How we cite our quotes: All quotations are from Kramer vs. Kramer.
Quote #1
TED: Well, I'm sorry that I was late, but I was busy making a living, all right?
Ted thinks his duty to his job trumps his duty to everything else, including his wife, kid, and home life. (Yup; Ted's wrong.)
Quote #2
TED: Well, obviously my wife and you have had numerous conversations about my shortcomings which I have not been privy to, and I would love to sit here and talk to you, but somebody has to bring home the bacon, and I have a major presentation in the morning, and I just gotta get my work done, so please, allow me to—
MARGARET: Ted, you don't seem to realize we have a serious problem.
TED: Wrong, Margaret. Me! I've got the problem.
Even when his wife has walked out—and left their kid behind—Ted's still focused on his job and Ted, probably in that order.
Quote #3
JIM: I gotta count on you for 110%, seven days a week, 24 hours a day. I gotta have that, Ted. I mean, I can't be concerned about you worrying about a kid with a runny nose.
TED: First of all, you can count on me 25 hours a day, and you can count on me eight days a week. Because I'm not a loser, Jim. You know that. And I've never let anything at home, you know, come into the office.
There's a lot of juicy stuff in this exchange. First, Jim makes it clear that there's a lot expected from Ted at work. He's under a lot of pressure, and Jim expects everything else to take a backseat to the ad agency.
Second, Ted admits that he never lets his home life intrude on his work life—although h
Finally, the fact that Ted thinks someone who doesn't live at the office is a "loser" speaks volumes about Ted's attitude toward work, duty, and success. If you're not eating lunch at your desk and working past dinner, you're not trying.