A good many causes tend to make good masters and mistresses quite as rare as good servants.... The large and rapid fortunes by which vulgar and ignorant people become possessed of splendid houses, splendidly furnished, do not, of course, give them the feelings and manners of gentle folks, or in any way really raise them above the servants they employ, who are quite aware of this fact, and that the possession of wealth is literally the only superiority their employers have over them.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Newly rich people often lack the manners of true gentlefolk, and their servants recognize this gap.
- In plain terms
- Money doesn't give you class, and workers see when your manners don't match your wealth.
- What can you take from it?
- Wealth alone does not create true refinement.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Does money change how people act?
- How do workers judge their employers?
Another view
It generalizes that all wealthy people lack manners.
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