This is a famous passages in the book because it succinctly asks a moral question that runs through the rest of the book: Would Becky still be manipulative if she didn’t need the money, or would she be able to be a good person if she simply had the right yearly allowance? The novel offers many reasons to be skeptical of Becky’s belief that she could be a better woman—thus far, she’s been consistently manipulative. In addition, many wealthy characters, like Lady Southdown, are just as manipulative as Becky despite their ready access to funds. Still, this passage gets at the idea that poverty and necessity can limit people’s choices, forcing them to act in morally ambiguous ways; meanwhile, wealthy people simply choose to act that way.