--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It was reading Hamlet that ruined the…" description: "\"It was reading Hamlet that ruined the concept of authenticity for me, not because Hamlet lacked existentialist credentials himself - indeed, as an earl..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65e/howard-jacobson-1484_authenticity_it-was-reading-hamlet-that-ruined-the-co_1187726.jpg" --- # It was reading Hamlet that ruined the concept of… ![“It was reading Hamlet that ruined the concept of authenticity for me, not because Hamlet lacked existentialist credentials himself - indeed, as an earlier discontented Dane, he could be said to have laid the ground for Kierkegaard - but because the line 'to thine own self be true' was spoken by…” quote by Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65e/howard-jacobson-1484_authenticity_it-was-reading-hamlet-that-ruined-the-co_1187726.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65e/howard-jacobson-1484_authenticity_it-was-reading-hamlet-that-ruined-the-co_1187726.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65e/howard-jacobson-1484_authenticity_it-was-reading-hamlet-that-ruined-the-co_1187726.jpg) > “It was reading Hamlet that ruined the concept of authenticity for me, not because Hamlet lacked existentialist credentials himself - indeed, as an earlier discontented Dane, he could be said to have laid the ground for Kierkegaard - but because the line 'to thine own self be true' was spoken by that humourless old ninny, Polonius.” [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) ## 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 reflects how reading Hamlet altered the author's view of authenticity, highlighting the irony of Polonius' advice. **In simple terms:** Hamlet changed the author's view on being true to oneself. Key Takeaway Question the source of advice you follow. Themes authenticity literature philosophy Mood thoughtful skeptical Type analytical critical When to use this quote - personal reflection - literary analysis - philosophical debate Key Concepts existentialism irony influence Questions to Reflect On - What does authenticity mean to you? - How do you assess the reliability of advice? A Different Perspective The advice comes from a character known for hypocrisy, challenging its credibility. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Authenticity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authenticity/) [Authenticity Hamlet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authenticity-hamlet-3510525/) [Hamlet Lacked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hamlet-lacked-3510528/) [Hamlet Ruined](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hamlet-ruined-3510527/) [Lacked Existentialist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lacked-existentialist-3510526/) [Old](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Reading Hamlet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-hamlet-2874295/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shakespeare/) [True](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/true/) ## Related quotes > [“A life without once reading Hamlet is like a life spent in a coal mine.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hector-berlioz/a-life-without-once-reading-hamlet-is-like-a-life-spent-in-a-coal-mine/) [Hector Berlioz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hector-berlioz/) > [“Without those peak experiences our lives would be pretty dull and flat. Berlioz put it this way: A life without once reading Hamlet is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/without-those-peak-experiences-our-lives-would-be-pretty-dull-and/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [When you're really famous, there's very little authenticity in people, so you prefer the company of children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-ryan/when-you-re-really-famous-there-s-very-little-authenticity-in-people/) [Katherine Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-ryan/) > [There is nothing which so certifies the genuineness of a man's faith as his patience and his patient endurance, his keeping on steadily in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-is-nothing-which-so-certifies-the-genuineness-of-a-man-s-faith/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [What I love about Nivea is they're all about authenticity. The brand isn't pretending to be anything it isn't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tessa-virtue/what-i-love-about-nivea-is-they-re-all-about-authenticity-the-brand/) [Tessa Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tessa-virtue/) > [Anything that I ever do is from the heart and authentic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belinda-carlisle/anything-that-i-ever-do-is-from-the-heart-and-authentic/) [Belinda Carlisle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belinda-carlisle/) > [“Instead of worrying about what you cannot control, focus your energy on what you can create.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-bennett/instead-of-worrying-about-what-you-cannot-control-focus-your-energy/) [Roy Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-bennett/) > [Accepting the reality of our sinfulness means accepting our authentic self. Judas could not face his shadow; Peter could. The latter befriended the impostor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brennan-manning/accepting-the-reality-of-our-sinfulness-means-accepting-our-authentic/) [Brennan Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brennan-manning/) > [Children go where they find sincerity and authenticity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-cantona/children-go-where-they-find-sincerity-and-authenticity/) [Eric Cantona](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-cantona/) > [“I strive for authenticity even though it brings with it vulnerability and the inevitable judgment of others.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-r-w-lee/i-strive-for-authenticity-even-though-it-brings-with-it-vulnerability/) [L.R.W. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-r-w-lee/) > [I think people can read authenticity and they know when you're involved and when you're just slapping your name on something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/la-la-anthony/i-think-people-can-read-authenticity-and-they-know-when-you-re/) [La La Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/la-la-anthony/) > [“I figure the more people think I'm just mildly weird, the less likely they are to know how weird I really am.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-hooyenga/i-figure-the-more-people-think-i-m-just-mildly-weird-the-less-likely/) [Melanie Hooyenga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-hooyenga/) > [Real artists offer authenticity, not just money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhymefest/real-artists-offer-authenticity-not-just-money/) [Rhymefest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhymefest/) > [Every genuine expression of love grows out of a consistent and total surrender to God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/every-genuine-expression-of-love-grows-out-of-a-consistent-and-total/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [“the property that grounded the self in Romanticism was sincerity, and in modernism was authenticity, then in postmod ernism it is visibility.10”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hedges/the-property-that-grounded-the-self-in-romanticism-was-sincerity-and/) [Chris Hedges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hedges/) ## More by Howard Jacobson > [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/) > [There's a simple arithmetical logic at work. Build more unaffordable and not always architecturally sympathetic apartments, watch the rents rise, the tarts leave, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/there-s-a-simple-arithmetical-logic-at-work-build-more-unaffordable/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [The novel is a thing of irony and ambiguity. That's at the heart of 'J', a world that has stopped arguing with itself. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/the-novel-is-a-thing-of-irony-and-ambiguity-that-s-at-the-heart-of-j/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [I was a 'reverence for life' man - 'see life steadily and see it whole' - in my days as a lecturer in English…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/i-was-a-reverence-for-life-man-see-life-steadily-and-see-it-whole-in/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [How Donald Trump has come so far with so few words - how he even managed to keep up conversationally with all those beauty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/how-donald-trump-has-come-so-far-with-so-few-words-how-he-even/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [It is a nonsense to me when people come along and tell me not to be pessimistic; or that culture has always been going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/it-is-a-nonsense-to-me-when-people-come-along-and-tell-me-not-to-be/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [For me a Writing Day was an occasion for self-reproach and panic, a time to lament the passing of the years, stare out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/for-me-a-writing-day-was-an-occasion-for-self-reproach-and-panic-a/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [Even the wordiest of men know there's a time to button it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/even-the-wordiest-of-men-know-there-s-a-time-to-button-it/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [That a nation's statuary will reflect beliefs and attitudes that are no longer current or congenial hardly needs arguing. In most instances, it doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/that-a-nation-s-statuary-will-reflect-beliefs-and-attitudes-that-are/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [“Was he a bad man or just a foolish one? He didn't feel bad to himself. As a husband he believed himself to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/was-he-a-bad-man-or-just-a-foolish-one-he-didn-t-feel-bad-to-himself/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [The young come in many guises: vigorous and passionate, vindictive and mean-spirited. And not every person over 65 is dozing in a retirement home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/the-young-come-in-many-guises-vigorous-and-passionate-vindictive-and/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [To a philosopher like Nietzsche, the Jew is culpable not for rejecting Christianity but for inventing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/to-a-philosopher-like-nietzsche-the-jew-is-culpable-not-for-rejecting/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [Shakespeare's always been sitting on my back, since I began reading. And, certainly, as a writer, he's who I hear all the time. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/shakespeare-s-always-been-sitting-on-my-back-since-i-began-reading/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [A novelist should make you realize nothing is stable. If you don't believe anything with robustness, you're doing something more radical than anything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/a-novelist-should-make-you-realize-nothing-is-stable-if-you-don-t/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [The Stop The War Coalition is a sort of home to Jew-haters because its hate music about Israel is so catchy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/the-stop-the-war-coalition-is-a-sort-of-home-to-jew-haters-because/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) [Explore all 235 Howard Jacobson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) ## More Authenticity quotes > [“the property that grounded the self in Romanticism was sincerity, and in modernism was authenticity, then in postmod ernism it is visibility.10”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hedges/the-property-that-grounded-the-self-in-romanticism-was-sincerity-and/) [Chris Hedges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hedges/) > [Every genuine expression of love grows out of a consistent and total surrender to God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/every-genuine-expression-of-love-grows-out-of-a-consistent-and-total/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Real artists offer authenticity, not just money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhymefest/real-artists-offer-authenticity-not-just-money/) [Rhymefest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhymefest/) > [“I figure the more people think I'm just mildly weird, the less likely they are to know how weird I really am.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-hooyenga/i-figure-the-more-people-think-i-m-just-mildly-weird-the-less-likely/) [Melanie Hooyenga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-hooyenga/) > [I think people can read authenticity and they know when you're involved and when you're just slapping your name on something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/la-la-anthony/i-think-people-can-read-authenticity-and-they-know-when-you-re/) [La La Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/la-la-anthony/) > [“I strive for authenticity even though it brings with it vulnerability and the inevitable judgment of others.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-r-w-lee/i-strive-for-authenticity-even-though-it-brings-with-it-vulnerability/) [L.R.W. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-r-w-lee/) > [Children go where they find sincerity and authenticity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-cantona/children-go-where-they-find-sincerity-and-authenticity/) [Eric Cantona](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-cantona/) > [Accepting the reality of our sinfulness means accepting our authentic self. Judas could not face his shadow; Peter could. The latter befriended the impostor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brennan-manning/accepting-the-reality-of-our-sinfulness-means-accepting-our-authentic/) [Brennan Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brennan-manning/) > [“Instead of worrying about what you cannot control, focus your energy on what you can create.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-bennett/instead-of-worrying-about-what-you-cannot-control-focus-your-energy/) [Roy Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-bennett/) > [Anything that I ever do is from the heart and authentic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belinda-carlisle/anything-that-i-ever-do-is-from-the-heart-and-authentic/) [Belinda Carlisle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belinda-carlisle/) > [What I love about Nivea is they're all about authenticity. The brand isn't pretending to be anything it isn't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tessa-virtue/what-i-love-about-nivea-is-they-re-all-about-authenticity-the-brand/) [Tessa Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tessa-virtue/) > [There is nothing which so certifies the genuineness of a man's faith as his patience and his patient endurance, his keeping on steadily in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-is-nothing-which-so-certifies-the-genuineness-of-a-man-s-faith/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When you're really famous, there's very little authenticity in people, so you prefer the company of children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-ryan/when-you-re-really-famous-there-s-very-little-authenticity-in-people/) [Katherine Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-ryan/) > [“We could not be fulfilled if we weren't inauthentic some of the time—inauthentic, that is, in relation to such things as our passing desires…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/we-could-not-be-fulfilled-if-we-weren-t-inauthentic-some-of-the-time/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [No man knows the genuineness of his convictions until he has sacrificed something for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-hubbel-chapin/no-man-knows-the-genuineness-of-his-convictions-until-he-has/) [Edwin Hubbel Chapin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-hubbel-chapin/) [Browse all 1,437 Authenticity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authenticity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It was reading Hamlet that ruined the concept of authenticity for me, not because Hamlet lacked existentialist credentials himself - indeed, as an earlier discontented Dane, he could be said to have laid the ground for Kierkegaard - but because the line 'to thine own self be true' was spoken by that humourless old ninny, Polonius.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Howard Jacobson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/it-was-reading-hamlet-that-ruined-the-concept-of-authenticity-for-me/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Authenticity" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/it-was-reading-hamlet-that-ruined-the-concept-of-authenticity-for-me/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65e/howard-jacobson-1484_authenticity_it-was-reading-hamlet-that-ruined-the-co_1187726.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65e/howard-jacobson-1484_authenticity_it-was-reading-hamlet-that-ruined-the-co_1187726.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65e/howard-jacobson-1484_authenticity_it-was-reading-hamlet-that-ruined-the-co_1187726.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It was reading Hamlet that ruined the concept of authenticity for me, not because Hamlet lacked…” — Howard Jacobson", "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": "Howard Jacobson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It was reading Hamlet that ruined...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/it-was-reading-hamlet-that-ruined-the-concept-of-authenticity-for-me/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/it-was-reading-hamlet-that-ruined-the-concept-of-authenticity-for-me/#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 } } ] } ```