One of the great things about books is you can afford to do anything.
George R. R. MartinRead
It's a fool boy who mocks a giant, and a mad world when a cripple has to defend him.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote highlights the folly and absurdity of mocking those who are powerful, and the injustice when the vulnerable have to protect the foolish.
This quote by George R. R. Martin suggests that it is unreasonable and foolish for someone lacking power or stature (the 'fool boy') to mock those who are much greater or more powerful ('a giant'). Furthermore, it points out the madness of a society where those who are vulnerable or disadvantaged ('a cripple') must step in to defend or advocate for someone who ought to be capable of protecting themselves. In essence, it critiques imbalances of power and the ironic situations that can arise in human relationships and societal hierarchies.
Themes
FoolGiantMockeryMadnessDefense
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a debate about social justice to highlight issues of power dynamics.
More from George R. R. Martin
All quotes βI hate outlines. I have a broad sense of where the story is going; I know the end, I know the end of the principal characters, and I know the major turning points and events from the books, the climaxes for each book, but I don't necessarily know each twist and turn along the way. That's something I discover in the course of writing and that's what makes writing enjoyable. I think if I outlined comprehensively and stuck to the outline the actual writing would be boring.
George R. R. MartinRead
There is only one god and his name is Death. And there is only one thing we say to Death: βNot today.
George R. R. MartinRead
I did not do it. Yet now I wish I had.β He turned to face the hall, that sea of pale faces. βI wish I had enough poison for you all. You make me sorry that I am not the monster you would have me be, yet there it is. I am innocent, but I will get no justice here.
George R. R. MartinRead
But a voice inside her whispered, There are no heroes, and she remembered what Lord Petyr had said to her, here in this very hall. 'Life is not a song, sweetling,' he'd told her, 'You may learn that one day to your sorrow.' In life, the monsters win, she told herself.
George R. R. MartinRead
I write from this tight third-person viewpoint, where each chapter is seen through the eyes of one individual character. When I'm writing that character, I become that character and identify with that character.
George R. R. MartinRead
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