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
But, indeed, words are very rascals, since bonds [vows] disgraced them." Viola: "Thy reason, man?" Feste: "Troth [Truthfully], sir, I can yield you none without words, and words are grown so false, I am loathe to prove reason with them.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Words can be misleading and unreliable, making it difficult to convey truth.
In this quote, Feste reflects on the idea that words have lost their integrity and authenticity, suggesting that they can be deceptive and fail to represent reality. Shakespeare explores the theme of communication and the challenges of finding genuine expression in a world where meanings can be obscured by falsehoods, highlighting the fragility of human expression and understanding.
Themes
WordsTruthDeceptionCommunicationMeaning
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about the reliability of testimonials, this quote can be used to emphasize the potential for miscommunication.
More from William Shakespeare
All quotes →Love 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
If my devils are to leave me, I'm afraid my angels will take flight as well.
Rainer Maria RilkeRead
Every video I'm in, every magazine cover, they stretch you; they make you perfect. It's not real life.
Lady GagaRead
The starting-point of critical elaboration is the consciousness of what one really is, and is 'knowing thyself'as a product of the historical processes to date, which has deposited in you an infinity of traces, without leaving an inventory.
Antonio GramsciRead
When the gods wish to punish us they answer our prayers.
Oscar WildeRead
The whole world might know you and acclaim you, but someone in the past, forever unreachable, forever unknowing, spoils it all.
Isaac AsimovRead
The control of the production of wealth is the control of human life itself.
Hilaire BellocRead