I am Envy...I cannot read and therefore wish all books burned.
Christopher MarloweRead
What are kings, when regiment is gone, but perfect shadows in a sunshine day?
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote suggests that without authority and structure, leaders are merely empty figures lacking real substance.
In this quote, Christopher Marlowe reflects on the idea that kings and rulers possess significance and power only when there is a structure or system (regiment) backing them. When that system is absent, these leaders become insubstantial, like shadows without the solidity of governance, emphasizing the fleeting nature of power and the importance of the structures that uphold it.
Themes
KingsRegimentShadowsPowerAuthority
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a discussion about the nature of leadership in a history class.
More from Christopher Marlowe
All quotes βTill swollen with cunning, of a self-conceit, His waxen wings did mount above his reach, And, melting, Heavens conspir'd his overthrow.
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Our swords shall play the orators for us.
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I'm armed with more than complete steel, - The justice of my quarrel.
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Ah fair Zenocrate, divine Zenocrate, Fair is too foul an epithet for thee.
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Jigging veins of rhyming mother wits.
Christopher MarloweRead
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