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Quote by Margaret Halsey

“The business society is interested in training its citizens to make money, and, in this objective, it is often successful. Many of them do make money, and the ones who do not obligingly regard themselves as failures who have wasted the precious gift of life.”

Quote by Margaret Halsey

Author

Margaret Halsey

Margaret Halsey, a British writer, was born on February 13, 1910, and passed away on February 4, 1997. Her works spanned across various genres including children's literature, historical novels, and adult fiction, known for her unique literary style and profound insights into human nature. more

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“A business society, therefore, always has in its children a large group of individuals who cannot make money and who do not understand (or want to understand) the profit motive. In short, they are subversives.”

Want Children Individual Business Groups Profit Making Money Motive Large Groups Profit Motive

Author:Margaret Halsey

“children are an embarrassment to a business civilization. A business society needs children for the same reason that a nomadic or a pastoral society needs them - to perpetuate itself. Unfortunately, however, children are of no use to a business society until they have almost reached physical maturity.”

Needs Children Reason Use Business Civilization Maturity Embarrassment Nomadic

Book:The Folks at Home

Source: The Folks at Home

“The position of children as a group, in a commercial society, is not wholly advantageous. A commercial society urges its citizens to be responsible for things, but not for people. It is the unquestioned assumption of a mercantile culture that things need and deserve attention, but that people can take care of themselves.”

People Needs Children Care Culture Business Attention Groups Position Citizens Deserve Responsible Take Care Assumption Urges Being Responsible

Book:The Folks at Home

Source: The Folks at Home

“It is impossible to betray another man's child - for whatever reason - without also betraying one's own. To do less than justice to another man's child, no matter who that man is, is to impair by that much the chances one's own children have for a life of meaning and purpose.”

Men Children Matter Reason Purpose Justice Chance Impossible Betray Another Man

Author:Margaret Halsey

“the crucial disadvantage of aggression, competitiveness and skepticism as national characteristics is that these qualities cannot be turned off at five o'clock.”

Quality Five Competition Clock Characteristics Crucial Aggression Skepticism Disadvantages Competitiveness Turned Off

Book:The Folks at Home

Source: The Folks at Home

“in the comparatively short time between my childhood and my daughter's, the business society has ceased urging people to produce and is now exerting its very considerable influence to get them to consume.”

People Influence Childhood Produce Daughter My Daughter Consumerism Short Time

Book:The Folks at Home

Source: The Folks at Home

“the conversation whipped gaily around the table like rags in a high wind.”

Wind Conversation Tables Rags

Book:With Malice Toward Some

Source: With Malice Toward Some

“Democracy makes many taxing demands on its practitioners, but suspension of the intelligence is not one of them.”

Democracy Demand Suspension

Book:Color blind: a white woman looks at the Negro

Source: Color blind: a white woman looks at the Negro

“democracy produces both heroes and villains, but it differs from a fascist state in that it does not produce a hero who is a villain.”

Doe States Democracy Produce Hero Villain Fascists Heroes And Villains

Author:Margaret Halsey

“There are dozens of ways of failing to make money. It is one thing to fail to make money because your single talent happens to be a flair amounting to genius for translating the plays of Aristophanes. It is quite another thing to fail to make money because you are black, or a child, or a woman.”

Way Children Play Happens Black Failing One Thing Talent Genius Discrimination Making Money Dozen Translate Flair

Book:The Folks at Home

Source: The Folks at Home