NECTAR, n. A drink served at banquets of the Olympian deities. The secret of its preparation is lost, but the modern Kentuckians believe that they come pretty near to a knowledge of its chief ingredient.
Interpretation
This quote humorously suggests that the secret of a divine drink is forgotten, yet people have their own amusing theories about it.
Ambrose Bierce uses the concept of 'nectar', a mythical drink of the gods, to illustrate the idea that human beings often create elaborate explanations for things they do not fully understand. The quote pokes fun at the confidence with which people propose their own answers, despite the inherent mystery of certain phenomena, implying that human curiosity and imagination fill in the gaps left by ignorance.
In practice
In a light-hearted debate about what makes a great cocktail, one might quote Bierce about nectar to highlight the humorous nature of drink preparation.
PALM, n. A species of tree . . . of which the familiar "itching palm" ("Palma hominis") is most widely distributed . . . . This noble vegetable exudes a kind of invisible gum, which may be detected by applying to the bark a piece of gold or silver.
Human nature is pretty well balanced; for every lacking virtue there is a rough substitute that will serve at a pinch--as cunning is the wisdom of the unwise, and ferocity the courage of the coward.
Indigestion: A disease which the patient and his friends frequently mistake for deep religious conviction and concern for the salvation of mankind. As the simple Red Man of the Western Wild put it, with, it must be confessed, a certain force: 'Plenty well, no pray; big belly ache, heap God.'
Disobey n:To celebrate with an appropriate ceremony the maturity of a command
NOUMENON, n. That which exists, as distinguished from that which merely seems to exist, the latter being a phenomenon. The noumenon is a bit difficult to locate; it can be apprehended only by a process of reasoning - which is a phenomenon.
PARDON, v. To remit a penalty and restore to the life of crime. To add to the lure of crime the temptation of ingratitude.
It's one of the tragic ironies of the theatre that only one man in it can count on steady work - the night watchman.
The English country-gentleman galloping after a fox — the unspeakable in full pursuit of the uneatable.
You know why dogs have no money? No pockets. 'Cause they see change on the street all the time and it's driving them crazy. When you're walking them, he is always looking up at you. "There's a quarter...."
If you record the world honestly, there's no way people can stop being funny. A lot of fiction writing doesn't get that idea, as if to acknowledge it would trivialize the story or trivialize human nature, when in fact human nature is reduced and falsified if the comic aspects are not included.
Ascot is so exclusive that it is the only racecourse in the world where the horses own the people.
Half the lies they tell about me aren't true.
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