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What a man is, and so what he has in his own person, is always the chief thing to consider.
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“What a man is, and so what he has in his own person, is always the chief thing to consider.”

Arthur Schopenhauer

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Source
The Wisdom of Life
Date
1851
English wording
T. Bailey Saunders — Translator · from German
Meaning

Meaning of “What a man is, and so what he…”

The line directs attention toward qualities carried within the person rather than status or possessions, grounding a durable sense of value in character, capacity, and inner life.

Source context

Where does it come from?

The Wisdom of Life; Schopenhauer develops a three-part distinction between what a person is, what a person has, and what a person represents in the eyes of others.

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What a man is contributes much more to his happiness than what he has, or how he is regarded by others.
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“What a man is contributes much more to his happiness than what he has, or how he is regarded by others.”

Arthur Schopenhauer · The Wisdom of Life · 1851
Meaning & context

Schopenhauer places personal character and inner constitution above possessions and reputation, making well-being depend more on what a person is than on external valuation.

Source details

The Wisdom of Life; T. Bailey Saunders’s public-domain translation distinguishes what a person is from possessions and from the opinions of other people.

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Remember that thou art a man and do not degrade thyself: this is self-respect.
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“Remember that thou art a man and do not degrade thyself: this is self-respect.”

Paul Janet · Elements of Morals · 1884 English translation
Meaning & context

Janet treats human dignity as a floor below which humility should not push a person: recognizing weakness does not require degrading oneself or surrendering self-respect.

Source details

Elements of Morals, Chapter XIV, section 165, printed page 296, Caroline Rollin Corson’s 1884 English translation, Project Gutenberg #37016. “Remember that thou art a man and do not degrade thyself: this is self-respect” appears in the same paragraph as Janet’s paired reminder against vain pride, making self-respect and humility complementary parts of his moral argument rather than generic affirmation copy.

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Humility should not be an abasement; for it is never a virtue in man to lower himself.
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“Humility should not be an abasement; for it is never a virtue in man to lower himself.”

Paul Janet · Elements of Morals · 1884 English translation
Meaning & context

Janet sharply separates humility from self-degradation: accurate awareness of human weakness should coexist with dignity, so humility does not require pretending that one has no worth or abilities.

Source details

Elements of Morals, Chapter XIV, section 165, printed page 296, Caroline Rollin Corson’s 1884 English translation, Project Gutenberg #37016. Janet distinguishes humility from abasement: humility arises from recognition of human weakness, but lowering oneself is not itself a virtue. The passage belongs to nineteenth-century systematic moral philosophy rather than modern clinical self-esteem guidance.

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What a man is and has in himself,—in a word personality, with all it entails, is the only immediate and direct factor in his happiness and welfare.
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“What a man is and has in himself,—in a word personality, with all it entails, is the only immediate and direct factor in his happiness and welfare.”

Arthur Schopenhauer · The Wisdom of Life · 1851
Meaning & context

Personality is presented as the nearest and most continuous condition of well-being, because possessions and reputation affect life only through the person who experiences them.

Source details

The Wisdom of Life; Schopenhauer argues that personality has a more direct relation to happiness than property, rank, or external opinion.

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Therefore the sufficiency of contentment is an enduring and unchanging sufficiency.
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“Therefore the sufficiency of contentment is an enduring and unchanging sufficiency.”

Lao Tzu · Tao Teh King · ancient
Meaning & context

Contentment supplies a form of enoughness that does not depend on continually acquiring more, making inward sufficiency less vulnerable to comparison and appetite.

Source details

Tao Teh King, chapter 46, James Legge translation; the statement follows warnings about ambition, discontent, and the wish to keep getting.

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Our inner being, which we call ourself, no eye nor touch of man or angel has ever pierced.
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“Our inner being, which we call ourself, no eye nor touch of man or angel has ever pierced.”

Elizabeth Cady Stanton · Solitude of Self · 1892
Meaning & context

The private interior of a person cannot be fully occupied by anyone else; Stanton uses that irreducible inwardness to ground responsibility, dignity, and the need for independent development.

Source details

Solitude of Self; Stanton’s concluding meditation on the “solitude of self” describes an inward domain inaccessible even to the people who love or protect us.

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