Silence is an ornament for women.
SophoclesRead
A fool cannot be an actor, though an actor may act a fool's part.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote highlights the distinction between true foolishness and the act of pretending to be foolish.
Sophocles suggests that true fools lack the understanding and insight required to be an effective actor, suggesting that genuine foolishness is a state of being that impedes one's ability to engage in the art of acting. Conversely, a skilled actor can play the role of a fool without being foolish themselves, emphasizing the difference between performance and reality, as well as the deeper intelligence that comes with understanding different roles in life.
Themes
FoolActorPerformanceWisdomPhilosophy
In practice
Example use cases
In a drama class, to illustrate the nuances of acting, one might quote this saying.
More from Sophocles
All quotes βNone love the messenger who brings bad news.
SophoclesRead
All men make mistakes, but a good man yields when he knows his course is wrong, and repairs the evil. The only crime is pride.
SophoclesRead
Not even Ares battles against necessity.
SophoclesRead
You clearly hate to yield, but you will regret it when your anger has passed. Such natures are justly the hardest for themselves to bear.
SophoclesRead
There is nothing more hateful than bad advice.
SophoclesRead
Similar quotes
The Second Amendment says we have the right to bear arms, not to bear artillery.
Robin WilliamsRead
All human desire is poised on an axis of paradox, absence and presence its poles, love and hate its motive energies.
Anne CarsonRead
And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor, Shall be lifted -- Nevermore!
Edgar Allan PoeRead
The most loathsome materialism is not the kind people usually think of, but the sort that attempts to let dead ideas pass for living realities, diverting into sterile myths the stubborn and lucid attention we give to what we have within us that must forever die.
Albert CamusRead
The challenge today is to convince people of the value of truth, honesty, compassion and a concern for others.
Dalai LamaRead
We're all complicit in the things we may be trying to oppose. I'm complicit in the things that I'm trying to oppose.
Wendell BerryRead