--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Follow a shadow, it still flies you, Seem…" description: "\"Follow a shadow, it still flies you, Seem to fly, it will pursue: So court a mistress, she denies you; Let her alone, she will court you. Say are not w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/459/ben-jonson-1371_court_follow-a-shadow-it-still-flies-you-seem_1248250.png" --- # Follow a shadow, it still flies you, Seem to fly, it will… ![“Follow a shadow, it still flies you, Seem to fly, it will pursue: So court a mistress, she denies you; Let her alone, she will court you. Say are not women truly, then, Styled but the shadows of us men?” quote by Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/459/ben-jonson-1371_court_follow-a-shadow-it-still-flies-you-seem_1248250.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/459/ben-jonson-1371_court_follow-a-shadow-it-still-flies-you-seem_1248250.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/459/ben-jonson-1371_court_follow-a-shadow-it-still-flies-you-seem_1248250.png) > “Follow a shadow, it still flies you, Seem to fly, it will pursue: So court a mistress, she denies you; Let her alone, she will court you. Say are not women truly, then, Styled but the shadows of us men?” [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Chasing elusive desires leads to frustration; letting go often reverses pursuit. **In simple terms:** Pursuing what you can’t have causes conflict; releasing it may bring it back. Key Takeaway Release desire, observe natural flow. Themes desire pursuit reversal gender identity Mood reflective thoughtful Type aphilosophical literary When to use this quote - romantic relationships - career ambitions - personal growth - conflict resolution Key Concepts philosophy psychology gender roles Questions to Reflect On - What do you chase that eludes you? - How does letting go change the dynamic? A Different Perspective If you chase something, you may lose it; letting go may not guarantee return. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Court](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/court/) [Deny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deny/) [Follow Shadow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/follow-shadow-323134/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Mistress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistress/) [Pursue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pursue/) [Seems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seems/) [Shadow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shadow/) [Shadows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shadows/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Wooing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wooing/) ## Related quotes > [Court a mistress, she denies you; let her alone, she will court you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/court-a-mistress-she-denies-you-let-her-alone-she-will-court-you/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [Follow a shadow, it still flies you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/follow-a-shadow-it-still-flies-you/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [In this world everything changes except good deeds and bad deeds; these follow you as the shadow follows the body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-this-world-everything-changes-except-good-deeds-and-bad-deeds/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“But it is better to follow even the shadow of the best than to remain content with the worst.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-van-dyke/but-it-is-better-to-follow-even-the-shadow-of-the-best-than-to-remain/) [Henry Van Dyke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-van-dyke/) > [Seek happiness for its own sake, and you will not find it; seek for duty, and happiness will follow as the shadow comes with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/seek-happiness-for-its-own-sake-and-you-will-not-find-it-seek-for/) [Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) > [Speak or act with a pure mind, and happiness will follow you as your shadow, unshakable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/speak-or-act-with-a-pure-mind-and-happiness-will-follow-you-as-your/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) > [Seek for duty, and happiness will follow as the shadow comes with the sunshine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/seek-for-duty-and-happiness-will-follow-as-the-shadow-comes-with-the/) [Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) > [Ah, whither shall a maiden flee, When a bold youth so swift pursues, And siege of tenderest courtesy, With hope perseverant, still renews!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coventry-patmore/ah-whither-shall-a-maiden-flee-when-a-bold-youth-so-swift-pursues-and/) [Coventry Patmore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/coventry-patmore/) > [What shadows we are, and what shadows we pursue!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/what-shadows-we-are-and-what-shadows-we-pursue/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [The Iranian regime supports violent extremists and challenges us across the region. It pursues a nuclear capability that could spark a dangerous arms race…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-iranian-regime-supports-violent-extremists-and-challenges-us/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Women are angels, wooing: Things won are done; joy's soul lies in the doing: That she beloved knows naught, that knows not this-- Men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/women-are-angels-wooing-things-won-are-done-joy-s-soul-lies-in-the/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I was supposed to be a romancer, either wooing the leading lady or competing with the leading man for her.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-romero/i-was-supposed-to-be-a-romancer-either-wooing-the-leading-lady-or/) [Cesar Romero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesar-romero/) > [Men are April when they woo, December when they wed...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/men-are-april-when-they-woo-december-when-they-wed/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“Yes, what's wooing?" Natalie asked. "It means making a guy realize how completely awesome you are, and that he will die a horrible, suffering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-rowe/yes-what-s-wooing-natalie-asked-it-means-making-a-guy-realize-how/) [Stephanie Rowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-rowe/) > [Religion exalts mystery as an unknowable secret that must be sealed in glass like the corpse of an enchanted princess and fearfully worshipped from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lon-milo-duquette/religion-exalts-mystery-as-an-unknowable-secret-that-must-be-sealed/) [Lon Milo DuQuette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lon-milo-duquette/) ## More by Ben Jonson > [Soul of the Age! The applause! delight! the wonder of our stage! My Shakespeare, rise; I will not lodge thee by Chaucer, or Spenser,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/soul-of-the-age-the-applause-delight-the-wonder-of-our-stage-my/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [Ambition, like a torrent, never looks back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/ambition-like-a-torrent-never-looks-back/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [Heaven prepares good men with crosses; but no ill can happen to a good man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/heaven-prepares-good-men-with-crosses-but-no-ill-can-happen-to-a-good/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [The dignity of truth is lost with much protesting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/the-dignity-of-truth-is-lost-with-much-protesting/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [True melancholy breeds your perfect fine wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/true-melancholy-breeds-your-perfect-fine-wit/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [Leave a kiss but in the cup, and I'll not look for wine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/leave-a-kiss-but-in-the-cup-and-i-ll-not-look-for-wine/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [All discourses but my own afflict me; they seem harsh, impertinent, and irksome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/all-discourses-but-my-own-afflict-me-they-seem-harsh-impertinent-and/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [“drink to the cause, and pure vapours”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/drink-to-the-cause-and-pure-vapours/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [Spread yourself upon his bosom publicly, whose heart you would eat in private.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/spread-yourself-upon-his-bosom-publicly-whose-heart-you-would-eat-in/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [That old bald cheater, Time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/that-old-bald-cheater-time/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [Rich apparel has strange virtues; it makes him that hath it without means esteemed for an excellent wit; he that enjoys it with means…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/rich-apparel-has-strange-virtues-it-makes-him-that-hath-it-without/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [Each petty hand Can steer a ship becalm'd; but he that will Govern and carry her to her ends, must know His tides, his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/each-petty-hand-can-steer-a-ship-becalm-d-but-he-that-will-govern-and/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [The way to rise is to obey and please.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/the-way-to-rise-is-to-obey-and-please/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [The covetous man never has money. The prodigal will have none shortly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/the-covetous-man-never-has-money-the-prodigal-will-have-none-shortly/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [Fortune, that favors fools.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/fortune-that-favors-fools/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) [Explore all 249 Ben Jonson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) ## More Court quotes > [Long before the 2016 presidential campaign, confidential sources had alerted me to longstanding misuses of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court system and the erosion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharyl-attkisson/long-before-the-2016-presidential-campaign-confidential-sources-had/) [Sharyl Attkisson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharyl-attkisson/) > [I have always worked really hard off the court. I think it's helped me play more consistently on the tour.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-draper/i-have-always-worked-really-hard-off-the-court-i-think-it-s-helped-me/) [Jack Draper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-draper/) > [The human element should be the two players on the court, not the officials. The best officials are the ones you never notice. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-scott/the-human-element-should-be-the-two-players-on-the-court-not-the/) [Gene Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-scott/) > [They will find somebody younger, somebody funnier, somebody more engaged. As long as the court genre is viable, people are going to be looking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-sheindlin/they-will-find-somebody-younger-somebody-funnier-somebody-more/) [Judy Sheindlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-sheindlin/) > [A federal court has ruled that the U.S. Postal Service must reduce its stamp prices. 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To push through their "sweetheart deals," to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/as-the-disparity-between-the-rich-and-the-poor-grows-the-fight-to/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [In a recent decision of the Supreme Court, not made, however, by the full court, and concurred in by only four justices, it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bates-clark/in-a-recent-decision-of-the-supreme-court-not-made-however-by-the/) [John Bates Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bates-clark/) > [I try to be the clown and court jester and make people laugh. At the same time, you have people in the hospital who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-simmons/i-try-to-be-the-clown-and-court-jester-and-make-people-laugh-at-the/) [Richard Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-simmons/) > [When I went to law school, which after all was back in the dark ages, we never looked beyond our borders for precedents. As…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-day-o-connor/when-i-went-to-law-school-which-after-all-was-back-in-the-dark-ages/) [Sandra Day O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-day-o-connor/) > [What's going on in my life, I never bring it to the basketball court.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemba-walker/what-s-going-on-in-my-life-i-never-bring-it-to-the-basketball-court/) [Kemba Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemba-walker/) > [One or two years ago, I didn't know who I was on court and I used to swear a lot. But now I've learned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-federer/one-or-two-years-ago-i-didn-t-know-who-i-was-on-court-and-i-used-to/) [Roger Federer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-federer/) > [Off the court, I tend to stick to the classics, but I like to have fun with color and accessories. 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