Some men think the Earth is round, others think it flat; it is a matter capable of question. But, if it is flat, will the King's command make it round? And, if it is round, will the King's command flatten it?
Robert BoltRead
Thomas More: ...And when the last law was down, and the Devil turned around on you--where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat? This country's planted thick with laws from coast to coast--man's laws, not God's--and if you cut them down...d'you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I'd give the Devil benefit of law, for my own safety's sake.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the importance of laws in society and the dangers of allowing them to be disregarded.
In this quote, Thomas More reflects on the essential role that man-made laws play in maintaining order and protecting individuals from chaos. He argues that without laws, society would descend into anarchy, presenting a bleak vision of a world where moral and legal frameworks are absent. More's assertion about giving 'the Devil' the benefit of law highlights his belief that even those with the worst intentions deserve a legal framework to ensure justice and safety for all.
Themes
LawsJusticeSocietySafetyOrderAnarchy
In practice
Example use cases
During a debate on legal reforms, one might quote this to emphasize the importance of maintaining laws.
More from Robert Bolt
All quotes →When a man takes an oath... he's holding his own self in his own hands. Like water.
Robert BoltRead
If we lived in a State where virtue was profitable, common sense would make us good, and greed would make us saintly. And we'd live like animals or angels in the happy land that /needs/ no heroes. But since in fact we see that avarice, anger, envy, pride, sloth, lust and stupidity commonly profit far beyond humility, chastity, fortitude, justice and thought, and have to choose, to be human at all... why then perhaps we /must/ stand fast a little --even at the risk of being heroes.
Robert BoltRead
Death comes for us all. Even for kings he comes.
Robert BoltRead
Similar quotes
When all the arguments have been forgotten, this central fact will remain. The two nations fought a single war, and their quarrels were the quarrels of brothers.
Henry L. StimsonRead
But all fairytales have rules, and perhaps it’s their rules that actually distinguish one fairytale from the other. These rules never need to be understood. They only need to be followed. If not, what they promise won’t come true.
Jostein GaarderRead
After the war people said, 'If you can plan for war, why can't you plan for peace?' When I was 17, I had a letter from the government saying, 'Dear Mr. Benn, will you turn up when you're 17 1/2? We'll give you free food, free clothes, free training, free accommodation, and two shillings, ten pence a day to just kill Germans.' People said, well, if you can have full employment to kill people, why in God's name couldn't you have full employment and good schools, good hospitals, good houses?
Tony BennRead
I have seen miracles in my time, my brothers and sisters. The greatest miracle of all, I believe, is the transformation that comes into the life of a man or a woman who accepts the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and tries to live it in his or her life.
Gordon B. HinckleyRead
The middle class is doing fine in fiction. But it's not what gets me going. I love the working class, and everyone from it I've met, and think they're incredibly witty, inventive - there's a lot of poetry there.
Martin AmisRead
Things we do not expect, happen more frequently than we wish.
PlautusRead