“A ploughman on his legs is higher than a gentleman on his knees.”
- Source
- The Way to Wealth
- Date
- 1758
- Attribution
- Source identified
- Voice / speaker
- Authorial persona / framed maxim · Poor Richard maxim, repeated through Father Abraham
What does this quote mean?
Financial independence earned through ordinary work is valued above status maintained through borrowing, dependence, or costly appearance.
Where does it come from?
The Way to Wealth, frugality section; Project Gutenberg #43855. Father Abraham contrasts industrious people with those reduced to borrowing by extravagance.
Who voices the line?
Authorial persona / framed maxim · Poor Richard maxim, repeated through Father Abraham. The Way to Wealth is framed as Father Abraham’s address compiling maxims Franklin had published through the Poor Richard / Richard Saunders persona. This record therefore preserves the framed authorial-persona layer instead of treating the maxim as unmediated Franklin narration.
The source author and the local speaker can be different, especially in fiction, drama, dialogue and poetry.
How should this attribution be read?
This wording is connected with the named source shown above. Translations and editions can vary, so consult the source note when exact wording matters.