--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: And if I am further pressed to declare…" description: "\"“And if I am further pressed to declare straightforwardly whether I mean to disparage these authorities [who criticize Ibsen], I reply, pointedly, that..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ea/george-bernard-shaw-68_criticism_and-if-i-am-further-pressed-to-declare-s_1813834.jpg" --- # And if I am further pressed to declare straightforwardly… ![“And if I am further pressed to declare straightforwardly whether I mean to disparage these authorities [who criticize Ibsen], I reply, pointedly, that I do. I affirm that such criticisms are written by men who know as much of political life as I know of navigation.” quote by George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ea/george-bernard-shaw-68_criticism_and-if-i-am-further-pressed-to-declare-s_1813834.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ea/george-bernard-shaw-68_criticism_and-if-i-am-further-pressed-to-declare-s_1813834.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ea/george-bernard-shaw-68_criticism_and-if-i-am-further-pressed-to-declare-s_1813834.jpg) > ““And if I am further pressed to declare straightforwardly whether I mean to disparage these authorities \[who criticize Ibsen\], I reply, pointedly, that I do. I affirm that such criticisms are written by men who know as much of political life as I know of navigation.”” [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author admits he despises critics, comparing their limited political insight to his own nautical knowledge. **In simple terms:** He criticizes critics for shallow understanding. Key Takeaway Question the expertise of those who judge you. Themes criticism expertise politics Mood analytical defensive Type satirical philosophical When to use this quote - public debate - media criticism - artistic reception Key Concepts literature satire Questions to Reflect On - Do you value criticism that challenges you? - When is it wise to dismiss critics? A Different Perspective Criticism can also be constructive. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Affirm Criticisms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affirm-criticisms-2137258/) [Criticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criticism/) [Criticisms Written](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criticisms-written-2137259/) [Criticize Ibsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criticize-ibsen-2137255/) [Ibsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ibsen/) [Ibsen Reply](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ibsen-reply-2137256/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Pointedly Affirm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pointedly-affirm-2137257/) [Political life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-life/) ## Related quotes > [“On Monday last I sat without a murmur in a stuffy theatre on a summer afternoon from three to nearly half-past 6, spellbound by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/on-monday-last-i-sat-without-a-murmur-in-a-stuffy-theatre-on-a-summer/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“And many a time, towards the end of life, does the genius repent of his choice. "It would be better not to startle the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-shestov/and-many-a-time-towards-the-end-of-life-does-the-genius-repent-of-his/) [Lev Shestov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-shestov/) > [ I did \[Henrik\] Ibsen and \[Anton\] Chekhov for years. Obviously I didn't get the kind of recognition I have now. Somebody once told me,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-manganiello/i-did-henrik-ibsen-and-anton-chekhov-for-years-obviously-i-didn-t-get/) [Joe Manganiello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-manganiello/) > [Ibsen is like this room where we are sitting, with all the tables and chairs. Do I care whether you have twenty or twenty-five…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanora-duse/ibsen-is-like-this-room-where-we-are-sitting-with-all-the-tables-and/) [Eleanora Duse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanora-duse/) > [“He shook his fist at her. He was the mildest of creatures and ventured upon no action of his life without consulting her. “No,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-somerset-maugham/he-shook-his-fist-at-her-he-was-the-mildest-of-creatures-and-ventured/) [William Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-somerset-maugham/) > [Monotheism at Sinai, primitive Christianity, messianic socialism: these are the three supreme moments in which Western culture is presented with what Ibsen termed "the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-steiner/monotheism-at-sinai-primitive-christianity-messianic-socialism-these/) [George Steiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-steiner/) > [“She looked like something that might have occurred to Ibsen in one of his less frivolous moments.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-g-wodehouse/she-looked-like-something-that-might-have-occurred-to-ibsen-in-one-of/) [P.G. Wodehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-g-wodehouse/) > [I'm a big guy: I look like a linebacker, you know? But no one cares, really, that I'm educated. I have a copy of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/i-m-a-big-guy-i-look-like-a-linebacker-you-know-but-no-one-cares/) [Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) > [The great Norwegian playwright, Henrik Ibsen, wrote, "One of these days, the younger generation will come knocking at my door." The future is knocking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-gore/the-great-norwegian-playwright-henrik-ibsen-wrote-one-of-these-days/) [Al Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-gore/) > [Write about winter in the summer. Describe Norway as Ibsen did, from a desk in Italy; describe Dublin as James Joyce did, from a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/write-about-winter-in-the-summer-describe-norway-as-ibsen-did-from-a/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“Zar nije neobično dražesna? To je bilo mišljenje i čitavog društva. Ali užasno je tvrdoglavo - to slatko malo stvorenje.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henrik-ibsen/zar-nije-neobi-no-dra-esna-to-je-bilo-mi-ljenje-i-itavog-dru-tva-ali/) [Henrik Ibsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henrik-ibsen/) > [“Henrik Ibsen hung a picture of August Strindberg over his desk. “He is my mortal enemy and shall hang there and watch while I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-keyes/henrik-ibsen-hung-a-picture-of-august-strindberg-over-his-desk-he-is/) [Ralph Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-keyes/) > [If Ibsen's 'Enemy of the People' were alive today, he would recognize the ethic that has informed capitalist and communist countries alike - economic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susannah-york/if-ibsen-s-enemy-of-the-people-were-alive-today-he-would-recognize/) [Susannah York](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susannah-york/) > [I don't think my looks are modern. I always imagined I'd end up doing Chekhov, Ibsen and Shakespeare all my life and never play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-kingston/i-don-t-think-my-looks-are-modern-i-always-imagined-i-d-end-up-doing/) [Alex Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-kingston/) > [“...only the one who knows and practices the iconoclastic fury of destruction can possess the joy born of freedom, of that unique freedom fertilized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renzo-novatore/only-the-one-who-knows-and-practices-the-iconoclastic-fury-of/) [Renzo Novatore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renzo-novatore/) ## More by George Bernard Shaw > [I love little children too but I don't cut off their heads and stick them in vases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/i-love-little-children-too-but-i-don-t-cut-off-their-heads-and-stick/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Blasphemy and sedition (meaning the truth about Church and State).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/blasphemy-and-sedition-meaning-the-truth-about-church-and-state/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [In the arts of life, man invents nothing; but in the arts of death he outdoes Nature herself, and produces by chemistry and machinery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/in-the-arts-of-life-man-invents-nothing-but-in-the-arts-of-death-he/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“My religious convictions and scientific views cannot at present be more specifically defined than as those of a believer in creative evolution. I desire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/my-religious-convictions-and-scientific-views-cannot-at-present-be/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [What a man believes may be ascertained, not from his creed, but from the assumptions on which he habitually acts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/what-a-man-believes-may-be-ascertained-not-from-his-creed-but-from/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [You are my inspiration and my folly. You are my light across the sea, my million nameless joys, and my day's wage. You are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/you-are-my-inspiration-and-my-folly-you-are-my-light-across-the-sea/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Men have to do some awfully mean things to keep up their respectability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/men-have-to-do-some-awfully-mean-things-to-keep-up-their/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The schoolmaster is the person who takes the children off the parents' hands for a consideration. That is to say, he establishes a child…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-schoolmaster-is-the-person-who-takes-the-children-off-the-parents/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [As long as I have a want, I have a reason for living. Satisfaction is death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/as-long-as-i-have-a-want-i-have-a-reason-for-living-satisfaction-is/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The camera can represent flesh so superbly that, if I dared, I would never photograph a figure without asking that figure to take its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-camera-can-represent-flesh-so-superbly-that-if-i-dared-i-would/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [A man who is not a communist at the age of twenty is a fool. Any man who is still communist at the age…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/a-man-who-is-not-a-communist-at-the-age-of-twenty-is-a-fool-any-man/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [But to admire a strong person and to live under that strong person’s thumb are two different things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/but-to-admire-a-strong-person-and-to-live-under-that-strong-person-s/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Socialism is the same as Communism, only better English.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/socialism-is-the-same-as-communism-only-better-english/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The person who is ignorant enough to believe that his nourishment depends on meat is in a horrible dilemma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-person-who-is-ignorant-enough-to-believe-that-his-nourishment/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [In the arts of peace Man is a bungler.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/in-the-arts-of-peace-man-is-a-bungler/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) [Explore all 1,640 George Bernard Shaw quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## More Criticism quotes > [Regardless of the criticisms I receive from the left, the right and the middle, I think it's important to maintain a prolific writing jab,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ishmael-reed/regardless-of-the-criticisms-i-receive-from-the-left-the-right-and/) [Ishmael Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ishmael-reed/) > [I receive something we might euphemistically call an 'inappropriately hostile' response - that is to say, more than fair criticism or even fair anger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-beard/i-receive-something-we-might-euphemistically-call-an-inappropriately/) [Mary Beard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-beard/) > [A common fallacy in much of the adverse criticism to which science is subjected today is that it claims certainty, infallibility and complete emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/a-common-fallacy-in-much-of-the-adverse-criticism-to-which-science-is/) [Cyril Norman Hinshelwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/) > [For some reason, we are truly convinced that if we criticize ourselves, the criticism will lead to change. If we are harsh, we believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geneen-roth/for-some-reason-we-are-truly-convinced-that-if-we-criticize-ourselves/) [Geneen Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geneen-roth/) > [I reject criticism because the last thing I wanted was to sit there and look at people talking. I think people are conditioned to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-tyrnauer/i-reject-criticism-because-the-last-thing-i-wanted-was-to-sit-there/) [Matt Tyrnauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-tyrnauer/) > [I'm more comfortable modelling as a man because I don't get any criticism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rain-dove/i-m-more-comfortable-modelling-as-a-man-because-i-don-t-get-any/) [Rain Dove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rain-dove/) > [I don't mind positive criticism, but when it is negative and personal, it is quite hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/inzamam-ul-haq/i-don-t-mind-positive-criticism-but-when-it-is-negative-and-personal/) [Inzamam-ul-Haq](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/inzamam-ul-haq/) > [Judge a person not by his ability to make money but by his ability to retain it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/judge-a-person-not-by-his-ability-to-make-money-but-by-his-ability-to/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [Everything is allowable in literature, but what is not allowable in criticism is objection on the grounds of probability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/everything-is-allowable-in-literature-but-what-is-not-allowable-in/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [Lots of relationships fail because we spend more time pointing out each other's mistakes and not enough time enjoying each other's company.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/lots-of-relationships-fail-because-we-spend-more-time-pointing-out/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If our aim is to praise, we should forget to criticize; if our aim is to criticize, we should remember to praise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/if-our-aim-is-to-praise-we-should-forget-to-criticize-if-our-aim-is/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [No man can be criticised but by a greater than he. Do not, then, read the reviews.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/no-man-can-be-criticised-but-by-a-greater-than-he-do-not-then-read/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [People believe that criticism should be objective, whatever that means, but I really don't understand what people mean by that. I guess if you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-christgau/people-believe-that-criticism-should-be-objective-whatever-that-means/) [Robert Christgau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-christgau/) > [I welcome criticism. I come from a - I wouldn't say mean, but you've got to have tough skin to be in my family.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saweetie/i-welcome-criticism-i-come-from-a-i-wouldn-t-say-mean-but-you-ve-got/) [Saweetie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saweetie/) > [The good author is he who contemplates without marked joy or excessive sorrow the adventures of his soul amongst criticisms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-good-author-is-he-who-contemplates-without-marked-joy-or/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) [Browse all 3,954 Criticism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criticism/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“And if I am further pressed to declare straightforwardly whether I mean to disparage these authorities [who criticize Ibsen], I reply, pointedly, that I do. 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