My quarrel with him is, that his works contain nothing…
“My quarrel with him is, that his works contain nothing worth quoting; and a book that furnishes no quotations, is me judice, no book,—it is a plaything.”
About This Quote
This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.
A work lacking memorable lines offers little utility, reducing it to a mere curiosity rather than a source of insight.
In simple terms: Books without quotes are less useful.
Key Takeaway
Seek works with resonant ideas.
Themes
literature
quotation
value
criticism
Mood
analytical
scholarly
Type
literary
critical
When to use this quote
- reading clubs
- academic curricula
- publishing
- library curation
Key Concepts
aesthetics
cultural transmission
Questions to Reflect On
- What makes a passage memorable without a quote?
- How do you assess a book’s worth beyond its sayings?
A Different Perspective
Some texts inspire without explicit quotations.