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
My thoughts are whirled like a potter's wheel; I know not where I am nor what I do.
Interpretation
This quote reflects the confusion and chaos of the speaker's thoughts and existence.
In this quote, Shakespeare conveys a sense of disorientation and uncertainty, likening the unpredictability of his mind to the spinning of a potter's wheel. The powerful imagery suggests that the speaker feels lost and lacks control over their own thoughts and actions, mirroring the complexities of the human condition and the struggle to find clarity in moments of turmoil.
In practice
In a speech about the creative process, one could use this quote to illustrate the chaotic nature of inspiration.
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).
Love bears it out even to the edge of doom.
Good company, good wine, good welcome, can make good people.
Absence doth sharpen love, presence strengthens it; the one brings fuel, the other blows it till it burns clear.
Lord, Lord, how this world is given to lying!
Give it an understanding, but no tongue.
A single sentence will suffice for modern man. He fornicated and read the papers. After that vigorous definition, the subject will be, if I may say so, exhausted.
What is government itself but the greatest of all reflections on human nature? If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary.
People talk of “social outcasts.” The words apparently denote the miserable losers of the world, the vicious ones, but I feel as though I have been a “social outcast” from the moment I was born. If ever I meet someone society has designated as an outcast, I invariably feel affection for him, an emotion which carries me away in melting tenderness.
The fear of punishment, the desire of reward, the sense of duty, are all useful arguments, in their way, to persuade people to holiness. But they are all weak and powerless, until a person loves Christ.
The willing, destiny guides them; the unwilling, destiny drags them.
I have the feeling of this completely alternative person I should have become. There was another life that I might have had, but I’m having this one.
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