties, or, to be more exact, the Republican-Democratic party, represent the capitalist class in the class struggle. They are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/the-republican-and-democratic-parties-or-to-be-more-exact-the/)

[Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/)

> [“Have private property, capitalist exploitation and class rule ceased to exist? Or, have the propertied classes in a spell of patriotic fervour declared: in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosa-luxemburg/have-private-property-capitalist-exploitation-and-class-rule-ceased/)

[Rosa Luxemburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosa-luxemburg/)

> [“Actual class struggles apart, one of the aesthetic ways you could prove that there was a class system in America was by cogitating on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/actual-class-struggles-apart-one-of-the-aesthetic-ways-you-could/)

[Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/)

> [As the class struggle sharpens in the U.S. Marxism will come into its own as a great popular study.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-l-r-james/as-the-class-struggle-sharpens-in-the-u-s-marxism-will-come-into-its/)

[C. L. R. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-l-r-james/)

> [“My own outlook and my values had been formed long ago. I did not believe in dividing people into rigid classes, and I did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nien-cheng/my-own-outlook-and-my-values-had-been-formed-long-ago-i-did-not/)

[Nien Cheng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nien-cheng/)

[Browse all 153 Class struggle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/class-struggle/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Such is the Forgotten Man. He works, he votes, generally he prays—but he always pays—yes, above all, he pays.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "William Graham Sumner"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/such-is-the-forgotten-man-he-works-he-votes-generally-he-prays-but-he/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Class struggle"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/such-is-the-forgotten-man-he-works-he-votes-generally-he-prays-but-he/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a72/william-graham-sumner-5011_class-struggle_such-is-the-forgotten-man-he-works-he-vo_2495568.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a72/william-graham-sumner-5011_class-struggle_such-is-the-forgotten-man-he-works-he-vo_2495568.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a72/william-graham-sumner-5011_class-struggle_such-is-the-forgotten-man-he-works-he-vo_2495568.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Such is the Forgotten Man. He works, he votes, generally he prays—but he always pays—yes, above all, he pays.” — William Graham Sumner",
                "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": "William Graham Sumner",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Such is the Forgotten Man. He...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/such-is-the-forgotten-man-he-works-he-votes-generally-he-prays-but-he/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/such-is-the-forgotten-man-he-works-he-votes-generally-he-prays-but-he/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
