I turned on the pillow with a little moan, and at this juncture Jeeves entered with the vital oolong. I clutched at it like a drowning man at a straw hat.
P. G. WodehouseRead
Golf acts as a corrective against sinful pride. I attribute the insane arrogance of the later Roman Emperors almost entirely to the fact that, never having played golf, they never knew that strange chastening humility which is engendered by a topped chip shot. If Cleopatra had been ousted in the first round of the Ladies' Singles, we should have heard a lot less of her proud imperiousness.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Golf can teach humility and temper arrogance.
In this quote, P. G. Wodehouse suggests that the game of golf has a unique ability to instill humility in players, contrasting it with the pride seen in historical figures like the Roman Emperors. He humorously credits golf as a corrective to arrogance, positing that even Cleopatra would have shown less pride if she had experienced the humbling moments that the sport can provide, such as failing at an easy shot.
Themes
GolfHumilityPrideArroganceSports
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about teamwork, this quote could illustrate the importance of humility.
More from P. G. Wodehouse
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She fitted into my biggest arm-chair as if it had been built round her by someone who knew they were wearing arm-chairs tight about the hips that season
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It was a nasty look. It made me feel as if I were something the dog had brought in and intended to bury later on, when he had time.
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Memories are like mulligatawny soup in a cheap restaurant. It is wiser not to stir them.
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It was a confusion of ideas between him and one of the lions he was hunting in Kenya that had caused A. B. Spottsworth to make the obituary column. He thought the lion was dead, and the lion thought it wasn't.
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