--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I guess, is we are not saying, \"Look…" description: "\"I guess, is we are not saying, \"Look, William Shakespeare's written a critique of modern Africa.\" What we're saying is that we've shifted the metaphor ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/316/gregory-doran-30201_critique_i-guess-is-we-are-not-saying-look-willia_286496.jpg" --- # I guess, is we are not saying, "Look, William… ![“I guess, is we are not saying, "Look, William Shakespeare's written a critique of modern Africa." What we're saying is that we've shifted the metaphor to make it more immediate.” quote by Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/316/gregory-doran-30201_critique_i-guess-is-we-are-not-saying-look-willia_286496.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/316/gregory-doran-30201_critique_i-guess-is-we-are-not-saying-look-willia_286496.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/316/gregory-doran-30201_critique_i-guess-is-we-are-not-saying-look-willia_286496.jpg) > “I guess, is we are not saying, "Look, William Shakespeare's written a critique of modern Africa." What we're saying is that we've shifted the metaphor to make it more immediate.” [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote suggests that modern creators reinterpret classic works, like Shakespeare, to address current issues directly rather than merely critiquing them. **In simple terms:** Modern artists reframe classics for today’s relevance. Key Takeaway Embrace reinterpretation to connect past and present. Themes adaptation modernity literature interpretation Mood reflective critical Type analytical interpretive When to use this quote - theatre production - literary criticism - educational curricula - media analysis Key Concepts cultural translation metaphor shift Questions to Reflect On - How does recontextualizing a classic affect its meaning? - What responsibilities do artists have when updating historic works? A Different Perspective May dilute original intent or oversimplify complex texts. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Africa Saying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/africa-saying-1567279/) [Critique](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/critique/) [Critique Modern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/critique-modern-2767324/) [Metaphor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/metaphor/) [Modern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modern/) [Modern Africa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modern-africa-2767325/) [Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shakespeare/) [Shifted Metaphor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shifted-metaphor-2767323/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/william-shakespeare/) ## Related quotes > [Without evading the grimness of life in much of modern Africa, one can recognize that this continent is not yet sick as our continent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dervla-murphy/without-evading-the-grimness-of-life-in-much-of-modern-africa-one-can/) [Dervla Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dervla-murphy/) > [“In Africa, we have a saying,” Alile said. “To get lost is to learn the way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-cawdron/in-africa-we-have-a-saying-alile-said-to-get-lost-is-to-learn-the-way/) [Peter Cawdron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-cawdron/) > [I've got fans and letters from Israel, France Germany, Sweden, London, Africa. They all saying pretty much the same thing, 'Yo, we love you,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dmx/i-ve-got-fans-and-letters-from-israel-france-germany-sweden-london/) [DMX](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dmx/) > [There's a wonderful author named Can Themba, who said that Africa extends a fraternal handshake to Shakespeare. That William Shakespeare would have recognized Elizabethan…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/there-s-a-wonderful-author-named-can-themba-who-said-that-africa/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [My first interaction with William Shakespeare was an American production and there was an actress, playing Puck, who sounded like Mickey Mouse. When she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/my-first-interaction-with-william-shakespeare-was-an-american/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [I went to a Jesuit school and they did a William Shakespeare play every year. I got to know Shakespeare as parts I wanted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/i-went-to-a-jesuit-school-and-they-did-a-william-shakespeare-play/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [By the time I came of age and, indeed, Margaret Thatcher became prime minister, I had seen the entire William Shakespeare canon, which, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/by-the-time-i-came-of-age-and-indeed-margaret-thatcher-became-prime/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [King Lear by William Shakespeare frightens me. I've never done King Lear, I guess partially because my father dwindled into dementia in his last…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/king-lear-by-william-shakespeare-frightens-me-i-ve-never-done-king/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [I think William Shakespeare's like a passport through your life: as a kid hearing about a play with fairies or witches or ghosts, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/i-think-william-shakespeare-s-like-a-passport-through-your-life-as-a/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [I think William Shakespeare was the wisest human being I ever heard of. To be perfectly frank, though, that's not saying much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/i-think-william-shakespeare-was-the-wisest-human-being-i-ever-heard/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [I had lived with my mother in anger and love - I suppose most daughters do - but my children only knew her in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-viorst/i-had-lived-with-my-mother-in-anger-and-love-i-suppose-most-daughters/) [Judith Viorst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-viorst/) > [ \[Thine\] face is not worth sunburning. William Shakespeare, Henry V ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespear/thine-face-is-not-worth-sunburning-william-shakespeare-henry-v/) [William Shakespear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespear/) > [Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none. William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespear/love-all-trust-a-few-do-wrong-to-none-william-shakespeare/) [William Shakespear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespear/) > [Mr. William Shakespeare was born at Stratford upon Avon in the county of Warwick. His father was a butcher, and I have been told…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-aubrey/mr-william-shakespeare-was-born-at-stratford-upon-avon-in-the-county/) [John Aubrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-aubrey/) > [“There's beggary in the love that can be reckoned. (Anthony and Cleopatra - William Shakespeare.)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-stuart/there-s-beggary-in-the-love-that-can-be-reckoned-anthony-and/) [Sarah Stuart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-stuart/) ## More by Gregory Doran > [I have seen productions of Julius Caesar that set it in a modern, Western context and it just looks as though they're getting rid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/i-have-seen-productions-of-julius-caesar-that-set-it-in-a-modern/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [Sometimes the parallels that are brought in can make the play seem less relevant; you can deny a play's application to the universal by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/sometimes-the-parallels-that-are-brought-in-can-make-the-play-seem/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [I think William Shakespeare's like a passport through your life: as a kid hearing about a play with fairies or witches or ghosts, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/i-think-william-shakespeare-s-like-a-passport-through-your-life-as-a/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [I don't think Vladimir Putin goes to the theater enough to even deign to think there was any criticism intended. We were invited by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/i-don-t-think-vladimir-putin-goes-to-the-theater-enough-to-even-deign/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [Sometimes it can get overburdened with nuance - the actors find all sorts of different spins on the lines that can lose simplicity and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/sometimes-it-can-get-overburdened-with-nuance-the-actors-find-all/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [King Lear by William Shakespeare frightens me. I've never done King Lear, I guess partially because my father dwindled into dementia in his last…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/king-lear-by-william-shakespeare-frightens-me-i-ve-never-done-king/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [The list of potential candidates for Julius Caesar is quite large. You could go, "Well, he's a Caesar." Idi Amin, or Bokassa in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/the-list-of-potential-candidates-for-julius-caesar-is-quite-large-you/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [I always feel emotionally engaged in productions. If I ever get to the point where I don't feel emotionally engaged, maybe I should stop.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/i-always-feel-emotionally-engaged-in-productions-if-i-ever-get-to-the/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [By the time I came of age and, indeed, Margaret Thatcher became prime minister, I had seen the entire William Shakespeare canon, which, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/by-the-time-i-came-of-age-and-indeed-margaret-thatcher-became-prime/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [Really what Brutus and Cassius do by assassinating Caesar, is open up a vacuum into which much more ruthless people run. Julius Caesar is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/really-what-brutus-and-cassius-do-by-assassinating-caesar-is-open-up/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [At the assassination of Caesar when Cassius says, "How many ages hence shall this our lofty scene be acted over in states unborn and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/at-the-assassination-of-caesar-when-cassius-says-how-many-ages-hence/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [I was doing an interview with Charlie Rose and he said, "What do you think about Margaret Thatcher?" - and I had not heard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/i-was-doing-an-interview-with-charlie-rose-and-he-said-what-do-you/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [I went to a Jesuit school and they did a William Shakespeare play every year. I got to know Shakespeare as parts I wanted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/i-went-to-a-jesuit-school-and-they-did-a-william-shakespeare-play/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [My first interaction with William Shakespeare was an American production and there was an actress, playing Puck, who sounded like Mickey Mouse. When she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/my-first-interaction-with-william-shakespeare-was-an-american/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) > [There's a wonderful author named Can Themba, who said that Africa extends a fraternal handshake to Shakespeare. That William Shakespeare would have recognized Elizabethan…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/there-s-a-wonderful-author-named-can-themba-who-said-that-africa/) [Gregory Doran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) [Explore all 17 Gregory Doran quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/) ## More Critique quotes > [I get that the media wants us to play theater critics and critique every other proposal. What I'm focusing on are my own policy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-cruz/i-get-that-the-media-wants-us-to-play-theater-critics-and-critique/) [Ted Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-cruz/) > [What’s looming in the shadows of our ignorance and denial is a critique of civilization itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lierre-keith/what-s-looming-in-the-shadows-of-our-ignorance-and-denial-is-a/) [Lierre Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lierre-keith/) > [If I think something is heinous, but the person feels amazing in it, who am I to critique it? If they think that those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tan-france/if-i-think-something-is-heinous-but-the-person-feels-amazing-in-it/) [Tan France](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tan-france/) > [“Rather than critique people, try admiring God’s creative handiwork.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/rather-than-critique-people-try-admiring-god-s-creative-handiwork/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > [I want to decouple this idea that critique is hatred.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsay-ellis/i-want-to-decouple-this-idea-that-critique-is-hatred/) [Lindsay Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsay-ellis/) > [America is not static. America is striving. And sometimes, America requires critique. Jingoism is an avoidance of realism. You can simultaneously love and be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-m-blow/america-is-not-static-america-is-striving-and-sometimes-america/) [Charles M. Blow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-m-blow/) > [It's difficult sometimes to go and see a show and enjoy it and not go and see a show and critique it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-garratt/it-s-difficult-sometimes-to-go-and-see-a-show-and-enjoy-it-and-not-go/) [Jack Garratt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-garratt/) > [I love my family, even as I critique their dysfunctionalities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bell-hooks/i-love-my-family-even-as-i-critique-their-dysfunctionalities/) [bell hooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bell-hooks/) > [Liberalism can only be defined negatively. It is a mere critique, not a living idea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-parker-yockey/liberalism-can-only-be-defined-negatively-it-is-a-mere-critique-not-a/) [Francis Parker Yockey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-parker-yockey/) > [I am not offering this is a critique of the internet, its just that there are a lot of factors involved. It does offer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-am-not-offering-this-is-a-critique-of-the-internet-its-just-that/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“novel excerpts rarely benefit from group critique. It’s one thing to get all those opinions when you’ve finished, but when you’re still in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-patchett/novel-excerpts-rarely-benefit-from-group-critique-it-s-one-thing-to/) [Ann Patchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-patchett/) > [Whenever convictions are not arrived at by direct contact with the world and the objects themselves, but indirectly through a critique of the opinions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-scheler/whenever-convictions-are-not-arrived-at-by-direct-contact-with-the/) [Max Scheler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-scheler/) > [The critique of social inequality, which is very much a part of my story, came about naturally from my recollection of Huck and Tom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/the-critique-of-social-inequality-which-is-very-much-a-part-of-my/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [Tom Hart, David Lasky, Ed Brubaker, Megan Kelso, Julie Doucet. These people lived comics. The people in Seattle got together every week to draw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-porcellino/tom-hart-david-lasky-ed-brubaker-megan-kelso-julie-doucet-these/) [John Porcellino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-porcellino/) > [The point of recapitulation in the first movement of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony unleashes one of the most horrifyingly violent episodes in the history of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-mcclary/the-point-of-recapitulation-in-the-first-movement-of-beethoven-s/) [Susan McClary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-mcclary/) [Browse all 373 Critique quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/critique/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I guess, is we are not saying, \"Look, William Shakespeare's written a critique of modern Africa.\" What we're saying is that we've shifted the metaphor to make it more immediate.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gregory Doran" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/i-guess-is-we-are-not-saying-look-william-shakespeare-s-written-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Critique" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/i-guess-is-we-are-not-saying-look-william-shakespeare-s-written-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/316/gregory-doran-30201_critique_i-guess-is-we-are-not-saying-look-willia_286496.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/316/gregory-doran-30201_critique_i-guess-is-we-are-not-saying-look-willia_286496.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/316/gregory-doran-30201_critique_i-guess-is-we-are-not-saying-look-willia_286496.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I guess, is we are not saying, \"Look, William Shakespeare's written a critique of modern Africa.\" What we're…” — Gregory Doran", "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": "Gregory Doran", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-doran/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I guess, is we are not...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/i-guess-is-we-are-not-saying-look-william-shakespeare-s-written-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-doran/i-guess-is-we-are-not-saying-look-william-shakespeare-s-written-a/#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 } } ] } ```