--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In later life, people will be impressed…" description: "\"“In later life, people will be impressed that you can quote Shakespeare, and you will sound very intelligent. It's harder to quote trigonometry, or qua..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08e/john-connolly-1479_life_in-later-life-people-will-be-impressed-t_1018740.jpg" --- # In later life, people will be impressed that you can quote… ![“In later life, people will be impressed that you can quote Shakespeare, and you will sound very intelligent. It's harder to quote trigonometry, or quadratic equations, and not half as romantic.” quote by John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08e/john-connolly-1479_life_in-later-life-people-will-be-impressed-t_1018740.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08e/john-connolly-1479_life_in-later-life-people-will-be-impressed-t_1018740.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08e/john-connolly-1479_life_in-later-life-people-will-be-impressed-t_1018740.jpg) > ““In later life, people will be impressed that you can quote Shakespeare, and you will sound very intelligent. It's harder to quote trigonometry, or quadratic equations, and not half as romantic.”” [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Intellectual prestige favors literary quotes over technical ones, which are less romantic but more useful. **In simple terms:** Literary quotes seem smarter; math quotes are practical. Key Takeaway Balance cultural and technical knowledge. Themes culture intelligence communication Mood reflective thoughtful Type observational advice When to use this quote - job interviews - academic presentations - networking events - public speaking Key Concepts literature mathematics social perception Questions to Reflect On - Do you prioritize impressing or informing? - How can you make technical knowledge engaging? A Different Perspective Technical quotes may alienate non‑technical audiences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Quadratic equation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quadratic-equation/) [Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shakespeare/) ## Related quotes > [The devil can quote Shakespeare for his own purpose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-devil-can-quote-shakespeare-for-his-own-purpose/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [You may be able to read Bernard Shaw's plays, you may be able to quote Shakespeare or Voltaire or some new philosopher; but if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/you-may-be-able-to-read-bernard-shaw-s-plays-you-may-be-able-to-quote/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [“I mutter and mutter and no one to listen. I speak my words in Japanese and my daughter will not hear them. The words…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hiromi-goto/i-mutter-and-mutter-and-no-one-to-listen-i-speak-my-words-in-japanese/) [Hiromi Goto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hiromi-goto/) > [“Then she began to quote from Shakespeare: ‘But love is blind, and lovers cannot see The pretty follies that themselves commit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-keene/then-she-began-to-quote-from-shakespeare-but-love-is-blind-and-lovers/) [Carolyn Keene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-keene/) > [“It makes me think that a marriage of true minds - to again quote Shakespeare - is in many ways just dumb luck.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlene-bauer/it-makes-me-think-that-a-marriage-of-true-minds-to-again-quote/) [Carlene Bauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlene-bauer/) > [“Everyone hated Calculus. Quadratic equations, parabolas, logarithms, trigonometry - you name it. It was like floating in an endless, frictionless void traveling at x…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-sturm/everyone-hated-calculus-quadratic-equations-parabolas-logarithms/) [Andrew Sturm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-sturm/) > [...the science of calculation also is indispensable as far as the extraction of the square and cube roots: Algebra as far as the quadratic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/the-science-of-calculation-also-is-indispensable-as-far-as-the/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [In the broad light of day mathematicians check their equations and their proofs, leaving no stone unturned in their search for rigour. But, at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-atiyah/in-the-broad-light-of-day-mathematicians-check-their-equations-and/) [Michael Atiyah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-atiyah/) > [How can you shorten the subject? That stern struggle with the multiplication table, for many people not yet ended in victory, how can you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-leacock/how-can-you-shorten-the-subject-that-stern-struggle-with-the/) [Stephen Leacock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-leacock/) > [Not a lot of people know this, but I'm very good at mathematics. When I was an angry teenager, I used to sit in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-bond/not-a-lot-of-people-know-this-but-i-m-very-good-at-mathematics-when-i/) [Samantha Bond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-bond/) > [“Well, sir, I think it's just as well that they are being phased out of the war effort, and that we are now going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/well-sir-i-think-it-s-just-as-well-that-they-are-being-phased-out-of/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [ There's a lot of science in it, and as Slartibartfast \[in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy\] said: 'I am a great fan of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/there-s-a-lot-of-science-in-it-and-as-slartibartfast-in-the/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“The name of the author is the first to go followed obediently by the title, the plot, the heartbreaking conclusion, the entire novel which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-collins/the-name-of-the-author-is-the-first-to-go-followed-obediently-by-the/) [Billy Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-collins/) > [I am a great fan of science, but I cannot do a quadratic equation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/i-am-a-great-fan-of-science-but-i-cannot-do-a-quadratic-equation/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“An ideological movement is a collection of people many of whom could hardly bake a cake, fix a car, sustain a friendship or a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-minogue/an-ideological-movement-is-a-collection-of-people-many-of-whom-could/) [Kenneth Minogue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-minogue/) ## More by John Connolly > [There is sometimes a feeling in crime fiction that good writing gets in the way of story. I have never felt that way. All…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/there-is-sometimes-a-feeling-in-crime-fiction-that-good-writing-gets/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [He had quite liked the dwarfs. He often had no idea what they were talking about, but for a group of homicidal, class-obsessed small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/he-had-quite-liked-the-dwarfs-he-often-had-no-idea-what-they-were/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [I'm a ghost," said the small figure, then added, a little uncertainly, "Boo?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/i-m-a-ghost-said-the-small-figure-then-added-a-little-uncertainly-boo/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“There is a price to be paid for everything, and it is a good idea to find out that price before you make the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/there-is-a-price-to-be-paid-for-everything-and-it-is-a-good-idea-to/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“She was a round, curvy woman who, for Parker, brought to mind a figure assembled from a selection of soft fruits. Aside”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/she-was-a-round-curvy-woman-who-for-parker-brought-to-mind-a-figure/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“Prepare for the worst and you won’t be disappointed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/prepare-for-the-worst-and-you-won-t-be-disappointed/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“When Louis relaxed, it was an indication that a threat was at hand and he was preparing to act, as when an archer releases…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/when-louis-relaxed-it-was-an-indication-that-a-threat-was-at-hand-and/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“The presence in the living room called to her, summoning her in a hundred voices and none, a great dissonant harmony alien yet familiar,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/the-presence-in-the-living-room-called-to-her-summoning-her-in-a/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“Warraner would rather have been the king of nothing than the prince of something.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/warraner-would-rather-have-been-the-king-of-nothing-than-the-prince/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“had been like wandering into the wrong carnival sideshow, the kind that left one feeling sick and slightly soiled.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/had-been-like-wandering-into-the-wrong-carnival-sideshow-the-kind/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“think you just like tethering goats.” “Well, be sure to tell me when your rope begins”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/think-you-just-like-tethering-goats-well-be-sure-to-tell-me-when-your/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“David could tell, by looking at her face as she read, whether or not the story contained in the book was living inside her,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/david-could-tell-by-looking-at-her-face-as-she-read-whether-or-not/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“Before she came ill, David's mother would often tell him that stories were alive. They weren't alive in the way that people were alive,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/before-she-came-ill-david-s-mother-would-often-tell-him-that-stories/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [“Stories wanted to be read, David's mother would whisper. They needed it. It was the reason they forced themselves from their world into ours.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/stories-wanted-to-be-read-david-s-mother-would-whisper-they-needed-it/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [She was plump, with dyed red hair and a face so caked with cosmetics that the floor of the Amazon jungle probably saw more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/she-was-plump-with-dyed-red-hair-and-a-face-so-caked-with-cosmetics/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) [Explore all 232 John Connolly quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) ## More Life quotes > [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/) [Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life works most perfectly when a reciprocal love relationship is in place between man and God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/life-works-most-perfectly-when-a-reciprocal-love-relationship-is-in/) [Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/) > [I value the experiences that come with life too much to sit by and not put my full effort into them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-miller/i-value-the-experiences-that-come-with-life-too-much-to-sit-by-and/) [Jim Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-miller/) > [Entertainment is a sacred pursuit when done well. When done well, it raises the quality of human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chabon/entertainment-is-a-sacred-pursuit-when-done-well-when-done-well-it/) [Michael Chabon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chabon/) > [“There's more to life than you can see. Your sight is limited.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tammy-kling/there-s-more-to-life-than-you-can-see-your-sight-is-limited/) [Tammy Kling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tammy-kling/) > [“I've spent much of my life calling my intuition "something wrong with me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deanna-l-lawlis/i-ve-spent-much-of-my-life-calling-my-intuition-something-wrong-with/) Deanna L. Lawlis > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/) [Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/) > [The only people who think the Internet is a calamity are people whose lives have been hurt by it; the only people who insist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/the-only-people-who-think-the-internet-is-a-calamity-are-people-whose/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/) [Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The future is only an indifferent void no one cares about, but the past is filled with life, and its countenance is irritating, repellent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-future-is-only-an-indifferent-void-no-one-cares-about-but-the/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Two things revolutionised life: moving to the countryside and falling in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-love/two-things-revolutionised-life-moving-to-the-countryside-and-falling/) [Nick Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-love/) > [But just remember, life without me would be even more unbearable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/but-just-remember-life-without-me-would-be-even-more-unbearable/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) [Browse all 265,290 Life quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“In later life, people will be impressed that you can quote Shakespeare, and you will sound very intelligent. It's harder to quote trigonometry, or quadratic equations, and not half as romantic.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Connolly" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/in-later-life-people-will-be-impressed-that-you-can-quote-shakespeare/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Life" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/in-later-life-people-will-be-impressed-that-you-can-quote-shakespeare/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08e/john-connolly-1479_life_in-later-life-people-will-be-impressed-t_1018740.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08e/john-connolly-1479_life_in-later-life-people-will-be-impressed-t_1018740.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08e/john-connolly-1479_life_in-later-life-people-will-be-impressed-t_1018740.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In later life, people will be impressed that you can quote Shakespeare, and you will sound very intelligent…” — John Connolly", "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": "John Connolly", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“In later life, people will be...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/in-later-life-people-will-be-impressed-that-you-can-quote-shakespeare/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/in-later-life-people-will-be-impressed-that-you-can-quote-shakespeare/#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 } } ] } ```