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
Good friend for Jesus sake forbeare, To digg the dust encloased heare! Blest be the man that spares thes stones, And curst be he that moves my bones.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote expresses a plea for respect towards the resting place of a beloved friend.
In this poignant couplet, Shakespeare implores that those who visit his grave show reverence and respect, urging them to leave his resting place undisturbed. It encapsulates the deep bond of friendship, as he emphasizes the dignity of the deceased while also cursing anyone who might disrespect their final resting place.
Themes
FriendshipRespectGraveMourningReverence
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in a eulogy to honor a friend's memory.
More from William Shakespeare
All quotes βLove bears it out even to the edge of doom.
William ShakespeareRead
Good company, good wine, good welcome, can make good people.
William ShakespeareRead
Absence doth sharpen love, presence strengthens it; the one brings fuel, the other blows it till it burns clear.
William ShakespeareRead
Lord, Lord, how this world is given to lying!
William ShakespeareRead
Give it an understanding, but no tongue.
William ShakespeareRead
Similar quotes
Never contract friendship with a man that is not better than thyself.
ConfuciusRead
Here's a toast to the roast that good fellowship lends, with the sparkle of beer and wine; May its sentiment always be deeper, my friends, than the foam at the top of the stein. Then here's to the heartening wassail, wherever good fellows are found; Be its master instead of its vassal, and order the glasses around.
Ogden NashRead
The correction of silence is what kills; when you know you have transgressed, and your friend says nothing, and avoids your eye.
Robert Louis StevensonRead
The only way of really finding out a man's true character is to play golf with him. In no other walk of life does the cloven hoof so quickly display itself.
P. G. WodehouseRead
The Making of Friends Life is sweet because of the friends we have made And the things which in common we share; We want to live on, not because of ourselves, But because of the ones who would care. It's living and doing for somebody else On that all of life's splendor depends, And the joy of it all, when we count it all up, Is found in the making of friends.
Edgar GuestRead
There's something about losing friends, particularly young people, where it's not something that you get over. I don't believe there's a healing process.
Chris CornellRead