--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: All men who repeat a line from…" description: "\"“All men who repeat a line from Shakespeare are William Shakespeare”\" — Jorge Luis Borges" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b9/jorge-luis-borges-275_shakespeare_all-men-who-repeat-a-line-from-shakespea_375469.jpg" --- # All men who repeat a line from Shakespeare are William… ![“All men who repeat a line from Shakespeare are William Shakespeare” quote by Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b9/jorge-luis-borges-275_shakespeare_all-men-who-repeat-a-line-from-shakespea_375469.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b9/jorge-luis-borges-275_shakespeare_all-men-who-repeat-a-line-from-shakespea_375469.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b9/jorge-luis-borges-275_shakespeare_all-men-who-repeat-a-line-from-shakespea_375469.jpg) > ““All men who repeat a line from Shakespeare are William Shakespeare”” [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Repeating Shakespeare’s lines makes the speaker indistinguishable from Shakespeare himself. **In simple terms:** Mimicking Shakespeare erases your own voice. Key Takeaway Cultivate original expression. Themes authorship identity literature Mood thoughtful introspective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - writing workshops - literary criticism - creative practice Key Concepts philosophy intertextuality Questions to Reflect On - What makes a voice truly yours? - How do you balance homage with originality? A Different Perspective Originality can be hard to achieve in a heavily referenced tradition. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Line Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/line-shakespeare-3196540/) [Men Repeat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-repeat-3416921/) [Repeat Line](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/repeat-line-3416922/) [Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shakespeare/) [Shakespeare William](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shakespeare-william-3416920/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/william-shakespeare/) ## Related quotes > [Nowadays, one of the churches of Tlön maintains platonically that such and such a pain, such and such a greenish-yellow colour, such and such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/nowadays-one-of-the-churches-of-tl-n-maintains-platonically-that-such/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [In the theatre, people talk. Talk, talk until the cows come home about journeys of discovery and about what Hazlitt thought of a line…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hopkins/in-the-theatre-people-talk-talk-talk-until-the-cows-come-home-about/) [Anthony Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hopkins/) > [I'll moider da bum - when asked what he thought of William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-galento/i-ll-moider-da-bum-when-asked-what-he-thought-of-william-shakespeare/) [Tony Galento](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-galento/) > [William Shakespeare sounds to me like some kind of faggot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-simmons/william-shakespeare-sounds-to-me-like-some-kind-of-faggot/) [Gene Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-simmons/) > [William Shakespeare was the most remarkable storyteller that the world has ever known. Homer told of adventure and men at war, Sophocles and Tolstoy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marchette-chute/william-shakespeare-was-the-most-remarkable-storyteller-that-the/) [Marchette Chute](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marchette-chute/) > [“You can’t please all of the readers all of the time; you can’t please even some of the readers all of the time, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/you-can-t-please-all-of-the-readers-all-of-the-time-you-can-t-please/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“your son has paid the soldier’s price: death. He only lived long enough to become a man, and as soon as he proved that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/your-son-has-paid-the-soldier-s-price-death-he-only-lived-long-enough/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Some Cupid kills with arrows, some with traps. William Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sangfroid-stalker/some-cupid-kills-with-arrows-some-with-traps-william-shakespeare-much/) [SangFroid Stalker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sangfroid-stalker/) > [ My dad is a big extrovert - he's a doctor - but he always loved \[William\] Shakespeare and he took us to tons of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanessa-kirby/my-dad-is-a-big-extrovert-he-s-a-doctor-but-he-always-loved-william/) [Vanessa Kirby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanessa-kirby/) > [There's been a lot of stage combat over the years, and I've loved it. Started in college with William Shakespeare. I've always liked the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-leland/there-s-been-a-lot-of-stage-combat-over-the-years-and-i-ve-loved-it/) [Brad Leland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-leland/) > [You speak an infinite deal of nothing. William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespear/you-speak-an-infinite-deal-of-nothing-william-shakespeare-the/) [William Shakespear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespear/) > [I think William Shakespeare was the wisest human being I ever heard of. To be perfectly frank, though, that's not saying much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/i-think-william-shakespeare-was-the-wisest-human-being-i-ever-heard/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [ \[Thine\] face is not worth sunburning. William Shakespeare, Henry V ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespear/thine-face-is-not-worth-sunburning-william-shakespeare-henry-v/) [William Shakespear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespear/) > [Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none. William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespear/love-all-trust-a-few-do-wrong-to-none-william-shakespeare/) [William Shakespear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespear/) > [Mr. William Shakespeare was born at Stratford upon Avon in the county of Warwick. His father was a butcher, and I have been told…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-aubrey/mr-william-shakespeare-was-born-at-stratford-upon-avon-in-the-county/) [John Aubrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-aubrey/) ## More by Jorge Luis Borges > [“No hables a menos que puedas mejorar el silencio.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/no-hables-a-menos-que-puedas-mejorar-el-silencio/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [The execution was set for the 29th of March, at nine in the morning. This delay was due to a desire on the part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/the-execution-was-set-for-the-29th-of-march-at-nine-in-the-morning/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [Like all writers, he measured the achievements of others by what they had accomplished, asking of them that they measure him by what he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/like-all-writers-he-measured-the-achievements-of-others-by-what-they/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [How can we manage to illuminate the pathos of our lives?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/how-can-we-manage-to-illuminate-the-pathos-of-our-lives/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [Loneliness does not worry me; life is difficult enough, putting up with yourself and with your own habits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/loneliness-does-not-worry-me-life-is-difficult-enough-putting-up-with/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [The fact is that all writers create their precursors. Their work modifies our conception of the past, just as it is bound to modify…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/the-fact-is-that-all-writers-create-their-precursors-their-work/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [I don't think we're capable of knowledge, but I like to keep an open mind. So if you ask me whether I believe in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/i-don-t-think-we-re-capable-of-knowledge-but-i-like-to-keep-an-open/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [The web of time - the strands of which approach one another, bifurcate, intersect, or ignore each other through the centuries - embraces "every"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/the-web-of-time-the-strands-of-which-approach-one-another-bifurcate/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [“My memory, sir, is like a garbage disposal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/my-memory-sir-is-like-a-garbage-disposal/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [When I write, I do it urged by an intimate necessity. I don't have in mind an exclusive public, or a public of multitudes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/when-i-write-i-do-it-urged-by-an-intimate-necessity-i-don-t-have-in/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [The mind was dreaming. The world was its dream.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/the-mind-was-dreaming-the-world-was-its-dream/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [I foresee that man will resign himself each day to new abominations, and soon that only bandits and soldiers will be left.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/i-foresee-that-man-will-resign-himself-each-day-to-new-abominations/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [“If I could live again - I will travel light, If I could live again - I'll try to work bare feet at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/if-i-could-live-again-i-will-travel-light-if-i-could-live-again-i-ll/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [Every man should be capable of all ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/every-man-should-be-capable-of-all-ideas/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [Writing is only a guided dream.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/writing-is-only-a-guided-dream/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) [Explore all 558 Jorge Luis Borges quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) ## More Shakespeare quotes > [It's like saying French shouldn't be taught because you don't understand it because it's new. Shakespeare is just like learning a new, exciting language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-barnett/it-s-like-saying-french-shouldn-t-be-taught-because-you-don-t/) [Samuel Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-barnett/) > [“This was going to be worse than the time I table danced in the diner in high school!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-bryson/this-was-going-to-be-worse-than-the-time-i-table-danced-in-the-diner/) [Kathy Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-bryson/) > [Its extremely dangerous to compare anyone else to Shakespeare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-spacey/its-extremely-dangerous-to-compare-anyone-else-to-shakespeare/) [Kevin Spacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-spacey/) > [Anything well written with good language and clarity and honesty is worth doing. It comes out of the same tradition as Shakespeare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moriarty/anything-well-written-with-good-language-and-clarity-and-honesty-is/) [Michael Moriarty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moriarty/) > [“It was wonderful flirting with him, all the razor-edged literary banter, like Beatrice and Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing. A battle of wit,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wein/it-was-wonderful-flirting-with-him-all-the-razor-edged-literary/) [Elizabeth Wein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wein/) > [The difficulty with poetry is that it doesn't have the life that Shakespeare or Jane Austen have beyond the page. You can't make a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/the-difficulty-with-poetry-is-that-it-doesn-t-have-the-life-that/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [“Shakespeare’s Hamlet: “There is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-robinson/shakespeare-s-hamlet-there-is-nothing-either-good-or-bad-but-thinking/) [Ken Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-robinson/) > [“The composition of Shakespeare is a forest, in which oaks extend in the air, interspersed sometimes with weeds and brambles, and sometimes giving shelting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-composition-of-shakespeare-is-a-forest-in-which-oaks-extend-in/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [“Nernst was a great admirer of Shakespeare, and it is said that in a conference concerned with naming units after appropriate persons, he proposed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-partington/nernst-was-a-great-admirer-of-shakespeare-and-it-is-said-that-in-a/) [J.R. Partington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-partington/) > [Shakespeare put no children in his plays for a reason," Sir Godfrey muttered, glaring at Alf and Binnie. "You're forgetting the Little Prince," Polly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/connie-willis/shakespeare-put-no-children-in-his-plays-for-a-reason-sir-godfrey/) [Connie Willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/connie-willis/) > [Juilliard is wonderful in that they don't pick just one way of working. They give you a palette. There is method acting. There is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-camargo/juilliard-is-wonderful-in-that-they-don-t-pick-just-one-way-of/) [Christian Camargo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-camargo/) > [This was Shakespeare's form ; Who walk'd in every path of human life, Felt every passion ; and to all mankind Doth now, will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-akenside/this-was-shakespeare-s-form-who-walk-d-in-every-path-of-human-life/) [Mark Akenside](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-akenside/) > [I've definitely learned that if you want to have power as a woman in Shakespeare's time, and it's still relevant today, that you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-barnett/i-ve-definitely-learned-that-if-you-want-to-have-power-as-a-woman-in/) [Samuel Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-barnett/) > [“I'm afraid I always find Shakespeare terribly dreary. All those long scenes where everybody is drunk and it's supposed to be funny.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agatha-christie/i-m-afraid-i-always-find-shakespeare-terribly-dreary-all-those-long/) [Agatha Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agatha-christie/) > [“Life... is a paradise to what we fear of death.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/life-is-a-paradise-to-what-we-fear-of-death/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) [Browse all 1,516 Shakespeare quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shakespeare/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“All men who repeat a line from Shakespeare are William Shakespeare”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jorge Luis Borges" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/all-men-who-repeat-a-line-from-shakespeare-are-william-shakespeare/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Shakespeare" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/all-men-who-repeat-a-line-from-shakespeare-are-william-shakespeare/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b9/jorge-luis-borges-275_shakespeare_all-men-who-repeat-a-line-from-shakespea_375469.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b9/jorge-luis-borges-275_shakespeare_all-men-who-repeat-a-line-from-shakespea_375469.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b9/jorge-luis-borges-275_shakespeare_all-men-who-repeat-a-line-from-shakespea_375469.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“All men who repeat a line from Shakespeare are William Shakespeare” — Jorge Luis Borges", "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": "Jorge Luis Borges", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“All men who repeat a line...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/all-men-who-repeat-a-line-from-shakespeare-are-william-shakespeare/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/all-men-who-repeat-a-line-from-shakespeare-are-william-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 } } ] } ```