--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A lifetime’s work, to try and say one…" description: "\"A lifetime’s work, to try and say one thing that’s true.\" — Jez Butterworth" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62c/jez-butterworth-32626_lifetime_a-lifetime-s-work-to-try-and-say-one-thi_1816729.jpg" --- # A lifetime’s work, to try and say one thing that’s true. ![“A lifetime’s work, to try and say one thing that’s true.” quote by Jez Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62c/jez-butterworth-32626_lifetime_a-lifetime-s-work-to-try-and-say-one-thi_1816729.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62c/jez-butterworth-32626_lifetime_a-lifetime-s-work-to-try-and-say-one-thi_1816729.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62c/jez-butterworth-32626_lifetime_a-lifetime-s-work-to-try-and-say-one-thi_1816729.jpg) > “A lifetime’s work, to try and say one thing that’s true.” [Jez Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jez-butterworth/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The writer’s lifelong aim is to convey a singular, universal truth, reflecting dedication to meaningful expression. **In simple terms:** Seek one true, to express. Key Takeaway Pursue clarity and truth in your work. Themes artistic purpose truth dedication Mood determined inspired Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - writing - public speaking - teaching Key Concepts philosophy literature Questions to Reflect On - What truth do you feel compelled to share? - How can you make it resonate? A Different Perspective Truth may be subjective. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Lifetime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lifetime/) ## Related quotes > [There's no one thing that is true. They're all true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/there-s-no-one-thing-that-is-true-they-re-all-true/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [What do you do with a lifetime of work? Face it in the morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/what-do-you-do-with-a-lifetime-of-work-face-it-in-the-morning/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > [“That’s the thing about true love—we never see the beginning or the end.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vi-keeland/that-s-the-thing-about-true-love-we-never-see-the-beginning-or-the-end/) [Vi Keeland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vi-keeland/) > [Christians already? It seems to me that it takes a lifetime of work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/christians-already-it-seems-to-me-that-it-takes-a-lifetime-of-work/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [Discovering the truth about ourselves is a lifetime’s work, but it’s worth the effort.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-rogers/discovering-the-truth-about-ourselves-is-a-lifetime-s-work-but-it-s/) [Fred Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-rogers/) > [I probably did pack a lifetime's work into the 1980s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lloyd/i-probably-did-pack-a-lifetime-s-work-into-the-1980s/) [John Lloyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lloyd/) > [I believe that it is a whole lifetime of work on Shakespeare's part that enabled him to do what he did. But the question…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-greenblatt/i-believe-that-it-is-a-whole-lifetime-of-work-on-shakespeare-s-part/) [Stephen Greenblatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-greenblatt/) > [I think saving the NHS is a lifetime's work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-hunt/i-think-saving-the-nhs-is-a-lifetime-s-work/) [Jeremy Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-hunt/) > [It's the privilege of a lifetime for me to work with the most innovative people on Earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-cook/it-s-the-privilege-of-a-lifetime-for-me-to-work-with-the-most/) [Tim Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-cook/) > [“Bob Jervis, the original author of Turbo C, gave a tech talk recently in which he pointed out that even just the set of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-yegge/bob-jervis-the-original-author-of-turbo-c-gave-a-tech-talk-recently/) [Steve Yegge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-yegge/) > [I have this reputation of not wanting to talk to the media, which isn't true. What I don't like-what a lot of us don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vijay-singh/i-have-this-reputation-of-not-wanting-to-talk-to-the-media-which-isn/) [Vijay Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vijay-singh/) > [Painting is just like making an after-dinner speech. If you want to be remembered, say one thing and stop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-hawthorne/painting-is-just-like-making-an-after-dinner-speech-if-you-want-to-be/) [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) > [“I know now that there is no one thing is true–it is all true.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/i-know-now-that-there-is-no-one-thing-is-true-it-is-all-true/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [There's no one thing that's true. It's all true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/there-s-no-one-thing-that-s-true-it-s-all-true/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [A thing can be true and still be desperate folly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-adams/a-thing-can-be-true-and-still-be-desperate-folly/) [Richard Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-adams/) ## More by Jez Butterworth > [Writing for 'Rooster' was a strange experience. It's funny, once you tap into a voice, words just start to flow. You know when you've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jez-butterworth/writing-for-rooster-was-a-strange-experience-it-s-funny-once-you-tap/) [Jez Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jez-butterworth/) > [I don't think that writers have any responsibility to be good neighbors to the audience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jez-butterworth/i-don-t-think-that-writers-have-any-responsibility-to-be-good/) [Jez Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jez-butterworth/) > [When you have kids, you can choose to make them like you, or become like them, and if you've got something that's going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jez-butterworth/when-you-have-kids-you-can-choose-to-make-them-like-you-or-become/) [Jez Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jez-butterworth/) > [Looking back, I spent a lot of time sitting in pubs when I should have been perfecting my playwriting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jez-butterworth/looking-back-i-spent-a-lot-of-time-sitting-in-pubs-when-i-should-have/) [Jez Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jez-butterworth/) > [“I, Rooster John Byron, hereby place a curse Upon the Kennet and Avon Council, May they wander the land for ever, Never sleep twice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jez-butterworth/i-rooster-john-byron-hereby-place-a-curse-upon-the-kennet-and-avon/) [Jez Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jez-butterworth/) > [I grew up in a household that was very left wing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jez-butterworth/i-grew-up-in-a-household-that-was-very-left-wing/) [Jez Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jez-butterworth/) > [If you can write a character who is attractive but morally reprehensible, then you've got a character. It's got to feel like people I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jez-butterworth/if-you-can-write-a-character-who-is-attractive-but-morally/) [Jez Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jez-butterworth/) > [I'm English and love England. Whenever I'm there, I'm always seeing the present but feeling its past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jez-butterworth/i-m-english-and-love-england-whenever-i-m-there-i-m-always-seeing-the/) [Jez Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jez-butterworth/) > [I do notice that I spend a lot of all my time steeped in different forms of myth, such as English folk music, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jez-butterworth/i-do-notice-that-i-spend-a-lot-of-all-my-time-steeped-in-different/) [Jez Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jez-butterworth/) > [My father got a trade union scholarship to Oxford; he lived and breathed politics; he was always watching current-affairs programmes. But I have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jez-butterworth/my-father-got-a-trade-union-scholarship-to-oxford-he-lived-and/) [Jez Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jez-butterworth/) > [I love Stewart Lee's 'Comedy Vehicle' on BBC2. The guy is a genius.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jez-butterworth/i-love-stewart-lee-s-comedy-vehicle-on-bbc2-the-guy-is-a-genius/) [Jez Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jez-butterworth/) > [I actually have blissfully romantic views of marriage, because that has been my experience of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jez-butterworth/i-actually-have-blissfully-romantic-views-of-marriage-because-that/) [Jez Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jez-butterworth/) > [“I may bring other women here, to this place, and I may tell them I love them, and make love to them. But they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jez-butterworth/i-may-bring-other-women-here-to-this-place-and-i-may-tell-them-i-love/) [Jez Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jez-butterworth/) > [I understood very little about the significance of the Tony before, but I've learned that it makes a huge significance to whether or not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jez-butterworth/i-understood-very-little-about-the-significance-of-the-tony-before/) [Jez Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jez-butterworth/) [Explore all 15 Jez Butterworth quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jez-butterworth/) ## More Lifetime quotes > [It's sort of the American way to go up and down the ladder, maybe several times in a lifetime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-stewart/it-s-sort-of-the-american-way-to-go-up-and-down-the-ladder-maybe/) [Martha Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-stewart/) > [Many individuals spend a considerable portion of their lifetimes in terror of one imagined catastrophe or another. The classic is that your immortal soul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-neil-smith/many-individuals-spend-a-considerable-portion-of-their-lifetimes-in/) [L. Neil Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-neil-smith/) > [So many things beat upon us in a lifetime that simply enduring may seem almost beyond us… But the test a loving God has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-b-eyring/so-many-things-beat-upon-us-in-a-lifetime-that-simply-enduring-may/) [Henry B. Eyring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-b-eyring/) > [The number of ways you can live in one lifetime is limitless. So why limit yourself? The sky is not the limit. Beyond the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzy-kassem/the-number-of-ways-you-can-live-in-one-lifetime-is-limitless-so-why/) [Suzy Kassem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzy-kassem/) > [People are capable of great, great change during the span of one lifetime. And women even more than men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/people-are-capable-of-great-great-change-during-the-span-of-one/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) > [A man could be a lover and defender of the wilderness without ever in his lifetime leaving the boundaries of asphalt, powerlines, and right-angled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/a-man-could-be-a-lover-and-defender-of-the-wilderness-without-ever-in/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [With all the technology we're inventing and what they're coming up with scientifically, people are having longer lifetimes. It's scary, but in the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brittany-murphy/with-all-the-technology-we-re-inventing-and-what-they-re-coming-up/) [Brittany Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brittany-murphy/) > [Real chessplayers think about chess more or less 24 hours a day. It is a passion and a fate that one has to live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simen-agdestein/real-chessplayers-think-about-chess-more-or-less-24-hours-a-day-it-is/) Simen Agdestein > [If Robert Heinlein is more to your taste than George Lucas: “If you are part of a society that votes, then do so. There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-drum/if-robert-heinlein-is-more-to-your-taste-than-george-lucas-if-you-are/) [Kevin Drum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-drum/) > [“A life is about twenty-five thousand days, and a finding occurs about once every twenty-five thousand days. In other news, once in a lifetime.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-yu/a-life-is-about-twenty-five-thousand-days-and-a-finding-occurs-about/) [Charles Yu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-yu/) > [They say a man doesn't know himself until he faces death for the first time. . . I don't know about that. It seems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/they-say-a-man-doesn-t-know-himself-until-he-faces-death-for-the/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [It is an interesting law of romance that a truly strong woman will choose a strong man who disagrees with her over a weak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ebert/it-is-an-interesting-law-of-romance-that-a-truly-strong-woman-will/) [Roger Ebert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ebert/) > [The caricature of science is that we hold tight to the theories we have, and shun challenges to them. That's just not true. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/the-caricature-of-science-is-that-we-hold-tight-to-the-theories-we/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [In my lifetime I have broken every law that was ever made by both man and God", he said, "If either had made any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-panzram/in-my-lifetime-i-have-broken-every-law-that-was-ever-made-by-both-man/) [Carl Panzram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-panzram/) > [To invest successfully over a lifetime does not require a stratospheric IQ, unusual business insights, or inside information. What's needed is a sound intellectual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-buffett/to-invest-successfully-over-a-lifetime-does-not-require-a/) [Warren Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-buffett/) [Browse all 2,943 Lifetime quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lifetime/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A lifetime’s work, to try and say one thing that’s true.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jez Butterworth" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jez-butterworth/a-lifetime-s-work-to-try-and-say-one-thing-that-s-true/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Lifetime" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jez-butterworth/a-lifetime-s-work-to-try-and-say-one-thing-that-s-true/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62c/jez-butterworth-32626_lifetime_a-lifetime-s-work-to-try-and-say-one-thi_1816729.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62c/jez-butterworth-32626_lifetime_a-lifetime-s-work-to-try-and-say-one-thi_1816729.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62c/jez-butterworth-32626_lifetime_a-lifetime-s-work-to-try-and-say-one-thi_1816729.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A lifetime’s work, to try and say one thing that’s true.” — Jez Butterworth", "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": "Jez Butterworth", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jez-butterworth/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "A lifetime’s work, to try and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jez-butterworth/a-lifetime-s-work-to-try-and-say-one-thing-that-s-true/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jez-butterworth/a-lifetime-s-work-to-try-and-say-one-thing-that-s-true/#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 } } ] } ```