Friday, August 10, 2007

I quoth, 'Shakespeare' and I unquoth

If you cannot understand my argument, and declare, 'It's Greek to me', you arre quoting Shakespeare; if you claim to be more sinned against than sinning, you are quoting Shakespeare,; if you recall your salad days, you are quoting Shakespeare; if you act more in sorrow than in anger, if your wish is father to the thought, if your lost property has vanished into thin air, you are quoting Shakespeare; if you have ever refused to budge an inch or suffered from green-eyed jealousy, if you have played fast and loose, if you have knitted your brows, made a virtue of necessity, insisted on fair play, slept no one wink, stood on ceremony, danced attendance (to your lord and master), laughed yourself into stitches, had short shrift, cold comfort or too much of a good thing, if you have seen better days, or lived in a fool's paradise- why, be that as it may, the more fool you, fore it is a foregone conclusion that you are (as good luch would have it) quoting Shakespeare; if you thing it is early days and clear out bag and baggage, if you think i is high time and that that is the long and short of it, if you believe that the game is up and that truth will out even if it involves your own flesh and blood, if you lie low till the crack of doom because you suspect foul play, if you have your teeth set on edge (at one fell swoop) without rhyme or reason, then- to give the devil his due- if the truth were known (for surely you have a tongue in your head) you are quoting Shakespeare; even if you bid me good riddance and send me packing, if you wish I was dead as a door-nail, if you thing I ame an eyesore, a laughing stock, the devil incarnate, a stony-hearted villain, bloody-minded or a blinking idiot, then- by Jove! O Lord! tut, tut! for goodness' sake! what the dickens! but me no buts- it is all one to me, for you are quoting Shakespeare.
-Bernard Levin, quoted in The Story of English

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...I just think of these things, and then I don't feel so bad!

  • Barnes and Noble (and books in general)
  • birthday parties
  • friends
  • fun words (like effervescent and uber)
  • knitting
  • learning languages
  • RUF
  • Scrabble...and other word games
  • skiing
  • sleep-overs
  • swimming
  • tea
  • traveling (not the car part, so much!)
  • weddings
  • writing fantasy stories