Source identified
Read & copy the quotation
“A bone to the dog is not charity. Charity is the bone shared with the dog when you are just as hungry as the dog.”
- Source
- The Road
- Date
- 1907
Meaning of “A bone to the dog is not charity.…”
London distinguishes giving from surplus from sharing that carries real personal cost, presenting sacrifice rather than disposal of excess as the stronger test of charity.
Where does it come from?
The Road, Project Gutenberg #14658. London contrasts prosperous households that refused him food with poor households that shared what they themselves needed; it is autobiographical social commentary from a historical tramping narrative.