If a poet interprets a poem of his own he limits its suggestibility.
William Butler YeatsRead
Once you attempt legislation upon religious grounds, you open the way for every kind of intolerance and religious persecution.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Legislating based on religion can lead to intolerance and persecution.
William Butler Yeats warns that when laws are created with a religious basis, it can lead to a slippery slope where intolerance and persecution against those with differing beliefs can flourish. This highlights the danger of intertwining religion with civil governance, as it may create an environment hostile to diversity and dissent.
Themes
ReligionLegislationIntolerancePersecutionFreedom
In practice
Example use cases
In a debate on freedom of religion, discussing Yeats' quote can highlight the risks of intertwining religion with law.
More from William Butler Yeats
All quotes βIt was my first meeting with a philosophy that confirmed my vague speculations and seemed at once logical and boundless.
William Butler YeatsRead
But I, being poor, have only my dreams; I have spread my dreams under your feet; Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.
William Butler YeatsRead
How far away the stars seem, and how far is our first kiss, and ah, how old my heart.
William Butler YeatsRead
For he would be thinking of love Till the stars had run away And the shadows eaten the moon.
William Butler YeatsRead
Love is created and preserved by intellectual analysis, for we love only that which is unique, and it belongs to contemplation, not to action, for we would not change that which we love.
William Butler YeatsRead
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