Men are but children of a larger growth, Our appetites as apt to change as theirs, And full as craving too, and full as vain.
John DrydenRead
Learn to write well, or not to write at all.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Writing should be done with skill; mediocre writing is not worth pursuing.
This quote emphasizes the importance of quality in writing. John Dryden suggests that one should either strive to master the craft of writing or refrain from writing altogether, implying that poorly executed writing does not serve a meaningful purpose and can lead to miscommunication or misunderstanding.
Themes
WritingSkillQualityCommunicationEducation
In practice
Example use cases
In a classroom discussion about writing techniques.
More from John Dryden
All quotes βOf no distemper, of no blast he died, _x000D_ But fell like autumn fruit that mellow'd long: _x000D_ Even wonder'd at, because he dropp'd no sooner. _x000D_ Fate seem'd to wind him up for fourscore years; _x000D_ Yet freshly ran he on ten winters more; _x000D_ Till like a clock worn out with eating time, _x000D_ The wheels of weary life at last stood still.
John DrydenRead
Or hast thou known the world so long in vain?
John DrydenRead
Shame on the body for breaking down while the spirit perseveres.
John DrydenRead
Love reckons hours for months, and days for years; and every little absence is an age.
John DrydenRead
And write whatever Time shall bring to pass_x000D_ _x000D_ With pens of adamant on plates of brass.
John DrydenRead
Similar quotes
Practice is absolutely necessary. You may sit down and listen to me by the hour every day, but if you do not practice, you will not get one step further. It all depends on practice.
Swami VivekanandaRead
A teacher who is not dogmatic is simply a teacher who is not teaching.
Gilbert K. ChestertonRead
Money buys the most experienced teachers, less-crowded classrooms, high-quality teaching materials, and after-school programs.
Robert ReichRead
We need to get to kids who have no idea what we do. We need to open the doors wide and let them in. There are many undiscovered voices out there - voices that, against all odds, can rise up and enrich this culture and perhaps change the very nature of the marketplace for the better.
Dan WiedenRead
Generally students are the best vehicles for passing on ideas, for their thoughts are plastic and can be molded and they can adjust the ideas of old men to the shape of reality as they find it in villages and hills of China or in ghettos and suburbs of America.
Theodore WhiteRead
The students that, like the wild animal being prepared for its tricks in the circus called 'life', expects only training as sketched above, will be severely disappointed: by his standards he will learn next to nothing.
Edsger DijkstraRead