--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Walking the plank is a Victorian fiction…" description: "\"“Walking the plank is a Victorian fiction, and I will not have it on my ship!”\" — George MacDonald Fraser" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3aa/george-macdonald-fraser-29418_fiction_walking-the-plank-is-a-victorian-fiction_1180406.jpg" --- # Walking the plank is a Victorian fiction, and I will not… ![“Walking the plank is a Victorian fiction, and I will not have it on my ship!” quote by George MacDonald Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3aa/george-macdonald-fraser-29418_fiction_walking-the-plank-is-a-victorian-fiction_1180406.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3aa/george-macdonald-fraser-29418_fiction_walking-the-plank-is-a-victorian-fiction_1180406.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3aa/george-macdonald-fraser-29418_fiction_walking-the-plank-is-a-victorian-fiction_1180406.jpg) > ““Walking the plank is a Victorian fiction, and I will not have it on my ship!”” [George MacDonald Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald-fraser/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Rejecting unrealistic expectations, emphasizing practicality. **In simple terms:** Don't accept false traditions. Key Takeaway Insist on realistic standards. Themes integrity pragmatism tradition leadership Mood defiant assertive Type motivational inspirational When to use this quote - team management - policy making - education - media criticism Key Concepts critical thinking authenticity historical myth Questions to Reflect On - What myths do you challenge in your work? - How do you balance tradition and practicality? A Different Perspective Some traditions may hold cultural value despite being fictional. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Humour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humour/) [Pirates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pirates/) [Plank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plank/) ## Related quotes > [“Pirate Frank. Walks the Plank.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-horowitz/pirate-frank-walks-the-plank/) Dave Horowitz > [“Last Victorian and Edwardian Britain saw a mega-change in reading habits. For the first time fiction took the primary place in book publishing, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-h-murray/last-victorian-and-edwardian-britain-saw-a-mega-change-in-reading/) Iain H. Murray > [In Victorian fiction, there would be a chapter at the end devoted to righting all of the wrongs. I thought to right all of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-palliser/in-victorian-fiction-there-would-be-a-chapter-at-the-end-devoted-to/) [Charles Palliser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-palliser/) > [“In serious Victorian fiction, as in Shakespearian tragedy, melodrama normally functions as metaphor. The author finds a vivid equivalent for a reality too elaborate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-gregor/in-serious-victorian-fiction-as-in-shakespearian-tragedy-melodrama/) [Ian Gregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-gregor/) > [I was running for mayor of Syracuse - the first woman to run for mayor in our city, or in New York, and one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-decrow/i-was-running-for-mayor-of-syracuse-the-first-woman-to-run-for-mayor/) [Karen DeCrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-decrow/) > [Put the world's greatest philosopher on a plank that is wider than need be; if there is a precipe below, although his reason may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/put-the-world-s-greatest-philosopher-on-a-plank-that-is-wider-than/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [If you think you're going to do 100 crunches and a plank and burn away belly fat, you're not. Yes, you're going to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunnar-peterson/if-you-think-you-re-going-to-do-100-crunches-and-a-plank-and-burn/) [Gunnar Peterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunnar-peterson/) > [If you're stuck at piano and you're not a lead guitarist or a lead vocalist, you're kind of at a nine-foot plank then and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elton-john/if-you-re-stuck-at-piano-and-you-re-not-a-lead-guitarist-or-a-lead/) [Elton John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elton-john/) > [So I'll walk the plank, I'll jump with a smile. If I'm gonna go down, I'm gonna do it with style. You won't see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ana-chable/so-i-ll-walk-the-plank-i-ll-jump-with-a-smile-if-i-m-gonna-go-down-i/) [Ana Chable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ana-chable/) > [My go-to prebikini flat-ab move is the plank, all different types.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-hough/my-go-to-prebikini-flat-ab-move-is-the-plank-all-different-types/) [Julianne Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-hough/) > [Each flitch, each board, each plank can have only one ideal use. The woodworker, applying a thousand skills, must find that ideal use and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-nakashima/each-flitch-each-board-each-plank-can-have-only-one-ideal-use-the/) [George Nakashima](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-nakashima/) > [A core plank of left-wing academic thought is that gender and race are 'socially constructed.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-mac-donald/a-core-plank-of-left-wing-academic-thought-is-that-gender-and-race/) [Heather Mac Donald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-mac-donald/) > [There's no doubt that 'the plank' is one of the best core exercises on the planet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-haskell/there-s-no-doubt-that-the-plank-is-one-of-the-best-core-exercises-on/) [James Haskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-haskell/) > [The side plank and plank jumping jacks are all really great; just be sure to hold that naval to the spine as hard as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-kaiser/the-side-plank-and-plank-jumping-jacks-are-all-really-great-just-be/) [Anna Kaiser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-kaiser/) > [I'll walk the plank and I'll jump with a smile, cause if I'm gonna go down I'm gonna do it with style.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ani-difranco/i-ll-walk-the-plank-and-i-ll-jump-with-a-smile-cause-if-i-m-gonna-go/) [Ani DiFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ani-difranco/) ## More by George MacDonald Fraser > [“In her, ignorance and stupidity formed a perfect shield against the world: this, I suppose, is innocence. It”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald-fraser/in-her-ignorance-and-stupidity-formed-a-perfect-shield-against-the/) [George MacDonald Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald-fraser/) > [“You never know what to expect on encountering royalty. I've seen 'em stark naked except for wings of peacock feathers (Empress of China), giggling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald-fraser/you-never-know-what-to-expect-on-encountering-royalty-i-ve-seen-em/) [George MacDonald Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald-fraser/) > [“I think little of people who will deny their history because it doesn't present the picture they would like.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald-fraser/i-think-little-of-people-who-will-deny-their-history-because-it-doesn/) [George MacDonald Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald-fraser/) > [“The advantage to being a wicked bastard is that everyone pesters the Lord on your behalf; if volume of prayers from my saintly enemies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald-fraser/the-advantage-to-being-a-wicked-bastard-is-that-everyone-pesters-the/) [George MacDonald Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald-fraser/) > [“...and suddenly, without the slightest volition on my part, there was the most crashing discharge of wind, like the report of a mortar. My…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald-fraser/and-suddenly-without-the-slightest-volition-on-my-part-there-was-the/) [George MacDonald Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald-fraser/) > [“I was sufficiently recovered from my nervous condition – or else the booze was beginning to work – to be able to discuss with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald-fraser/i-was-sufficiently-recovered-from-my-nervous-condition-or-else-the/) [George MacDonald Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald-fraser/) > [There's a point, you know, where treachery is so complete and unashamed that it becomes statesmanship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald-fraser/there-s-a-point-you-know-where-treachery-is-so-complete-and-unashamed/) [George MacDonald Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald-fraser/) > [“We stood there for a full half hour, like so many scarecrows, while they jeered at us from a distance, and one or two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald-fraser/we-stood-there-for-a-full-half-hour-like-so-many-scarecrows-while/) [George MacDonald Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald-fraser/) > [I'm as religious as the next man - which is to say I'll keep in with the local parson for form's sake and read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald-fraser/i-m-as-religious-as-the-next-man-which-is-to-say-i-ll-keep-in-with/) [George MacDonald Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald-fraser/) > [I've been a Danish prince, a Texas slave-dealer, an Arab sheik, a Cheyenne Dog Soldier, and a Yankee navy lieutenant in my time, among…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald-fraser/i-ve-been-a-danish-prince-a-texas-slave-dealer-an-arab-sheik-a/) [George MacDonald Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald-fraser/) > [“Thats what you young chaps have to remember. When u run, RUN! Full speed. Don't dither or dally even for an instant. let terror…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald-fraser/thats-what-you-young-chaps-have-to-remember-when-u-run-run-full-speed/) [George MacDonald Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald-fraser/) > [Looking back over sixty-odd years, life is like a piece of string with knots in it, the knots being those moments that live in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald-fraser/looking-back-over-sixty-odd-years-life-is-like-a-piece-of-string-with/) [George MacDonald Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald-fraser/) > [“I recognized the handwriting, and my heart gave a skip; when I opened it I got a turn, for it began, 'To my beloved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald-fraser/i-recognized-the-handwriting-and-my-heart-gave-a-skip-when-i-opened/) [George MacDonald Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald-fraser/) > [“Now, look you here, Sekundar," says I, but he came up straight like a little bantam and cut me off. 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But it's wide open in a conditional way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-butler/the-thing-about-science-fiction-is-that-it-s-totally-wide-open-but-it/) [Octavia Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-butler/) > [I do think that theater is a great venue for science fiction, and not just adaptations but also original work. I also think some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-einhorn/i-do-think-that-theater-is-a-great-venue-for-science-fiction-and-not/) Edward Einhorn > [Fiction is a way of exploring possibilities present but undreamt of in the living of a single life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/fiction-is-a-way-of-exploring-possibilities-present-but-undreamt-of/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [I love writing fiction and can do it anywhere - I once even missed a flight because I was so engrossed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prue-leith/i-love-writing-fiction-and-can-do-it-anywhere-i-once-even-missed-a/) [Prue Leith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prue-leith/) > [“The fiction will seek the real.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coheed-and-cambria/the-fiction-will-seek-the-real/) Coheed and Cambria > [I think that most of us, anyway, read these stories that we know are not "true" because we're hungry for another kind of truth:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/i-think-that-most-of-us-anyway-read-these-stories-that-we-know-are/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [The danger that may really threaten (crime fiction) is that soon there will be more writers than readers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-barzun/the-danger-that-may-really-threaten-crime-fiction-is-that-soon-there/) [Jacques Barzun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-barzun/) > [There's always that discussion about fiction about how do you market it - these are books for boys, these are books for girls, these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-a-weatherly/there-s-always-that-discussion-about-fiction-about-how-do-you-market/) [L.A. 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I could feel his breath on my face our lips were about to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-eglinger/his-hands-on-my-waist-he-gently-pulled-me-n-embrace-i-could-feel-his/) [Nicole Eglinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-eglinger/) > [In early drafts, one of the trickiest things for me to do was to realize that the techniques and devices that make readable and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-rooney/in-early-drafts-one-of-the-trickiest-things-for-me-to-do-was-to/) [Kathleen Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-rooney/) > [I don't think it's always a sign of respect for persons (inside or outside of fiction) to pretend to be able to represent, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-lerner/i-don-t-think-it-s-always-a-sign-of-respect-for-persons-inside-or/) [Ben Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-lerner/) > [Metafiction says something. It has to do with taking a large fiction itself and writing within it; that kind of self-reflecting writing that emerges…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-coover/metafiction-says-something-it-has-to-do-with-taking-a-large-fiction/) [Robert Coover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-coover/) [Browse all 7,410 Fiction quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Walking the plank is a Victorian fiction, and I will not have it on my ship!”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "George MacDonald Fraser" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald-fraser/walking-the-plank-is-a-victorian-fiction-and-i-will-not-have-it-on-my/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Fiction" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald-fraser/walking-the-plank-is-a-victorian-fiction-and-i-will-not-have-it-on-my/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3aa/george-macdonald-fraser-29418_fiction_walking-the-plank-is-a-victorian-fiction_1180406.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3aa/george-macdonald-fraser-29418_fiction_walking-the-plank-is-a-victorian-fiction_1180406.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3aa/george-macdonald-fraser-29418_fiction_walking-the-plank-is-a-victorian-fiction_1180406.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Walking the plank is a Victorian fiction, and I will not have it on my ship!” — George MacDonald Fraser", "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": "George MacDonald Fraser", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald-fraser/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Walking the plank is a Victorian...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald-fraser/walking-the-plank-is-a-victorian-fiction-and-i-will-not-have-it-on-my/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald-fraser/walking-the-plank-is-a-victorian-fiction-and-i-will-not-have-it-on-my/#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 } } ] } ```