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
O for a Muse of fire, that would ascend The brightest heaven of invention, A kingdom for a stage, princes to act And monarchs to behold the swelling scene!
Interpretation
What this quote means
Shakespeare expresses a desire for divine inspiration to create a grand theatrical experience that captivates audiences.
In this quote, Shakespeare yearns for a muse that embodies creativity and brilliance, one that would elevate his storytelling to celestial heights. He envisions a grand stage filled with nobility, where the audience is captivated by the dramatic performances, thus emphasizing the transformative power of theater and the importance of inspiration in the art of storytelling.
Themes
MuseFireInventionTheaterCreativity
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about the importance of artistic expression, one might use this quote to illustrate the necessity of inspiration.
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
The great tragedy is that they're removing art completely, not because they're putting more science in, but because they can't afford the art teachers or because somebody thinks it's not useful. An enlightened society has all of this going on within it. It's part of what distinguishes what it is to be human from other life forms on Earth - that we have culture.
Neil Degrasse TysonRead
The truer the facts the better the fiction.
Virginia WoolfRead
Every authentic work of art is a gift offered to the future.
Albert CamusRead
I sense a Threshold: Light to Silence, Silence to Light - an ambiance of inspiration, in which the desire to be, to express, crosses with the possible Light to Silence, Silence to Light crosses in the sanctuary of art.
Louis KahnRead
My position is that serious and good art has always existed to help, to serve, humanity. Not to indict. I don't see how art can be called art if its purpose is to frustrate humanity.
Chinua AchebeRead
I've been writing my entire life, and I'll always write.
J. K. RowlingRead