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
There's not a note of mine that's worth the noting.
Interpretation
The quote suggests that the speaker's contributions may not hold significant value or attention.
In this quote, Shakespeare expresses humility about his own work or thoughts, implying that they may not be noteworthy or deserving of praise. It reflects a broader philosophical view on the nature of value and recognition in art and creativity, suggesting that what one considers valuable may not resonate with others.
In practice
During a lecture on creativity, one might use this quote to illustrate the concept of self-doubt among artists.
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).
Love bears it out even to the edge of doom.
Good company, good wine, good welcome, can make good people.
Absence doth sharpen love, presence strengthens it; the one brings fuel, the other blows it till it burns clear.
Lord, Lord, how this world is given to lying!
Give it an understanding, but no tongue.
People who give will never be poor.
The further I wake into this life, the more I realize that God is everywhere and the extraordinary is waiting quietly beneath the skin of all that is ordinary. Light is in both the broken bottle and the diamond, and music is in both the flowing violin and the water dripping from the drainage pipe. Yes, God is under the porch as well as on top of the mountain, and joy is in both the front row and the bleachers, if we are willing to be where we are.
Losing your way on a journey is unfortunate. But, losing your reason for the journey is a fate more cruel.
We prefer self-government with danger to servitude in tranquility.
Suffering is a byproduct of evolution by natural selection, an inevitable consequence that may worry us in our more sympathetic moments but cannot be expected to worry a tiger - even if a tiger can be said to worry about anything at all - and certainly cannot be expected to worry its genes.
He who has a why to live can bear almost any how.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.