--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The Constitution is ink on parchment. It…" description: "\"“The Constitution is ink on parchment. It is forty-four hundred words. And it is, too, the accreted set of meanings that have been made of those words,..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/638/jill-lepore-4886_constitution_the-constitution-is-ink-on-parchment-it_1764078.png" --- # The Constitution is ink on parchment. It is forty-four… ![“The Constitution is ink on parchment. It is forty-four hundred words. And it is, too, the accreted set of meanings that have been made of those words, the amendments, the failed amendments, the struggles, the debates—the course of events—over more than two centuries. It is not easy, but it is…” quote by Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/638/jill-lepore-4886_constitution_the-constitution-is-ink-on-parchment-it_1764078.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/638/jill-lepore-4886_constitution_the-constitution-is-ink-on-parchment-it_1764078.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/638/jill-lepore-4886_constitution_the-constitution-is-ink-on-parchment-it_1764078.png) > ““The Constitution is ink on parchment. It is forty-four hundred words. And it is, too, the accreted set of meanings that have been made of those words, the amendments, the failed amendments, the struggles, the debates—the course of events—over more than two centuries. It is not easy, but it is everyone’s.”” [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The Constitution is a living document whose meaning expands through interpretation, amendment, and public debate over centuries. **In simple terms:** The Constitution evolves through interpretation and amendment. Key Takeaway Respect its ongoing development. Themes law history citizenship Mood reflective serious Type analytical historical When to use this quote - civic education - legal practice - public policy - historical analysis Key Concepts constitutional law interpretation amendments Questions to Reflect On - How does interpretation shape rights? - What responsibilities do citizens have? A Different Perspective Interpretations can be contested, leading to political polarization. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Amendments Struggles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amendments-struggles-1719483/) [Constitution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/constitution/) [Constitution Ink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/constitution-ink-1719481/) [Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Interpretation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interpretation/) [Meaning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meaning/) [Parchment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parchment/) [Parchment Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parchment-words-249731/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [United states](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/united-states/) [Words Amendments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words-amendments-1719482/) ## Related quotes > [“Snape pointed at the parchment, on which the words of Messrs Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs were still shining.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-k-rowling/snape-pointed-at-the-parchment-on-which-the-words-of-messrs-moony/) [J.K. Rowling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-k-rowling/) > [The sky is that beautiful old parchment in which the sun and the moon keep their diary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-kreymborg/the-sky-is-that-beautiful-old-parchment-in-which-the-sun-and-the-moon/) [Alfred Kreymborg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-kreymborg/) > [“No matter how smart you might appear to be later with your set of diplomas on their fine white parchment, the mistakes you made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tupelo-hassman/no-matter-how-smart-you-might-appear-to-be-later-with-your-set-of/) [Tupelo Hassman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tupelo-hassman/) > [I'm a fan of parchment and wood pulp.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-clowes/i-m-a-fan-of-parchment-and-wood-pulp/) [Daniel Clowes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-clowes/) > [Pen, wax and parchment govern the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/pen-wax-and-parchment-govern-the-world/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“A world of words where the black characters printed on the parchment he held meant more to this monk than the people or places…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marina-fiorato/a-world-of-words-where-the-black-characters-printed-on-the-parchment/) [Marina Fiorato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marina-fiorato/) > [“I used to capture the vastness and the immensity of the world and confine it to the limited pages of the parchment.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hark-herald-sarmiento/i-used-to-capture-the-vastness-and-the-immensity-of-the-world-and/) [Hark Herald Sarmiento](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hark-herald-sarmiento/) > [“In itself it is nothing. Nothing but a book: parchment, colouring, ink. Yet the most perishable material is at the same time the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lion-feuchtwanger/in-itself-it-is-nothing-nothing-but-a-book-parchment-colouring-ink/) [Lion Feuchtwanger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lion-feuchtwanger/) > [I still use quill and parchment. I do e-mails, and I write, but I don't go around surfing too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-nunez/i-still-use-quill-and-parchment-i-do-e-mails-and-i-write-but-i-don-t/) [Oscar Nunez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-nunez/) > [“well," he said, trying to sound as though he found the whole thing a joke, "if you want to -- er -- what is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-k-rowling/well-he-said-trying-to-sound-as-though-he-found-the-whole-thing-a/) [J.K. Rowling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-k-rowling/) > [The Constitution is a 200-year-old parchment, simply because we digitize the words should not suggest their meanings change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-markey/the-constitution-is-a-200-year-old-parchment-simply-because-we/) [Ed Markey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-markey/) > [“While parchment may burn and gold may be stained or melted down, the things that are truly important to us will never lose their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-meekins/while-parchment-may-burn-and-gold-may-be-stained-or-melted-down-the/) [Evan Meekins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-meekins/) > [“The characteristics of this kind of reading are perhaps summed up in the word “orthodox,” which is almost always applicable. The word comes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mortimer-j-adler/the-characteristics-of-this-kind-of-reading-are-perhaps-summed-up-in/) [Mortimer J. Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mortimer-j-adler/) > [What is a moderate interpretation of the text? Halfway between what it really means and what you'd like it to mean?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonin-scalia/what-is-a-moderate-interpretation-of-the-text-halfway-between-what-it/) [Antonin Scalia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonin-scalia/) > [From Augustine down, theologians have tried to compel people to accept their special interpretation of the Scripture, and the tortures of the inquisition, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matilda-joslyn-gage/from-augustine-down-theologians-have-tried-to-compel-people-to-accept/) [Matilda Joslyn Gage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matilda-joslyn-gage/) ## More by Jill Lepore > [Weirdly, there have been a lot of critics of conservatism, but very few critics of innovation. As a culture, we are deeply paranoid about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/weirdly-there-have-been-a-lot-of-critics-of-conservatism-but-very-few/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [History is only written from what remains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/history-is-only-written-from-what-remains/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [The study of history requires investigation, imagination, empathy, and respect. Reverence just doesn't enter into it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/the-study-of-history-requires-investigation-imagination-empathy-and/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [Well-reported news is a public good; bad news is bad for everyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/well-reported-news-is-a-public-good-bad-news-is-bad-for-everyone/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [The very first television ad targeted to women was produced by the Eisenhower-Nixon campaign in 1956. It includes footage of a woman supervising her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/the-very-first-television-ad-targeted-to-women-was-produced-by-the/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [Republicans were more pro-choice than Democrats up until the late 1980s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/republicans-were-more-pro-choice-than-democrats-up-until-the-late/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [It feels silly to watch endless hours of winter sports every four years, when we never watch them any other time, and we don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/it-feels-silly-to-watch-endless-hours-of-winter-sports-every-four/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [Historians once assumed that when childhood mortality was high, people must not have loved their children very much; it would have been too painful.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/historians-once-assumed-that-when-childhood-mortality-was-high-people/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [When carrying a concealed weapon for self-defense is understood NOT as a failure of civil society, to be mourned, but as an act of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/when-carrying-a-concealed-weapon-for-self-defense-is-understood-not/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > ['Doctor Who' is, unavoidably, a product of mid-twentieth-century debates about Britain's role in the world as its empire unravelled.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/doctor-who-is-unavoidably-a-product-of-mid-twentieth-century-debates/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [“Still, it strikes me that, taken together, they do make an argument, and it is this: the rise of American democracy is bound up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/still-it-strikes-me-that-taken-together-they-do-make-an-argument-and/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [One day, I was playing 'The Game of Life,' the board game, with a mess of kids, and I wasn't quite sure how, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/one-day-i-was-playing-the-game-of-life-the-board-game-with-a-mess-of/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [Mainly, the more faddish and newer stages of life are really just marketing schemes. Tweenhood. The young old. The quarter-life crisis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/mainly-the-more-faddish-and-newer-stages-of-life-are-really-just/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [“Politics is a story about the relationship between the past and the future; history is a story about the relationship between the past and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/politics-is-a-story-about-the-relationship-between-the-past-and-the/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [Not long before my mother died, I found a long-lost portrait of Jane Franklin's granddaughter, Jane Flagg, aged nine - oil on canvas -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/not-long-before-my-mother-died-i-found-a-long-lost-portrait-of-jane/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) [Explore all 105 Jill Lepore quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) ## More Constitution quotes > [ Next came the Patent laws. These began in England in 1624; and, in this country, with the adoption of our constitution. Before then \[these?\],… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/next-came-the-patent-laws-these-began-in-england-in-1624-and-in-this/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/) [Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/) > [In this choice of inheritance we have given to our frame of polity the image of a relation in blood; binding up the constitution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/in-this-choice-of-inheritance-we-have-given-to-our-frame-of-polity/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [As for doing good; that is one of the professions which is full. Moreover I have tried it fairly and, strange as it may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/as-for-doing-good-that-is-one-of-the-professions-which-is-full/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [While not widely reported, our victories in Iraq are plentiful. National elections, a democratic parliament and the drafting of a constitution are just some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gillmor/while-not-widely-reported-our-victories-in-iraq-are-plentiful/) [Paul Gillmor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gillmor/) > [In a recent decision of the Supreme Court, not made, however, by the full court, and concurred in by only four justices, it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bates-clark/in-a-recent-decision-of-the-supreme-court-not-made-however-by-the/) [John Bates Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bates-clark/) > [The judiciary must not take on the coloration of whatever may be popular at the moment. We are guardian of rights, and we have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-bird/the-judiciary-must-not-take-on-the-coloration-of-whatever-may-be/) [Rose Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-bird/) > [There is not a revolution that succe Women are suffering because they are being excluded. The high military council excluded women from the committee…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nawal-el-saadawi/there-is-not-a-revolution-that-succe-women-are-suffering-because-they/) [Nawal El Saadawi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nawal-el-saadawi/) > [Free government is founded in jealousy, and not in confidence; it is jealousy, and not confidence, which prescribes limited constitutions, to bind down those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/free-government-is-founded-in-jealousy-and-not-in-confidence-it-is/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [The American Constitution declares 'All men are born equal.' The British Socialist Party add: 'All men must be kept equal'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/the-american-constitution-declares-all-men-are-born-equal-the-british/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [“The Court has a special responsibility to ensure that the Constitution works in practice. While education, including the transmission of our civic values from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-breyer/the-court-has-a-special-responsibility-to-ensure-that-the/) [Stephen Breyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-breyer/) > [The Constitution is very clear on the - on the declaration of war or reacting to international crimes - crimes against nations. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-pitts/the-constitution-is-very-clear-on-the-on-the-declaration-of-war-or/) [Joe Pitts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-pitts/) > [Nothing from man's hands, nor law, nor constitution, can be final. Truth alone is final.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sumner/nothing-from-man-s-hands-nor-law-nor-constitution-can-be-final-truth/) [Charles Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sumner/) > [“I am apprehensive, Sir, that in the warmth of my feelings, I may have uttered expressions, which were too vehement. If such has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/i-am-apprehensive-sir-that-in-the-warmth-of-my-feelings-i-may-have/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [Conservative political opinion in America cleaves to the tradition of the judge as passive interpreter, believing that his absolute loyalty to authoritative law is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/learned-hand/conservative-political-opinion-in-america-cleaves-to-the-tradition-of/) [Learned Hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/learned-hand/) [Browse all 4,507 Constitution quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/constitution/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The Constitution is ink on parchment. It is forty-four hundred words. And it is, too, the accreted set of meanings that have been made of those words, the amendments, the failed amendments, the struggles, the debates—the course of events—over more than two centuries. It is not easy, but it is everyone’s.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jill Lepore" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/the-constitution-is-ink-on-parchment-it-is-forty-four-hundred-words/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Constitution" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/the-constitution-is-ink-on-parchment-it-is-forty-four-hundred-words/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/638/jill-lepore-4886_constitution_the-constitution-is-ink-on-parchment-it_1764078.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/638/jill-lepore-4886_constitution_the-constitution-is-ink-on-parchment-it_1764078.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/638/jill-lepore-4886_constitution_the-constitution-is-ink-on-parchment-it_1764078.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The Constitution is ink on parchment. It is forty-four hundred words. And it is, too, the accreted set of…” — Jill Lepore", "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": "Jill Lepore", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“The Constitution is ink on parchment....", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/the-constitution-is-ink-on-parchment-it-is-forty-four-hundred-words/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/the-constitution-is-ink-on-parchment-it-is-forty-four-hundred-words/#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 } } ] } ```