“He who is born of poor family should not be ashamed of his condition, but of the way of remaining in it.”Miguel de Cervantes · Don Quijote · 1615 · Partea II, capitolul 6
Cervantes separates two things people often confuse: the condition received at birth and the answer given to it. The first does not depend on us, so it cannot be held against us; the second rests entirely on the will. The mechanism is moral responsibility, which begins where circumstance ends. A young man from a poor village who learns a trade turns his origin from a label into a starting point.
Why it matters It speaks directly to those ashamed of their background: the only thing that defines you is what you do with it.