Documents Quote by Learned Hand
“There is no surer way to misread any document than to read it literally.”
About This Quote
Source Legal opinion: Discussing literal interpretation, 1940
He warns that reading a document strictly literal leads to misinterpretation, ignoring context.
In simple terms: Literal reading often misleads.
Key Takeaway
Interpret with context, not just words.
Themes
law
interpretation
communication
Mood
cautious
analytical
Type
legal
educational
When to use this quote
- contract drafting
- policy analysis
- academic research
- media reporting
Key Concepts
literalism
context
misreading
Questions to Reflect On
- How do you balance literal and contextual reading?
- When is literal reading appropriate?
A Different Perspective
Context can be ambiguous.
![“Utopian fiction is really boring. I had to read a lot of it, and it's not that much fun. But they're fascinating to me as historical documents. Cabet [Icaria's founder and author of the utopian novel, Travels in Icaria], is writing in the 1830s, and his idea of the perfect society reveals a lot…” quote by Christine Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/ac0/christine-jennings-20527_book_utopian-fiction-is-really-boring-i-had-t_68118.jpg)
