Graham Greene: Bribe Accepted

Graham Greene Money Quote saying that once someone has paid a bribe is now at the mercy of their opposite, making them subservient. Graham Greene said:
 

 

“The man who offers a bribe gives away a little of his own importance; the bribe once accepted, he becomes the inferior, like a man who has paid for a woman” — Graham Greene

Graham Greene is saying that when someone accepts a bribe, they become subordinate or inferior to the person who offered it. By taking the money, they have essentially been “bought” and are now under obligation to the briber. They lose some of their own independence and power in the situation.

Greene suggests that accepting a bribe is like selling yourself, similar to how a person who accepts money for sex becomes obligated to the client in some way. His point is that one should not compromise one’s integrity or principles for money, as it diminishes your own standing.

Graham Greene: Corrupt Sentiment

Graham Greene Money Quote saying those willing to sell themselves for money are more predictable than those that may be swayed by emotions. Graham Greene said:
 

 

“They had been corrupted by money, and he had been corrupted by sentiment. Sentiment was the more dangerous, because you couldn’t name its price. A man open to bribes was to be relied upon below a certain figure, but sentiment might uncoil in the heart at a name, a photograph, even a smell remembered” — Graham Greene

Graham Greene is contrasting being corrupted by money versus being corrupted by sentiment or emotions. He says that while a person corrupted by money can be relied upon or influenced up to a certain price point when receiving a bribe, someone corrupted by sentiment is harder to predict. Sentiment does not have a fixed price, so you cannot know for sure what might trigger an emotional response in someone or cause their sentiments to “uncoil in the heart.”

Greene suggests that sentiment is a more dangerous form of corruption because emotions can be swayed in unexpected ways by small reminders or triggers like a name, photograph, or smell from the past in a way that is not straightforward like a monetary exchange. The quote implies sentiment makes a person’s actions and loyalty less reliable.

Graham Greene: It’s All Related to Money

Graham Greene Money Quote saying there is not one thing in our life experience that isn’t somehow related to money – Politics & war, to love and happiness. Graham Greene said:
 

 

“Politics, war, marriage, crime, adultery. Everything that exists in the world has something to do with money” — Graham Greene

Graham Greene believed that “everything that exists in the world has something to do with money.” It quotes Greene as saying “Politics, war, marriage, crime, adultery. Everything that exists in the world has something to do with money.”

So Greene viewed money as being closely related to and influencing many aspects of life, including politics, war, marriage, and criminal activities. He seemed to think that financial factors underlie or are connected to these different spheres of human experience.

Graham Greene on Trading Treasures

Graham Greene Money Quotation saying enjoyment of valuable things and experience are to be cherished above what they would sell for. Graham Greene said:
 
“A treasure is to be valued for its own sake and not for what it will buy” — Graham Greene

Graham Greene is about valuing things for their intrinsic worth rather than just their monetary value. Greene is saying that a “treasure” should be appreciated for what it is, rather than seeing it only as a means to obtain or buy other things.

He’s encouraging us to find value and enjoyment in valuable possessions and experiences for their own merits, rather than just thinking about how much money they could be exchanged for. The quote suggests we should cherish treasures because of their own qualities, not just what they might be used to purchase.