proverb · Words worth keeping
Hunger is felt by a slave and king alike.
Hunger is felt by a slave and king alike.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
Hunger shared by slave and king places a bodily need across a vast difference in status. The saying values a common human vulnerability.
What the words are saying
A responsible interpretation does not equate the conditions, resources or rights of the two people. A useful reading can recognise shared needs while keeping unequal access and the harms of enslavement visible. Common humanity is not proof that circumstances are fair or interchangeable.
Everyday example
A reader recognises a shared need and also asks why some people cannot reliably meet it.
When to use it
Use it to connect common needs with attention to unequal conditions.
What it does not mean
No equality of resources or equivalence of slavery and kingship is established.
Agent-assisted editorial interpretation. This explains the words; it does not by itself verify their author or earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
Ghana
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin.- Historical period
- Historical period not yet established
No sufficiently supported historical placement has been established. Import and download dates are not treated as composition dates. - Recorded source
- Contributor-provided wisdom reference (2014 AD)
Supplied reference B; unit 640; PDF page 58; collection label: Ghana
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- Ghana