--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Cunning is only the mimic of discretion…" description: "\"Cunning is only the mimic of discretion, and may pass upon weak men in the same manner as vivacity is often mistaken for wit, and gravity for wisdom.\" ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61b/joseph-addison-377_cunning_cunning-is-only-the-mimic-of-discretion_402121.png" --- # Cunning is only the mimic of discretion, and may pass upon… ![“Cunning is only the mimic of discretion, and may pass upon weak men in the same manner as vivacity is often mistaken for wit, and gravity for wisdom.” quote by Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61b/joseph-addison-377_cunning_cunning-is-only-the-mimic-of-discretion_402121.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61b/joseph-addison-377_cunning_cunning-is-only-the-mimic-of-discretion_402121.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61b/joseph-addison-377_cunning_cunning-is-only-the-mimic-of-discretion_402121.png) > “Cunning is only the mimic of discretion, and may pass upon weak men in the same manner as vivacity is often mistaken for wit, and gravity for wisdom.” [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Cunning pretends to be discretion, and can be mistaken for strength; similarly, liveliness may be seen as wit and seriousness as wisdom. **In simple terms:** Cunning mimics prudence; liveliness can be misread as wit. Key Takeaway Beware of superficial judgments of character. Themes perception misinterpretation character virtue Mood analytical cautious Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - social interactions - leadership decisions - team dynamics Key Concepts philosophy psychology literature Questions to Reflect On - How do you differentiate true discretion from cunning? - When might liveliness be mistaken for intelligence? A Different Perspective Superficial traits can mislead judgments, causing errors. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Discretion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discretion/) [Gravity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gravity/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Vivacity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vivacity/) [Weak men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weak-men/) [Wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wisdom/) [Wit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wit/) ## Related quotes > [Even weak men when united are powerful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-schiller/even-weak-men-when-united-are-powerful/) [Friedrich Schiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-schiller/) > [Weak men often from the very principle of their weakness derive a certain susceptibility; delicacy and taste which render them, in those particulars, much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sir-fulke-greville/weak-men-often-from-the-very-principle-of-their-weakness-derive-a/) [Sir Fulke Greville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sir-fulke-greville/) > [Weak men act to satisfy their needs, stronger men their duties.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/weak-men-act-to-satisfy-their-needs-stronger-men-their-duties/) [Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/) > [There is no strong beer, just weak men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-castellaneta/there-is-no-strong-beer-just-weak-men/) [Dan Castellaneta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-castellaneta/) > [Many Christians estimate difficulties in the light of their own resources, and thus attempt little and often fail in the little they attempt. All…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hudson-taylor/many-christians-estimate-difficulties-in-the-light-of-their-own/) [Hudson Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hudson-taylor/) > [When a broken tank is filled with water, It certainly will leak on every side. Weak men who grow rich Seldom leave an inheritance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sakya-pandita/when-a-broken-tank-is-filled-with-water-it-certainly-will-leak-on/) Sakya Pandita > [“Usually, when we think of power, we think of external power. And we think of powerful people as those who have made it in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/usually-when-we-think-of-power-we-think-of-external-power-and-we/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [So easily do weak men put in high positions turn villains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dmitry-pisarev/so-easily-do-weak-men-put-in-high-positions-turn-villains/) [Dmitry Pisarev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dmitry-pisarev/) > [All God's giants have been weak men and women who have gotten hold of God's faithfulness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hudson-taylor/all-god-s-giants-have-been-weak-men-and-women-who-have-gotten-hold-of/) [Hudson Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hudson-taylor/) > [In the birthing process, you come out just realizing how stupid and weak men are! I mean, I might as well not have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heath-ledger/in-the-birthing-process-you-come-out-just-realizing-how-stupid-and/) [Heath Ledger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heath-ledger/) > [The Peloponnesian War turns out to be no dry chronicle of abstract cause and effect. No, it is above all an intense, riveting, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thucydides/the-peloponnesian-war-turns-out-to-be-no-dry-chronicle-of-abstract/) [Thucydides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thucydides/) > [Weak men are easily put out of humor. Oil freezes quicker than water.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/berthold-auerbach/weak-men-are-easily-put-out-of-humor-oil-freezes-quicker-than-water/) [Berthold Auerbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/berthold-auerbach/) > [Excess on occasion is exhilarating. It prevents moderation from acquiring the deadening effect of a habit. 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Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [I have yet to encounter that common myth of weak men, an insurmountable barrier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lane-allen/i-have-yet-to-encounter-that-common-myth-of-weak-men-an/) [James Lane Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lane-allen/) > [What is life when you come to think upon it, but a most excellent, accurately set, infinitely complicated machine for turning fat playful puppies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isak-dinesen/what-is-life-when-you-come-to-think-upon-it-but-a-most-excellent/) [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) ## More by Joseph Addison > [Half the misery of human life might be extinguished if men would alleviate the general curse they lie under by mutual offices of compassion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/half-the-misery-of-human-life-might-be-extinguished-if-men-would/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Every wife ought to answer for her man. If the husband be engaged in a seditious club, or drinks mysterious healths, or be frugal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/every-wife-ought-to-answer-for-her-man-if-the-husband-be-engaged-in-a/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [There is nothing touches our imagination so much as a beautiful woman in a plain dress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/there-is-nothing-touches-our-imagination-so-much-as-a-beautiful-woman/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [We are always doing something for posterity, but I would fain see posterity do something for us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/we-are-always-doing-something-for-posterity-but-i-would-fain-see/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Female Virtues are of a Domestick turn. The Family is the proper Province for Private Women to Shine in. If they must be showing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/female-virtues-are-of-a-domestick-turn-the-family-is-the-proper/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [As addictions go, reading is among the cleanest, easiest to feed, happiest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/as-addictions-go-reading-is-among-the-cleanest-easiest-to-feed/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [There is no society or conversation to be kept up in the world without good-nature, or something which must bear its appearance and supply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/there-is-no-society-or-conversation-to-be-kept-up-in-the-world/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [When love once pleads admission to our hearts, In spite of all the virtue we can boast, The woman that deliberates is lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/when-love-once-pleads-admission-to-our-hearts-in-spite-of-all-the/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Many actions calculated to procure fame are not conducive to ultimate happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/many-actions-calculated-to-procure-fame-are-not-conducive-to-ultimate/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [T is liberty crowns Britannia's Isle, And makes her barren rocks and her bleak mountains smile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/t-is-liberty-crowns-britannia-s-isle-and-makes-her-barren-rocks-and/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Reading is a basic tool in the living of a good life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/reading-is-a-basic-tool-in-the-living-of-a-good-life/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [The moral perfections of the Deity, the more attentively, we consider, the more perfectly still shall we know them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/the-moral-perfections-of-the-deity-the-more-attentively-we-consider/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [The utmost we can hope for in this world is contentment; if we aim at anything higher, we shall meet with nothing but grief…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/the-utmost-we-can-hope-for-in-this-world-is-contentment-if-we-aim-at/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Courage that grows from constitution often forsakes a man when he has occasion for it; courage which arises from a sense of duty acts;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/courage-that-grows-from-constitution-often-forsakes-a-man-when-he-has/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [The most skillful flattery is to let a person talk on, and be a listener.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/the-most-skillful-flattery-is-to-let-a-person-talk-on-and-be-a/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) [Explore all 620 Joseph Addison quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) ## More Cunning quotes > [Charm is a cunning self-forgetfulness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/charm-is-a-cunning-self-forgetfulness/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [Life is a battle of wits, and many people have to fight it unarmed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-esar/life-is-a-battle-of-wits-and-many-people-have-to-fight-it-unarmed/) [Evan Esar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-esar/) > [It is a pity that, commonly, more care is had--yea, and that among very wise men--to find out rather a cunning man for their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ascham/it-is-a-pity-that-commonly-more-care-is-had-yea-and-that-among-very/) [Roger Ascham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ascham/) > [The terrible immoralities are the cunning ones hiding behind masks of morality, such as exploiting people while pretending to help them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernon-howard/the-terrible-immoralities-are-the-cunning-ones-hiding-behind-masks-of/) [Vernon Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernon-howard/) > [That humanity and sincerity which dispose men to resist injustice and tyranny render them unfit to cope with the cunning and power of those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/that-humanity-and-sincerity-which-dispose-men-to-resist-injustice-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Why do some die and some live? The answer was clearly, that on the whole the best fitted live. From the effects of disease…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-russel-wallace/why-do-some-die-and-some-live-the-answer-was-clearly-that-on-the/) [Alfred Russel Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-russel-wallace/) > [Art is the final cunning of the human soul which would rather do anything than face the gods.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/art-is-the-final-cunning-of-the-human-soul-which-would-rather-do/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [It is sometimes necessary to play the fool to avoid being deceived by cunning men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/it-is-sometimes-necessary-to-play-the-fool-to-avoid-being-deceived-by/) [Francois de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/) > [Treason and murder ever kept together, As two yoke-devils sworn to either's purpose, Working so grossly in a natural cause That admiration did not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/treason-and-murder-ever-kept-together-as-two-yoke-devils-sworn-to/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“Till swollen with cunning, of a self-conceit, His waxen wings did mount above his reach, And melting heavens conspired his overthrow.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-marlowe/till-swollen-with-cunning-of-a-self-conceit-his-waxen-wings-did-mount/) [Christopher Marlowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-marlowe/) > [Stratagem is the right hand of cunning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-william-curtis/stratagem-is-the-right-hand-of-cunning/) [George William Curtis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-william-curtis/) > [“When a man possesses the innocence of a child, we call him a fool. When a child possesses the cunning of a man, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-scott-bakker/when-a-man-possesses-the-innocence-of-a-child-we-call-him-a-fool-when/) [R. Scott Bakker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-scott-bakker/) > [“Would you like to sit?" Kellen asked her. "You'd better do it soon," Owen whispered close to her ear, "or I'm going to bend…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-cunning/would-you-like-to-sit-kellen-asked-her-you-d-better-do-it-soon-owen/) [Olivia Cunning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-cunning/) > [I am defined by my will to survive, not by intelligence or cunning or money or good looks. The Creator didn't see her way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaune-quick-to-see-smith/i-am-defined-by-my-will-to-survive-not-by-intelligence-or-cunning-or/) [Jaune Quick–to–See Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaune-quick-to-see-smith/) > [A cunning mind emphatically delights in its own cunning, and is the ready prey of cunning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-brownell-jameson/a-cunning-mind-emphatically-delights-in-its-own-cunning-and-is-the/) [Anna Brownell Jameson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-brownell-jameson/) Browse all 535 Cunning quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Cunning is only the mimic of discretion, and may pass upon weak men in the same manner as vivacity is often mistaken for wit, and gravity for wisdom.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Joseph Addison" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/cunning-is-only-the-mimic-of-discretion-and-may-pass-upon-weak-men-in/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cunning" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/cunning-is-only-the-mimic-of-discretion-and-may-pass-upon-weak-men-in/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61b/joseph-addison-377_cunning_cunning-is-only-the-mimic-of-discretion_402121.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61b/joseph-addison-377_cunning_cunning-is-only-the-mimic-of-discretion_402121.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61b/joseph-addison-377_cunning_cunning-is-only-the-mimic-of-discretion_402121.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Cunning is only the mimic of discretion, and may pass upon weak men in the same manner as vivacity is often…” — Joseph Addison", "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": "Joseph Addison", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Cunning is only the mimic of...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/cunning-is-only-the-mimic-of-discretion-and-may-pass-upon-weak-men-in/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/cunning-is-only-the-mimic-of-discretion-and-may-pass-upon-weak-men-in/#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 } } ] } ```