Everything is dangerous, my dear fellow. If it wasn't so, life wouldn't be worth living.
Oscar WildeRead
Words! Mere words! How terrible they were! How clear, and vivid, and cruel! One could not escape from them. And yet what a subtle magic there was in them! They seemed to be able to give a plastic form to formless things, and to have a music of their own as sweet as that of viol or of lute. Mere words! Was there anything so real as words?
Interpretation
What this quote means
Words have immense power, conveying deep emotions and ideas, yet they can also be cruel and binding.
In this quote, Oscar Wilde explores the dual nature of words, emphasizing their capacity to evoke strong feelings while also creating a sense of entrapment. He acknowledges the magic of language, suggesting that words can shape our understanding of formless concepts and express beauty, yet they remain capable of causing pain and confusion. The quote reflects on the complexity of communication and the fundamental role words play in human experience.
Themes
WordsPowerLanguageCommunicationEmotion
In practice
Example use cases
In a literary analysis paper discussing the impact of language.
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A truth ceases to be true when more than one person believes in it.
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