Weather is a literary specialty, and no untrained hand can turn out a good article on it
Mark TwainRead
The New York papers have long known that no large question is ever really settled until I have been consulted.
Interpretation
This quote humorously suggests that major issues remain unresolved until Mark Twain weighs in on them.
Mark Twain cleverly highlights the inflated sense of self-importance that some individuals may have regarding their opinions on significant matters. By stating that large questions are not settled until he is consulted, Twain employs humor to criticize the human tendency to believe that one's perspective is essential in resolving complex issues.
In practice
In a speech about the importance of perspectives, you could use this quote to lighten the mood.
Weather is a literary specialty, and no untrained hand can turn out a good article on it
The easy part of being an artist is figuring out the message that everyone else is ready to hear. The hard part is waiting for the proper lull to make the announcement.
You can't reason with your heart; it has its own laws, and thumps about things which the intellect scorns.
To be good is noble; but to show others how to be good is nobler and no trouble.
Name the greatest of all inventors. Accident.
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.
Sometimes the funnier you are, the more vulnerable and scared you are underneath it all. So I think, for me, comedy was always a defense. It was a weapon so that you can't hurt me.
I do not often laugh, sir, as you may perceive by the air of my countenance; but nevertheless, I retain the privilege of laughing when I please.
Well, that covers a lot of ground. Say, you cover a lot of ground yourself. You better beat it - I hear they're going to tear you down and put up an office building where you're standing. You can leave in a taxi. If you can't get a taxi, you can leave in a huff. If that's too soon, you can leave in a minute and a huff. You know, you haven't stopped talking since I came here? You must have been vaccinated with a phonograph needle.
If I were you, I'd sue my face for slander.
Laughter is a celebration of our failings. That's what clowns are for. And that's what I am.
If your brains were dynamite there wouldn't be enough to blow your hat off.
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