--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: No American worth his salt should go…" description: "\"No American worth his salt should go looking around for a root. I advance this in all modesty, as a not unreasonable opinion.\" — Wyndham Lewis" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0de/wyndham-lewis-7767_america_no-american-worth-his-salt-should-go-loo_636758.png" --- # No American worth his salt should go looking around for a… ![“No American worth his salt should go looking around for a root. I advance this in all modesty, as a not unreasonable opinion.” quote by Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0de/wyndham-lewis-7767_america_no-american-worth-his-salt-should-go-loo_636758.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0de/wyndham-lewis-7767_america_no-american-worth-his-salt-should-go-loo_636758.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0de/wyndham-lewis-7767_america_no-american-worth-his-salt-should-go-loo_636758.png) > “No American worth his salt should go looking around for a root. I advance this in all modesty, as a not unreasonable opinion.” [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The writer suggests that a true American must be self-reliant and not seek external validation or support. **In simple terms:** Americans should be independent, not depend on others. Key Takeaway Cultivate self‑reliance and confidence. Themes independence self‑reliance national identity pride modesty Mood reflective assertive provocative Type philosophical motivational controversial When to use this quote - career building - personal finance - community leadership - education - political discourse Key Concepts individualism cultural critique self‑esteem Questions to Reflect On - How does society shape self‑reliance? - What role do community resources play? A Different Perspective The claim may overlook systemic barriers that limit independence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Looking Around](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/looking-around/) [Looking Root](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/looking-root-1000797/) [Modesty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modesty/) [Opinion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opinion/) [Root](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/root/) [Root Advance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/root-advance-1000799/) [Roots](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/roots/) [Salt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/salt/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Unreasonable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unreasonable/) [Unreasonable Opinion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unreasonable-opinion-1000798/) [Worth Salt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worth-salt-690023/) ## Related quotes > [No American worth his salt should go around looking for a root. I advance this in all modesty, as a not unreasonable opinion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/no-american-worth-his-salt-should-go-around-looking-for-a-root-i/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) > [My gran had always told me that a woman--any woman worth her salt--could do whatever she had to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlaine-harris/my-gran-had-always-told-me-that-a-woman-any-woman-worth-her-salt/) [Charlaine Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlaine-harris/) > [“No obsession is worth its salt if it does not consume the obsessed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominique-frost/no-obsession-is-worth-its-salt-if-it-does-not-consume-the-obsessed/) [Dominique Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominique-frost/) > [No man is worth his salt who is not ready at all times to risk his well-being, to risk his body, to risk his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/no-man-is-worth-his-salt-who-is-not-ready-at-all-times-to-risk-his/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [Any coach worth his salt will take a look at that and say, 'I'll take my chances with that'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-dumars/any-coach-worth-his-salt-will-take-a-look-at-that-and-say-i-ll-take/) [Joe Dumars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-dumars/) > [“You can't fall in love with a man for who he is, and then expect him to change. Just love him, and if he's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brooklyn-james/you-can-t-fall-in-love-with-a-man-for-who-he-is-and-then-expect-him/) [Brooklyn James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brooklyn-james/) > [Any supervisor worth his salt would rather deal with people who attempt too much than with those who try too little.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/any-supervisor-worth-his-salt-would-rather-deal-with-people-who/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [Any journalist worth his or her salt wouldn't trust me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joey-skaggs/any-journalist-worth-his-or-her-salt-wouldn-t-trust-me/) [Joey Skaggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joey-skaggs/) > [“The sweet smile of a young woman. There is nothing better in the world. It is worth more than salt. Something in us sickens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/the-sweet-smile-of-a-young-woman-there-is-nothing-better-in-the-world/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [Any Democrat worth their salt that doesn't unequivocally say Medicare-for-all is the way to go? To me, there's something wrong with them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-turner/any-democrat-worth-their-salt-that-doesn-t-unequivocally-say-medicare/) [Nina Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-turner/) > [I think every actor worth his or her salt wants to do good, meaningful cinema.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tabu/i-think-every-actor-worth-his-or-her-salt-wants-to-do-good-meaningful/) [Tabu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tabu/) > [“Love is the only trophy that makes a man worth his own salt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-matthew-nespoli/love-is-the-only-trophy-that-makes-a-man-worth-his-own-salt/) [J. Matthew Nespoli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-matthew-nespoli/) > [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/) > [Any actor worth his salt has a responsibility to reinvent himself from part to part.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-smith/any-actor-worth-his-salt-has-a-responsibility-to-reinvent-himself/) [Matt Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-smith/) > [Any man worth his salt will stick up for what he believes right, but it takes a slightly better man to acknowledge instantly and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-jackson/any-man-worth-his-salt-will-stick-up-for-what-he-believes-right-but/) [Andrew Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-jackson/) ## More by Wyndham Lewis > [Surely to root politics out of art is a highly necessary undertaking: for the freedom of art, like that of science, depends entirely upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/surely-to-root-politics-out-of-art-is-a-highly-necessary-undertaking/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) > [Prostration is our natural position. A worm-like movement from a spot of sunlight to a spot of shade, and back, is the type of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/prostration-is-our-natural-position-a-worm-like-movement-from-a-spot/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) > [Prostration is our natural position. A wormlike movement from a spot of sunlight to a spot of shade, and back, is the type of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/prostration-is-our-natural-position-a-wormlike-movement-from-a-spot/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) > [Life is art's rival and vice versa.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/life-is-art-s-rival-and-vice-versa/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) > [No American worth his salt should go around looking for a root. I advance this in all modesty, as a not unreasonable opinion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/no-american-worth-his-salt-should-go-around-looking-for-a-root-i/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) > [Elephants are VERY BIG. Motor cars go quickly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/elephants-are-very-big-motor-cars-go-quickly/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) > [All orthodox opinion - that is, today, "revolutionary" opinion either of the pure or the impure variety - is anti-man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/all-orthodox-opinion-that-is-today-revolutionary-opinion-either-of/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) > [The ideas of a time are like the clothes of a season: they are as arbitrary, as much imposed by some superior will which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/the-ideas-of-a-time-are-like-the-clothes-of-a-season-they-are-as/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) > [Laughter is the representative of Tragedy, when Tragedy is away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/laughter-is-the-representative-of-tragedy-when-tragedy-is-away/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) > [With most people, not describable as artists, all the finer part of their vitality goes into sex. They become third-rate poets during their courtship.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/with-most-people-not-describable-as-artists-all-the-finer-part-of/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) > [Spain is an overflow of sombreness . . . a strong and threatening tide of history meets you at the frontier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/spain-is-an-overflow-of-sombreness-a-strong-and-threatening-tide-of/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) > [For the first rate poet, nothing short of a Queen or a Chimera is adequate for the powers of his praise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/for-the-first-rate-poet-nothing-short-of-a-queen-or-a-chimera-is/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) > [Sex is of the same clay as Time! -- of the same clay Since both are in their essence but One-Way Time is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/sex-is-of-the-same-clay-as-time-of-the-same-clay-since-both-are-in/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) > [When we say 'science' we can either mean any manipulation of the inventive and organizing power of the human intellect: or we can mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/when-we-say-science-we-can-either-mean-any-manipulation-of-the/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) > [If you do not regard feminism with an uplifting sense of the gloriousness of woman's industrial destiny, or in the way, in short, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/if-you-do-not-regard-feminism-with-an-uplifting-sense-of-the/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) [Explore all 87 Wyndham Lewis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/) [Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. It's AIDS, it's herpes, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/freedom-in-every-sense-but-primarily-political-sense-a-rise-in/) [Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/) > [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/) [Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/) [Browse all 20,382 America quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "No American worth his salt should go looking around for a root. 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