"A man with a surplus can control circumstances, but a man without a surplus is controlled by them, and often has no opportunity to exercise judgment"
About this Quote
The phrasing does quiet ideological work. “Control circumstances” suggests an almost natural hierarchy: those with reserves don’t merely endure the world, they shape it. The opposite condition isn’t framed as injustice or exploitation; it’s framed as a kind of tragic physics. Circumstances “control” you. The system fades into the background, replaced by a personal deficit. That’s a classic late-19th-century business worldview: risk is manageable if you have capital, and morality is often retrofitted to the winners’ balance sheets.
Context matters: Field built a retail empire in Chicago during the Gilded Age, when industrial growth sat alongside precarious wages, weak labor protections, and frequent panics. In that economy, a “surplus” wasn’t simply responsible saving; it was a moat. The quote doubles as advice to the aspiring striver and as a subtle absolution for the unequal conditions that make surplus easier for some to accumulate than others.
It works because it names a social truth people recognize - scarcity shrinks cognition and bargaining power - while nudging the listener to see that truth as fate, not design.
Quote Details
| Topic | Wealth |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Field, Marshall. (2026, January 16). A man with a surplus can control circumstances, but a man without a surplus is controlled by them, and often has no opportunity to exercise judgment. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/a-man-with-a-surplus-can-control-circumstances-127173/
Chicago Style
Field, Marshall. "A man with a surplus can control circumstances, but a man without a surplus is controlled by them, and often has no opportunity to exercise judgment." FixQuotes. January 16, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/a-man-with-a-surplus-can-control-circumstances-127173/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"A man with a surplus can control circumstances, but a man without a surplus is controlled by them, and often has no opportunity to exercise judgment." FixQuotes, 16 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/a-man-with-a-surplus-can-control-circumstances-127173/. Accessed 12 Feb. 2026.
