As honour, love, obedience, troops of friends, / I must not look to have; but, in their stead, / Curses, not loud but deep, mouth-honour, breath, / Which the poor heart would fain deny, and dare not" (5.3.25-28).
William ShakespeareRead
Had it pleas'd heaven_x000D_ _x000D_ To try me with affliction * * *_x000D_ _x000D_ I should have found in some place of my soul_x000D_ _x000D_ A drop of patience.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects the idea that adversity can help individuals discover their inner strength and patience.
In this quote, Shakespeare contemplates the notion of suffering and the human capacity for resilience. He suggests that if faced with affliction, he would find within himself a measure of patience, indicating that hardships can reveal hidden strengths and virtues in oneβs soul.
Themes
AfflictionPatienceResilienceStrengthAdversity
In practice
Example use cases
During a motivational speech about overcoming challenges, one might say, 'As Shakespeare reminds us, if affliction were to come our way, we would find patience within ourselves.'
More from William Shakespeare
All quotes βLove bears it out even to the edge of doom.
William ShakespeareRead
Good company, good wine, good welcome, can make good people.
William ShakespeareRead
Absence doth sharpen love, presence strengthens it; the one brings fuel, the other blows it till it burns clear.
William ShakespeareRead
Lord, Lord, how this world is given to lying!
William ShakespeareRead
Give it an understanding, but no tongue.
William ShakespeareRead
Similar quotes
Throughout all history, the great wise men and teachers, philosophers, and prophets have disagreed with one another on many different things. It is only on this one point that they are in complete and unanimous agreement. We become what we think about
Earl NightingaleRead
I find that discussing an idea out loud is often the way to kill it stone dead.
J. K. RowlingRead
One of the greatest lessons of my own life was learning to turn the inner rampage of hatred and anger toward my own father for his reprehensible behavior and abandonment of his family into an inner reaction more closely aligned with God and God-realized love.
Wayne DyerRead
If the stories come, you get them written, you're on the right track. Eventually everyone learns his or her own best way. The real mystery to crack is you.
Bernard MalamudRead
Fear cannot be without hope nor hope without fear. [They are the two sides of a coin, so learning how to manage fear through learning, understanding, rationality, controlled imagination, preparation, mental focus (including distraction) and a gratitude attitude is very helpful.]
Baruch SpinozaRead
I think the world would be a lot better off if more people were to define themselves in terms of their own standards and values and not what other people said or thought about them.
Hillary ClintonRead