Weather is a literary specialty, and no untrained hand can turn out a good article on it
Mark TwainRead
It is a mistake that there is no bath that will cure people's manners, but drowning would help.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Mark Twain humorously suggests that bad manners are deeply ingrained and cannot be easily changed, although drowning might be an extreme solution.
In this quote, Mark Twain uses humor to reflect on the notion that some people have such poor manners that there is no remedy for them. The hyperbolic suggestion of drowning illustrates the frustration many feel towards impolite behavior, emphasizing that bad manners are a significant social issue that goes beyond simple correction.
Themes
MannersHumorPolitenessSocial BehaviorFrustration
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in a humorous speech about social etiquette at a gathering.
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To be good is noble; but to show others how to be good is nobler and no trouble.
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In Paris they just simply opened their eyes and stared when we spoke to them in French! We never did succeed in making those idiots understand their own language.
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