Shakespeare aphoristic wisdom a short essay from William Shakespeare Aphoristic Dictionary a great book by Carl William Brown of 600 pages, 8 essays, more than 3,000 quotes, 200 quotations by great authors through the centuries on Shakespeare and much more.
Wisdom and goodness to the vile seem vile; filths savour but themselves.
William Shakespeare
I will never be an old man. To me, old age is always 15 years older than I am.
Francis Bacon
Wisdom cries out in the streets, and no man regards it.
William Shakespeare
It is not enough to love wisdom, knowledge or learning, you also have to make others fall in love.
Carl William Brown
Meditation on wisdom is always praiseworthy, regardless of the results.
Seneca
Passions make man live, wisdom only makes him live longer.
Nicolas de Chamfort
Why, but scholars should have some privilege of pre-eminence. So have they: they only are worthy translators.
John Florio
Love is a sickness full of woes, All remedies refusing; A plant that with most cutting grows, Most barren with best using.
Samuel Daniel
A good life is a main argument, but a good book is a miracle.
Ben Jonson
Man is a Creature of a wilful Head, And hardly driven is, but eas’ly led.
Samuel Daniel
Books are not absolutely dead things, but do contain a potency of life in them… I know they are as lively and as vigorously productive as those fabulous dragon’s teeth and being sown up and down, may chance to spring up armed men.
John Milton
To the reader, we offer this collection as both a mirror of human nature and a guide to noble living. Let these aphorisms, stamped with Shakespeare’s acute genius, store the mind with precepts that fortify the heart against folly and inspire actions that reflect divine wisdom and goodness.
In an age craving clarity amidst confusion, Shakespeare’s aphorisms – simple, profound, and true – remain an inexhaustible source of instruction, urging us toward benevolence, piety, and the pursuit of a higher moral order. The works of William Shakespeare, a poet and dramatist without equal, have long served as a treasury of human wisdom, illuminating the complexities of the heart and the principles that govern virtuous conduct. Within the rich tapestry of his plays and sonnets lie pearls of insight-brief, pointed, and profound-worthy of being gathered and presented for the contemplation of all who seek to refine their understanding and elevate their character.
The dramatic genius of William Shakespeare, unmatched in its poetic splendor, shines most brightly in its embodiment of good sense, moral wisdom, and a vivid perception of the duties and affections that govern human life. If these qualities form the soul of great dramatic writing, none has certainly surpassed Shakespeare, whose works overflow with truths that illuminate the path to virtue and prudence. As Horace, adapted to Shakespeare, declares: “Good sense and moral wisdom are the source / Whence the true drama gains its purest force.”
This collection therefore, gathers the poet’s most concise and weighty sayings-maxims drawn from the mouths of kings, fools, lovers or soldiers-that distill the moral and prudential essence of his plays and sonnets into propositions of enduring truth, crafted to instruct, elevate, and inspire readers of every age, since they transcend the context of their dramatic origins to speak universally to the human condition.
They teach us to discern virtue from vice, to navigate the tempests of passion with reason, and to uphold integrity amidst the frailties of life. For instance, when Polonius advises, “This above all: to thine own self be true,” we are reminded of the paramount duty of self-honesty, a cornerstone of moral rectitude. Likewise, the poignant reflection, “All the world’s a stage,” invites us to consider the transient roles we play and the eternal values that should guide our actions.
The aphoristic form, dignified by antiquity, finds its zenith in Shakespeare. From the maxims of Pythagoras to the precepts of Euripides, Seneca, and Plautus, and from the Psalms and Proverbs to the sayings of Confucius and Zoroaster, this mode has long conveyed moral instruction through maxims that encapsulate practical wisdom, and timeless lessons for the betterment of the soul and society.
Modern masters like Bacon, Milton, Montesquieu or Pascal have employed this literary genre to convey wisdom with force and brevity, yet Shakespeare, rivaling the best of Greek and Roman antiquity, surpasses them in vividness and universality. His aphorisms, as Quintilian advocated for moral verses, are fit to be memorized by youth, fortifying the heart against human mental instability, making his aphorisms a beacon for personal and civic virtue.
Shakespeare’s aphorisms, like those of the ancients, are the fruit of a mind deeply attuned to the human condition. Drawing from his modest yet sufficient learning-Latin, some Greek, French, and Italian, alongside the chronicles of his country and the Scriptures-and enriched by converse with wise contemporaries such as Jonson, Essex, and Southampton, Shakespeare wove his observations into sayings that breathe with the grace of truth.
As a matter of fact his aphorisms reflect the duties owed to country, friends, parents, and kin; the sanctity of wedded love; and the roles of speare. From the maxims of Pythagoras to the precepts of Euripides, Seneca, and Plautus, and from the Psalms and Proverbs to the sayings of Confucius and Zoroaster, this mode has long conveyed moral instruction through maxims that encapsulate practical wisdom, and timeless lessons for the betterment of the soul and society.
Modern masters like Bacon, Milton, Montesquieu or Pascal have employed this literary genre to convey wisdom with force and brevity, yet Shakespeare, rivaling the best of Greek and Roman antiquity, surpasses them in vividness and universality. His aphorisms, as Quintilian advocated for moral verses, are fit to be memorized by youth, fortifying the heart against human mental instability, making his aphorisms a beacon for personal and civic virtue.
Shakespeare’s aphorisms, like those of the ancients, are the fruit of a mind deeply attuned to the human condition. Drawing from his modest yet sufficient learning-Latin, some Greek, French, and Italian, alongside the chronicles of his country and the Scriptures-and enriched by converse with wise contemporaries such as Jonson, Essex, and Southampton, Shakespeare wove his observations into sayings that breathe with the grace of truth.
As a matter of fact his aphorisms reflect the duties owed to country, friends, parents, and kin; the sanctity of wedded love; and the roles of judges, senators, and warriors. They teach us to navigate the complexities of life with a kind of intellectual and pragmatic integrity of mind. That’s why we insist once again that the inner goal of this volume is not merely to adorn the mind with eloquent phrases but to furnish it with precepts for virtuous living.
Each aphorism, in its original form, has been carefully selected for its didactic power, offering guidance to the young, consolation to the weary, and admonition to the wayward. In an age where madness often masquerades as wisdom, Shakespeare’s maxims serve as beacons, illuminating the path to prudence, justice, and compassion. They are not abstract philosophies but practical counsels, forged in the crucible of human experience and polished by the poet’s art.
From Shakespeare Aphoristic Dictionary a book of 600 pages by Carl William Brown. It includes 8 essays, 562 entry words, more than 3,000 quotes and 200 value judgments by great authors and scholars to fully appreciate the real greatness of the most famous literary genius of all time.
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