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
So may the outward shows be least themselves: The world is still deceived with ornament. In law, what plea so tainted and corrupt, But, being seasoned with a gracious voice, Obscures the show of evil? In religion, What damned error, but some sober brow Will bless it and approve it with a text, Hiding the grossness with fair ornament? There is no vice so simple but assumes Some mark of virtue on his outward parts.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Outward appearances can be deceiving, masking true intentions or flaws.
This quote highlights the theme that superficial appearances often misrepresent the true nature of individuals or ideas. Shakespeare warns that whether in law or religion, people may use eloquence and decorum to disguise corruption or vice, thus urging a deeper examination beyond mere appearances.
Themes
DeceptionAppearanceVirtueCorruptionTruth
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about social justice, one might quote this to emphasize the importance of seeing beyond appearances.
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
What you donβt know, you canβt tell. Or made to tell.
Stephen KingRead
When 'I' replaced with 'We', even the illness becomes wellness.
Malcolm XRead
By honestly acknowledging your past errors, but never damning yourself for them, you can learn to use your past for your own future benefit.
Albert EllisRead
When we are young... we often experience things in the present with a nostalgia-in-advance, but we seldom guess what we will truly prize years from now.
Edmund WhiteRead
There is a courageous wisdom; there is also a false, reptile prudence, the result not of caution but of fear.
Edmund BurkeRead
Let no one trust so entirely to natural prudence as to persuade himself that it will suffice to guide him without help from experience.
Francesco GuicciardiniRead