--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's a sword, not a fairy wand, you know." description: "\"It's a sword, not a fairy wand, you know.\" — John Flanagan" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/683/john-flanagan-904_fairy_it-s-a-sword-not-a-fairy-wand-you-know-2_2176770.png" --- # It's a sword, not a fairy wand, you know. ![“It's a sword, not a fairy wand, you know.” quote by John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/683/john-flanagan-904_fairy_it-s-a-sword-not-a-fairy-wand-you-know-2_2176770.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/683/john-flanagan-904_fairy_it-s-a-sword-not-a-fairy-wand-you-know-2_2176770.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/683/john-flanagan-904_fairy_it-s-a-sword-not-a-fairy-wand-you-know-2_2176770.png) > “It's a sword, not a fairy wand, you know.” [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Powerful tools require responsibility; they are not whimsical toys. **In simple terms:** Power is serious, not playful. Key Takeaway Use power responsibly. Themes responsibility power realism Mood cautionary serious Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - leadership - law enforcement - military command Key Concepts ethics consequences discipline Questions to Reflect On - What safeguards prevent abuse of power? - How to teach responsibility early? A Different Perspective Power can be misused if treated lightly. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fairy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fairy/) [Sword](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sword/) [Wands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wands/) ## Related quotes > [It is a strange feeling for a girl when first she finds the power put into her hand of influencing the destiny of another…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-wollstonecraft-shelley/it-is-a-strange-feeling-for-a-girl-when-first-she-finds-the-power-put/) [Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-wollstonecraft-shelley/) > [I'm a big believer that your word is your wand. You know how people say things like, 'Oh my gosh, I'm such an idiot.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariska-hargitay/i-m-a-big-believer-that-your-word-is-your-wand-you-know-how-people/) [Mariska Hargitay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariska-hargitay/) > [Winter sunshine is a fairy wand touching everything with a strange magic. It is like the smile of a friend in time of sorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patience-strong/winter-sunshine-is-a-fairy-wand-touching-everything-with-a-strange/) [Patience Strong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patience-strong/) > [Let me offer you, metaphorically, two magic wands that have sweeping powers to change society. With one wand you could wipe out all racism…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-lamm/let-me-offer-you-metaphorically-two-magic-wands-that-have-sweeping/) [Richard Lamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-lamm/) > [He was going to be armed with his wand - which, just now, felt like nothing more than a narrow strip of wood -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/he-was-going-to-be-armed-with-his-wand-which-just-now-felt-like/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [What philosopher of the schoolroom, with the mental dowry of four summers, ever questions the power of the wand that opened the dark eyes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/what-philosopher-of-the-schoolroom-with-the-mental-dowry-of-four/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I beg you I no magician. I can't just wave a magic wand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-johnson-sirleaf/i-beg-you-i-no-magician-i-can-t-just-wave-a-magic-wand/) [Ellen Johnson Sirleaf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-johnson-sirleaf/) > [“Most druids fall into two groups: sticks or stones. Wood has some wonderful properties, but it has a tendency to react too much with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-del-franco/most-druids-fall-into-two-groups-sticks-or-stones-wood-has-some/) Mark Del Franco > [So that every wand or staff of empire is forsooth curved at top.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/so-that-every-wand-or-staff-of-empire-is-forsooth-curved-at-top/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [Harry: "And what if I wave my wand and nothing happens?” Ron: “Throw it away and punch him on the nose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-k-rowling-2/harry-and-what-if-i-wave-my-wand-and-nothing-happens-ron-throw-it/) [J. K. Rowling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-k-rowling-2/) > [Whoops - My wand is a little over excited!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/whoops-my-wand-is-a-little-over-excited/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [What must strike any intelligent witch or wizard on studying the so-called history of the Elder Wand is that every man who claims to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-must-strike-any-intelligent-witch-or-wizard-on-studying-the-so/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Neville kicked aside the broken fragments of his own wand as they walked slowly toward the door. "My gran's going do kill be," said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/neville-kicked-aside-the-broken-fragments-of-his-own-wand-as-they/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Poetical taste is the only magician whose wand is not broken. No hand, except its own, can dissolve the fabric of beauty in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/poetical-taste-is-the-only-magician-whose-wand-is-not-broken-no-hand/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I intend to do the Penn & Teller show until they pry my cheesy magic wand from my cold dead fingers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/i-intend-to-do-the-penn-teller-show-until-they-pry-my-cheesy-magic/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) ## More by John Flanagan > [What about you three, where are you going?" Even before Halt answered, Will knew what he was going to say. But that didn't make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/what-about-you-three-where-are-you-going-even-before-halt-answered/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [“There's a tavern by the docks. He's there most evenings." "Then I'll talk to him tonight," Halt said. "You can try. But he's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/there-s-a-tavern-by-the-docks-he-s-there-most-evenings-then-i-ll-talk/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [The sun was trembling on the brink of the world, the shadows at their longest, and they still had several kilometers to go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/the-sun-was-trembling-on-the-brink-of-the-world-the-shadows-at-their/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [We're going to see Ragnak," Halt told him. "He's going to have to promise to free every slave who fights for Hallasholm." Will shook…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/we-re-going-to-see-ragnak-halt-told-him-he-s-going-to-have-to-promise/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [“We must wait," she said. "They are involved in important buisness." Her tone was serious, almost reverntial. The two of them stopped, some five…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/we-must-wait-she-said-they-are-involved-in-important-buisness-her/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [So I'm an ace?' Will grinned. 'I'm flattered Halt, flattered. I had no idea you regarded me so highly.' Halt gave him a long-suffering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/so-i-m-an-ace-will-grinned-i-m-flattered-halt-flattered-i-had-no-idea/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [“Damn! I hate farewells!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/damn-i-hate-farewells/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [“They sailed into Raguza and Hal said, as bold as brass, “We’ve come to challenge Zavac and we plan to kick his—”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/they-sailed-into-raguza-and-hal-said-as-bold-as-brass-we-ve-come-to/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [Are there bears in these mountains?" he asked. His companion nodded. "Of course. But it's a bit early in the year for them to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/are-there-bears-in-these-mountains-he-asked-his-companion-nodded-of/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [Well I'm not dancing," Will said through gritted teeth. "I don't know how." Oh yes you are," Alyss told him. "Let's hope you're a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/well-i-m-not-dancing-will-said-through-gritted-teeth-i-don-t-know-how/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [The battle, if you could call it that, lasted no more than a few seconds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/the-battle-if-you-could-call-it-that-lasted-no-more-than-a-few-seconds/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [Well, we can ride together for a while longer. The highway south is farther along this way. I'll be glad of some cheerful company."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/well-we-can-ride-together-for-a-while-longer-the-highway-south-is/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [“Does it matter?" Halt asked. Horace shrugged. "Not really, I suppose. I just wondered why you'd gone to the kitchen and why you took…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/does-it-matter-halt-asked-horace-shrugged-not-really-i-suppose-i-just/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [Maybe we should have gone with him," he said, a few minutes after his friend was lost to sight. "Three of us would make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/maybe-we-should-have-gone-with-him-he-said-a-few-minutes-after-his/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [Best way then is to be waiting for them to bring Halt and the others out of that prison,” he said, almost to himself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/best-way-then-is-to-be-waiting-for-them-to-bring-halt-and-the-others/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) [Explore all 327 John Flanagan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) ## More Fairy quotes > [Once upon a time. Ah forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/once-upon-a-time-ah-forget-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I know my hair is out of the '60's, my clothes are '50's and the shoes I wear are from the '40's. But I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dolly-parton/i-know-my-hair-is-out-of-the-60-s-my-clothes-are-50-s-and-the-shoes-i/) [Dolly Parton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dolly-parton/) > [I have always been fascinated by the supernatural elements in stories, whether fairy tales, myths, film or literature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trudi-canavan/i-have-always-been-fascinated-by-the-supernatural-elements-in-stories/) [Trudi Canavan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trudi-canavan/) > [“You can't get mad at a real ending. Some of them are ugly. It's the fake happily ever afters that should piss you off.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-hoover/you-can-t-get-mad-at-a-real-ending-some-of-them-are-ugly-it-s-the/) [Colleen Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-hoover/) > [“ Happily-ever-afters don't come in happily-every-days . They are found at the end of challenges-ever-met, promises-ever-kept, and tears-ever-wept.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/happily-ever-afters-don-t-come-in-happily-every-days-they-are-found/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > [A real flame of love is a subtle thing. It burns as a will-o'-the-wisp, dancing onward to fairy lands of delight. It roars as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-dreiser/a-real-flame-of-love-is-a-subtle-thing-it-burns-as-a-will-o-the-wisp/) [Theodore Dreiser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-dreiser/) > [“But even if they could go home it would be difficult for me to tell you what the moral of the story is. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lemony-snicket/but-even-if-they-could-go-home-it-would-be-difficult-for-me-to-tell/) [Lemony Snicket](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lemony-snicket/) > [One of the first houses we lived in was like out of a fairy story. We had a stream that ran through our garden,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emilia-clarke/one-of-the-first-houses-we-lived-in-was-like-out-of-a-fairy-story-we/) [Emilia Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emilia-clarke/) > [“If two people see a fairy appear, eat a starfish, and dive into the tile floor without so much as a splash, neither can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaydeon-k-moore/if-two-people-see-a-fairy-appear-eat-a-starfish-and-dive-into-the/) Kaydeon K. Moore > [Poems come from ordinary experiences and objects, I think. Out of memory - a dress I lent my daughter on her way back to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-olds/poems-come-from-ordinary-experiences-and-objects-i-think-out-of/) [Sharon Olds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-olds/) > [Here is the world of imagination, hopes, and dreams. In this timeless land of enchantment, the age of chivalry, magic and make-believe are reborn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-disney/here-is-the-world-of-imagination-hopes-and-dreams-in-this-timeless/) [Walt Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-disney/) > [In his anti-Darwinian book... (and eponymously named The Neck of the Giraffe ), Francis Hitching tells the story... "The need to survive by reaching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/in-his-anti-darwinian-book-and-eponymously-named-the-neck-of-the/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [Look at Jane Austen. Her characters derive in a reasonably straight line from fairy tales.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-davies/look-at-jane-austen-her-characters-derive-in-a-reasonably-straight/) [Andrew Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-davies/) > [Letters crossing in the post, unfamiliar tunes heard three times in one day, the way that blows of fate descend upon the same bowed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-weldon/letters-crossing-in-the-post-unfamiliar-tunes-heard-three-times-in/) [Fay Weldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-weldon/) > [I grew up watching monster movies and horror movies, which I felt were like fairy tales and I think this always spoke to me.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-burton/i-grew-up-watching-monster-movies-and-horror-movies-which-i-felt-were/) [Tim Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-burton/) [Browse all 1,977 Fairy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fairy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's a sword, not a fairy wand, you know.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Flanagan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/it-s-a-sword-not-a-fairy-wand-you-know/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Fairy" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/it-s-a-sword-not-a-fairy-wand-you-know/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/683/john-flanagan-904_fairy_it-s-a-sword-not-a-fairy-wand-you-know-2_2176770.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/683/john-flanagan-904_fairy_it-s-a-sword-not-a-fairy-wand-you-know-2_2176770.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/683/john-flanagan-904_fairy_it-s-a-sword-not-a-fairy-wand-you-know-2_2176770.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It's a sword, not a fairy wand, you know.” — John Flanagan", "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 Flanagan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It's a sword, not a fairy...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/it-s-a-sword-not-a-fairy-wand-you-know/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/it-s-a-sword-not-a-fairy-wand-you-know/#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 } } ] } ```