---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Chorus [of Birds]: Man is a truly cunning…"
description: "\"“Chorus [of Birds]: Man is a truly cunning creature.”\" — Aristophanes"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/409/aristophanes-3340_animals_chorus-of-birds-man-is-a-truly-cunning-c_824706.png"
---

#  Chorus \[of Birds\]: Man is a truly cunning creature.

![“Chorus &#91;of Birds&#93;: Man is a truly cunning creature.” quote by Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/409/aristophanes-3340_animals_chorus-of-birds-man-is-a-truly-cunning-c_824706.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/409/aristophanes-3340_animals_chorus-of-birds-man-is-a-truly-cunning-c_824706.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/409/aristophanes-3340_animals_chorus-of-birds-man-is-a-truly-cunning-c_824706.png)

> ““Chorus \[of Birds\]: Man is a truly cunning creature.””

[Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Humans are inherently clever, capable of scheming and adaptation.

**In simple terms:** Humans are very clever.

Key Takeaway

Leverage human ingenuity wisely.

Themes

human nature cleverness adaptation strategy creativity

Mood

humorous critical

Type

dramatic satirical

When to use this quote

- innovation
- political satire
- urban planning
- environmental design

Key Concepts

philosophy theatre social commentary

Questions to Reflect On

- How can societies channel cleverness for common good?
- What safeguards prevent clever schemes from harming others?

A Different Perspective

Cleverness can be misused for selfish ends.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Animals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animals/) [Birds Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birds-man-505585/) [Chorus Birds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chorus-birds-505586/) [Cleverness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cleverness/) [Cunning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cunning/) [Cunning Creature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cunning-creature-505583/) [Deceit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deceit/) [Human nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-nature/) [Truly Cunning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truly-cunning-505584/)

## Related quotes

> [“When a group of people sing together, we make up a chorus. When birds do, it's more like a whole symphony orchestra.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-erickson/when-a-group-of-people-sing-together-we-make-up-a-chorus-when-birds/)

[Laura Erickson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-erickson/)

> [“I went walking really early in the morning, you know when stars are yawning and closing their eyes, and flowers and grass begin to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-renshaw/i-went-walking-really-early-in-the-morning-you-know-when-stars-are/)

[Jonathan Renshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-renshaw/)

> [“- Birds fly like birds and a man who has taken the devil's weed flies as such. - As birds do? - No, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/birds-fly-like-birds-and-a-man-who-has-taken-the-devil-s-weed-flies/)

[Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/)

> [God made birds , Man made planes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-made-birds-man-made-planes/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [There's a lot of us out here that are birds, man. We all need to just fly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/travis-scott/there-s-a-lot-of-us-out-here-that-are-birds-man-we-all-need-to-just/)

[Travis Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/travis-scott/)

> [Money never can be well managed if sought solely through the greed of money for its own sake. In all meanness there is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-bulwer-lytton-1st-baron-lytton/money-never-can-be-well-managed-if-sought-solely-through-the-greed-of/)

[Edward Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-bulwer-lytton-1st-baron-lytton/)

> [The cleverness of avarice is but the cunning of imbecility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-bulwer-lytton-1st-baron-lytton/the-cleverness-of-avarice-is-but-the-cunning-of-imbecility/)

[Edward Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-bulwer-lytton-1st-baron-lytton/)

> [Many of the greatest men have owed their success to industry rather than to cleverness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lubbock/many-of-the-greatest-men-have-owed-their-success-to-industry-rather/)

[John Lubbock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lubbock/)

> [Sometimes people try way too hard to sound clever on Facebook.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-people-try-way-too-hard-to-sound-clever-on-facebook/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Limits have to be set on how far one can simply use the... cleverness that we have to make changes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-kass/limits-have-to-be-set-on-how-far-one-can-simply-use-the-cleverness/)

[Leon Kass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-kass/)

> [Ultimately, of course, you must decide for yourself whether the subjective psychological effects created by your evolved cognitive biases reflect an objective reality, perhaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-bering/ultimately-of-course-you-must-decide-for-yourself-whether-the/)

[Jesse Bering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-bering/)

> [A fool is a person who guesses and gets it wrong, a clever man is one who guesses, regardless of time period, and gets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/a-fool-is-a-person-who-guesses-and-gets-it-wrong-a-clever-man-is-one/)

[Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/)

> [If we fail to appreciate the soul that Easternism gives us, then what we have is a disconnected, Greco-Roman, Western, egocentric, compartmentalized, reductionist, fragmented,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-salatin/if-we-fail-to-appreciate-the-soul-that-easternism-gives-us-then-what/)

[Joel Salatin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-salatin/)

> [“Passion often makes a madman of the cleverest man, and renders the greatest fools clever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/passion-often-makes-a-madman-of-the-cleverest-man-and-renders-the/)

[François de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/)

> [“Rumi observed, “Sell your cleverness and purchase bewilderment.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-w-dyer/rumi-observed-sell-your-cleverness-and-purchase-bewilderment/)

[Wayne W. Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-w-dyer/)

## More by Aristophanes

> [If you strike upon a thought that baffles you, break off from that entanglement and try another, so shall your wits be fresh to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/if-you-strike-upon-a-thought-that-baffles-you-break-off-from-that/)

[Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/)

> [“LYSISTRATA By the Goddesses, you'll find that here await you Four companies of most pugnacious women Armed cap-a-pie from the topmost louring curl To…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/lysistrata-by-the-goddesses-you-ll-find-that-here-await-you-four/)

[Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/)

> [Thou shouldst not decide until thou hast heard what both have to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/thou-shouldst-not-decide-until-thou-hast-heard-what-both-have-to-say/)

[Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/)

> [Only by being suspended aloft, by dangling my mind in the heavens and mingling my rare thought with the ethereal air, could I ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/only-by-being-suspended-aloft-by-dangling-my-mind-in-the-heavens-and/)

[Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/)

> [Old age is second childhood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/old-age-is-second-childhood/)

[Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/)

> [Love is simply the name for the desire and the pursuit of the whole.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/love-is-simply-the-name-for-the-desire-and-the-pursuit-of-the-whole/)

[Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/)

> [ “You \[demagogues\] are like the fishers for eels; in still waters they catch nothing, but if they thoroughly stir up the slime, their fishing… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/you-demagogues-are-like-the-fishers-for-eels-in-still-waters-they/)

[Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/)

> [Tis not for us to warn a wilful sinner; We stay him not, but let him run his course, Till by misfortunes rous'd, his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/tis-not-for-us-to-warn-a-wilful-sinner-we-stay-him-not-but-let-him/)

[Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/)

> [Women, you overheated dipsomaniacs, never passing up a chance to wangle a drink, a great boon to bartenders but a bane to us--not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/women-you-overheated-dipsomaniacs-never-passing-up-a-chance-to-wangle/)

[Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/)

> [“LYSISTRATA You know how to work. Play with him, lead him on, Seduce him to the cozening-point—kiss him, kiss him, Then slip your mouth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/lysistrata-you-know-how-to-work-play-with-him-lead-him-on-seduce-him/)

[Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/)

> [ \[Y\]ou \[man\] are fool enough, it seems, to dare to war with \[woman=\] me, when for your faithful ally you might win me easily. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/y-ou-man-are-fool-enough-it-seems-to-dare-to-war-with-woman-me-when/)

[Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/)

> [You cannot teach a crab to walk straight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/you-cannot-teach-a-crab-to-walk-straight/)

[Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/)

> [How can I study from below, that which is above?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/how-can-i-study-from-below-that-which-is-above/)

[Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/)

> [First listen, my friend, and then you may shriek and bluster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/first-listen-my-friend-and-then-you-may-shriek-and-bluster/)

[Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/)

> [If a man owes me money, I never seem to forget. But if I do the owing, I somehow never remember.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/if-a-man-owes-me-money-i-never-seem-to-forget-but-if-i-do-the-owing-i/)

[Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/)

[Explore all 132 Aristophanes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/)

## More Animals quotes

> [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/)

[Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/)

> [Animals know nothing of themselves, and they also know nothing of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/animals-know-nothing-of-themselves-and-they-also-know-nothing-of-the/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [Humans are animals too, but some do not like to work from expectations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/humans-are-animals-too-but-some-do-not-like-to-work-from-expectations/)

[Mak\_786](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mak-786/)

> [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/)

[Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/)

> [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/)

[Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/)

> [We must love animals in such a powerful way that we should reject to eat them!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/we-must-love-animals-in-such-a-powerful-way-that-we-should-reject-to/)

[Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

> [I bet plants go like 'Weeeeeeeee!' whenever they're swallowed by a giraffe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-bet-plants-go-like-weeeeeeeee-whenever-they-re-swallowed-by-a/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [It’s a small thing to help one animal, but to that one animal it’s a big thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-baur/it-s-a-small-thing-to-help-one-animal-but-to-that-one-animal-it-s-a/)

[Gene Baur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-baur/)

> [We animals are the most complicated things in the known universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-animals-are-the-most-complicated-things-in-the-known-universe/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

> [“All these creatures spend their time explaining, realizing happily that they agree with each other.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/all-these-creatures-spend-their-time-explaining-realizing-happily/)

[Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/)

> [We're not very dangerous animals; we don't have a horn like a rhino or quills like a porcupine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-fisher/we-re-not-very-dangerous-animals-we-don-t-have-a-horn-like-a-rhino-or/)

[Helen Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-fisher/)

> [We need, in a special way, to work twice as hard to help people understand that animals are fellow creatures, that we must protect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-chavez/we-need-in-a-special-way-to-work-twice-as-hard-to-help-people/)

[Cesar Chavez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesar-chavez/)

> [“Plenty of animals had pets, but few were more devoted than the mouse, who owned a baby corn snake—“A rescue snake, she’d be quick…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sedaris/plenty-of-animals-had-pets-but-few-were-more-devoted-than-the-mouse/)

[David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/)

> [No creature can attain a higher grade of nature without ceasing to exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ananda-coomaraswamy/no-creature-can-attain-a-higher-grade-of-nature-without-ceasing-to/)

[Ananda Coomaraswamy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ananda-coomaraswamy/)

> [Most people are sensitized to animals through their cats and dogs, but for me it was a flounder. I used to go fishing with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-mathews/most-people-are-sensitized-to-animals-through-their-cats-and-dogs-but/)

[Dan Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-mathews/)

[Browse all 6,813 Animals quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animals/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Chorus [of Birds]: Man is a truly cunning creature.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Aristophanes"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/chorus-of-birds-man-is-a-truly-cunning-creature/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Animals"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/chorus-of-birds-man-is-a-truly-cunning-creature/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/409/aristophanes-3340_animals_chorus-of-birds-man-is-a-truly-cunning-c_824706.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/409/aristophanes-3340_animals_chorus-of-birds-man-is-a-truly-cunning-c_824706.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/409/aristophanes-3340_animals_chorus-of-birds-man-is-a-truly-cunning-c_824706.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Chorus [of Birds]: Man is a truly cunning creature.” — Aristophanes",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Aristophanes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Chorus [of Birds]: Man is a...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/chorus-of-birds-man-is-a-truly-cunning-creature/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/chorus-of-birds-man-is-a-truly-cunning-creature/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
