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Who really said it

All we've got is cotton, and slaves and...arrogance

Written for the screen by Sidney Howard Screenwriting credit
Verified In copyright

Gone with the Wind (1939), Rhett Butler (Clark Gable). The film’s clipped sentence has a close antecedent in chapter 6 of Margaret Mitchell’s novel.

Last verified 9 Nov 2026 · how we verify · spot an error?

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Verified quote & credit

“All we've got is cotton, and slaves and...arrogance” — Sidney Howard

Can you use it?

Still under copyright (rights held by Rights holders in the 1939 motion picture and any underlying work). A short, credited quote is generally fine for talks, teaching, and internal decks; for commercial, published, or large-scale reuse, get permission.

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In context

Evoking the world of Sidney Howard — Screenwriting credit. Theme: "All we've got is cotton, and slaves and...arrogance". Atmospheric and restrained, cinematic directional light, a muted period-appropriate palette, fine grain and texture. Compose with generous empty space for the quote and a small credit line. No lettering in the image itself.

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Minimalist editorial slide for the quote "All we've got is cotton, and slaves and...arrogance". Clean background, a single muted accent color, generous negative space, subtle paper or linen texture, no literal illustration — let the words carry it. Reserve clear space for a serif quote and a small credit line. No lettering in the image itself.

Provenance

The source

Documented source
Gone with the Wind
Date
1939

All we've got is cotton

A short excerpt from the linked source, not a replacement for the full quotation above.

Read the documented evidence

How we verified this

  • The transcription supplies the speaker and words in the film. Read the source
  • The production account identifies the film and its credited writers. Read the source
  • The novel supplies a closely related sentence about cotton, slavery and arrogance; Howard’s screen credit is not a claim that he invented the idea. Read the source
In copyright

This screen dialogue is from a 1939 film and remains copyrighted in the United States; quotation for identification does not grant broader reuse rights.

Rights status is our research, not legal advice — and copyright varies by country and edition. For commercial or published use, confirm with the rightsholder. See terms.

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Filed under

More provenance-checked quotes on the same theme, each with its reuse status.

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Dig deeper

Trusted places to keep pulling the thread — primary archives, fact-checks, and scholarship. We show how we used each one before you leave.

Film transcriptionen.wikiquote.org

Read the evidence used here; the scope of the claim is stated in the provenance trail.
Publication and creditsen.wikipedia.org

Read the evidence used here; the scope of the claim is stated in the provenance trail.
Film transcriptionen.wikiquote.org

Read the evidence used here; the scope of the claim is stated in the provenance trail.

The author

About Sidney Howard

Sidney Howard

Screenwriting credit

Sidney Howard is credited with the screenplay of this film. The character’s speech is fictional dialogue, not a personal statement by the performer.

For writers & researchers

Cite this

The primary source (Chicago)

Gone with the Wind. 1939. Evidence and bibliographical details reproduced in the linked source; no independent access to an original edition is claimed unless stated.

This verification page

Quotle.info. “Who really said ‘All we've got is cotton, and slaves and...arrogance’?” Last verified 9 Nov 2026. https://quotle.info/who-said/all-weve-got-is-cotton-and-slaves-and-arrogance/

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