Oscar Wilde Poverty Quotations

Poor? What does that matter? When poverty creeps in at the door, love flies in through the window.

Like dear St. Francis of Assisi I am wedded to Poverty: but in my case the marriage is not a success.

Who, being loved, is poor?

As for the virtuous poor, one can pity them, of course, but one cannot possibly admire them. They have made private terms with the enemy, and sold their birthright for very bad pottage. They must also be extraordinarily stupid.

In going to America one learns that poverty is not a necessary accompaniment to civilization.

As for begging, it is safer to beg than to take, but it is finer to take than to beg

As for the virtuous poor, one can pity them of course, but one cannot possibly admire them.

If the poor only had profiles there would be no difficulty in solving the problem of poverty

The proper aim is to try and reconstruct society on such a basis that poverty will be impossible.