John C. Calhoun, as quoted in speech in the U.S. Senate (12 August 1849).
“
With us the two great divisions of society are not the rich and the poor, but white and black, and all the former, the poor as well as the rich, belong to the upper class, and are respected.
— John C. Calhoun on South Carolina
What It Means
This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "With us the two great divisions of society are not the rich and the poor, but white and black, and all the former, the poor as well as the rich, belong to the upper class, and are respected." in the context of "John C. Calhoun, as quoted in speech in the U.S. Senate (12 August 1849)." to mean that wisdom is timeless.
Source: Wikiquote: "South Carolina" (Quotes: Sorted alphabetically by author or source, C)
The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
About John C. Calhoun
John Caldwell Calhoun (18 March 1782 – 31 March 1850) was an American politician from South Carolina during the first half of the 19th century. A Democrat who supported slavery, he served as the seventh vice president of the United States, first under John Quincy Adams (1825–1829) and then under Andrew Jackson (1829–1832), but resigned the vice presidency to enter the United States Senate, where he had more power. He also served in the United States House of Representatives (1810–1817) and was both Secretary of War (1817–1824) and Secretary of State (1844–1845).
About John C. Calhoun
John Caldwell Calhoun (18 March 1782 – 31 March 1850) was an American politician from South Carolina during the first half of the 19th century. A Democrat who supported slavery, he served as the seventh vice president of the United States, first under John Quincy Adams (1825–1829) and then under Andrew Jackson (1829–1832), but resigned the vice presidency to enter the United States Senate, where he had more power. He also served in the United States House of Representatives (1810–1817) and was both Secretary of War (1817–1824) and Secretary of State (1844–1845).
View all quotes →