--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The master was an old Turtle--we used to…" description: "\"The master was an old Turtle--we used to call him Tortoise--' Why did you call him Tortoise, if he wasn't one?' Alice asked. We called him Tortoise bec..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a0/lewis-carroll-324_ashamed_the-master-was-an-old-turtle-we-used-to_1062639.jpg" --- # The master was an old Turtle--we used to call him… ![“The master was an old Turtle--we used to call him Tortoise--' Why did you call him Tortoise, if he wasn't one?' Alice asked. We called him Tortoise because he taught us,' said the Mock Turtle angrily; 'really you are very dull!' You ought to be ashamed of yourself for asking such a simple…” quote by Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a0/lewis-carroll-324_ashamed_the-master-was-an-old-turtle-we-used-to_1062639.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a0/lewis-carroll-324_ashamed_the-master-was-an-old-turtle-we-used-to_1062639.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a0/lewis-carroll-324_ashamed_the-master-was-an-old-turtle-we-used-to_1062639.jpg) > “The master was an old Turtle--we used to call him Tortoise--' Why did you call him Tortoise, if he wasn't one?' Alice asked. We called him Tortoise because he taught us,' said the Mock Turtle angrily; 'really you are very dull!' You ought to be ashamed of yourself for asking such a simple question,' added the Gryphon; and then they both sat silent and looked at poor Alice, who felt ready to sink into the earth.” [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A character questions the name given to a teacher, revealing the absurdity of literal labels and the importance of understanding deeper lessons. **In simple terms:** Names can be misleading; look beyond surface. Key Takeaway Question assumptions and seek deeper meaning. Themes identity language education absurdity Mood playful thoughtful Type literary satirical When to use this quote - classroom discussions - literary analysis - teaching philosophy - critical thinking Key Concepts semantic ambiguity pedagogy literary satire Questions to Reflect On - What does the name 'Tortoise' symbolize? - How do we avoid superficial judgments? A Different Perspective The humor may obscure the serious critique of rote learning. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ashamed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ashamed/) [Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/) [Turtles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turtles/) ## Related quotes > [We called him Tortoise because he taught us. -The Mock Turtle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-in-wonderland/we-called-him-tortoise-because-he-taught-us-the-mock-turtle/) [Alice In Wonderland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-in-wonderland/) > [We called him Tortoise because he taught us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/we-called-him-tortoise-because-he-taught-us/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [Well, I never heard it before," said the Mock Turtle; "but it sounds uncommon nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/well-i-never-heard-it-before-said-the-mock-turtle-but-it-sounds/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > ["Reeling and Writhing, of course, to begin with," the Mock Turtle replied, "and then the different branches of Arithmetic Ambition, Distraction, Uglification, and Derision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/reeling-and-writhing-of-course-to-begin-with-the-mock-turtle-replied/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [“yet?' 'No,' said Alice. 'I don't even know what a Mock Turtle is.' 'It's the thing Mock Turtle Soup is made from,' said the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/yet-no-said-alice-i-don-t-even-know-what-a-mock-turtle-is-it-s-the/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [Reform Judaism is like mock turtle soup-turtle soup without the turtle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heinrich-heine/reform-judaism-is-like-mock-turtle-soup-turtle-soup-without-the-turtle/) [Heinrich Heine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heinrich-heine/) > [Reeling and Writhing, of course, to begin with, and then the different branches of arithmetic...Ambition, Distraction, Uglification, and Derision. -The Mock Turtle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-in-wonderland/reeling-and-writhing-of-course-to-begin-with-and-then-the-different/) [Alice In Wonderland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-in-wonderland/) > [My father collected turtles when he was young. My parent's wedding album, there's two pictures of them getting married and the rest are just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hanya-yanagihara/my-father-collected-turtles-when-he-was-young-my-parent-s-wedding/) [Hanya Yanagihara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hanya-yanagihara/) > [So Zeno is most famous for his tortoise paradox. Let us imagine that you are in a race with a tortoise. The tortoise has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/so-zeno-is-most-famous-for-his-tortoise-paradox-let-us-imagine-that/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Remember, slow and steady wins the race.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ieyasu-tokugawa/remember-slow-and-steady-wins-the-race/) [Ieyasu Tokugawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ieyasu-tokugawa/) > [Now, if the principle of toleration were once admitted into classical education - if it were admitted that the great object is to read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-beecher-stowe/now-if-the-principle-of-toleration-were-once-admitted-into-classical/) [Harriet Beecher Stowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-beecher-stowe/) > [We wait for the tortoises to come. We wait for that lady who walks them. That’s how art works. It’s never a jackrabbit, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/we-wait-for-the-tortoises-to-come-we-wait-for-that-lady-who-walks/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [We debase the richness of both nature and our own minds if we view the great pageant of our intellectual history as a compendium…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/we-debase-the-richness-of-both-nature-and-our-own-minds-if-we-view/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [Winds flap the sail, tortoise and snake are silent, a great plan looms. A bridge will fly over this moat dug by heaven and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/winds-flap-the-sail-tortoise-and-snake-are-silent-a-great-plan-looms/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [A tortoise is, I suppose, a Jewish pet. It knows its place. Out on the lawn. It doesn't bark. It doesn't tear the Dralon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-lipman/a-tortoise-is-i-suppose-a-jewish-pet-it-knows-its-place-out-on-the/) [Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) ## More by Lewis Carroll > [You're thinking about something, my dear, and that makes you forget to talk. I can't tell you just now what the moral of that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/you-re-thinking-about-something-my-dear-and-that-makes-you-forget-to/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [“I'm afraid I can't explain myself, sir. Because I am not myself, you see?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/i-m-afraid-i-can-t-explain-myself-sir-because-i-am-not-myself-you-see/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [My beloved friend - one of the most unique and charming personalities of our time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/my-beloved-friend-one-of-the-most-unique-and-charming-personalities/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [Either it brings tears to their eyes, or else -" "Or else what?" said Alice, for the Knight had made a sudden pause. "Or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/either-it-brings-tears-to-their-eyes-or-else-or-else-what-said-alice/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [“We may give our human loves the unconditional allegiance which we owe only to God. Then they become gods: then they become demons. Then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/we-may-give-our-human-loves-the-unconditional-allegiance-which-we-owe/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [In the midst of the word he was trying to say In the midst of his laughter and glee, He had softly and suddenly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/in-the-midst-of-the-word-he-was-trying-to-say-in-the-midst-of-his/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [“But it must be borne in mind that, if there is a Scylla before me, there is also a Charybdis - and that, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/but-it-must-be-borne-in-mind-that-if-there-is-a-scylla-before-me/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [The sun was shining on the sea, Shining with all his might: He did his very best to make The billows smooth and bright--…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/the-sun-was-shining-on-the-sea-shining-with-all-his-might-he-did-his/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [“In vain we roared;in vain we tried To rouse her into laughter: Her pensive glances wandered wide From orchestra to rafter - "TIER UPON…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/in-vain-we-roared-in-vain-we-tried-to-rouse-her-into-laughter-her/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [For the snark was a boojum, you see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/for-the-snark-was-a-boojum-you-see/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [Thanks for your nice little note, though I am sorry to hear you find Through the Looking Glass so uninteresting. You see I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/thanks-for-your-nice-little-note-though-i-am-sorry-to-hear-you-find/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [You shouldn't make jokes if it makes you so unhappy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/you-shouldn-t-make-jokes-if-it-makes-you-so-unhappy/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [We haven't any and you're too young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/we-haven-t-any-and-you-re-too-young/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [Everything is funny, if you can laugh at it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/everything-is-funny-if-you-can-laugh-at-it/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [I wish I hadn't cried so much!” said Alice, as she swam about, trying to find her way out. I shall be punished for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/i-wish-i-hadn-t-cried-so-much-said-alice-as-she-swam-about-trying-to/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) [Explore all 644 Lewis Carroll quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) ## More Ashamed quotes > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [I know what you're thinking... and you oughtta be ashamed of yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-preston/i-know-what-you-re-thinking-and-you-oughtta-be-ashamed-of-yourself/) Robert Preston > [You never meet the writer when you're making a TV movie in America - they're too ashamed to show up and see how their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-don-baker/you-never-meet-the-writer-when-you-re-making-a-tv-movie-in-america/) [Joe Don Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-don-baker/) > [I'm not ashamed of the things I believe and why I believe them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-huckabee/i-m-not-ashamed-of-the-things-i-believe-and-why-i-believe-them/) [Mike Huckabee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-huckabee/) > [If, with all the time at my disposal, with all the wealth of the resources of this vast universe, to do with as I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/if-with-all-the-time-at-my-disposal-with-all-the-wealth-of-the/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [“with her own life. And I was ashamed.” Humiliated. Broken. Miserable. If Wilcher had stood by Jaymee, if her father hadn’t berated her, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-green/with-her-own-life-and-i-was-ashamed-humiliated-broken-miserable-if/) Stacy Green > [You should avoid hedging, at least that's what I think. You should be ashamed to die until you've made some contribution to mankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernon-johns/you-should-avoid-hedging-at-least-that-s-what-i-think-you-should-be/) Vernon Johns > [There was no mistake in us making abortion legal and available on demand. That was what we call progress. Just like it was no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-ruffalo/there-was-no-mistake-in-us-making-abortion-legal-and-available-on/) [Mark Ruffalo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-ruffalo/) > [“When all are undressed, one is somehow not ashamed, but when one's the only one undressed and everybody is looking, it's degrading,' he kept…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/when-all-are-undressed-one-is-somehow-not-ashamed-but-when-one-s-the/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [There are a great many colored people who are ashamed of the cake-walk, but I think they ought to be proud of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-weldon-johnson/there-are-a-great-many-colored-people-who-are-ashamed-of-the-cake/) [James Weldon Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-weldon-johnson/) > [I love him who is ashamed when the dice fall in his favour, and who then asketh: "Am I a dishonest player?" - for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/i-love-him-who-is-ashamed-when-the-dice-fall-in-his-favour-and-who/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zondervan-publishing/whoever-is-ashamed-of-me-and-my-words-the-son-of-man-will-be-ashamed/) [Zondervan Publishing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zondervan-publishing/) > [You were never created to live depressed, defeated, guilty, condemned, ashamed or unworthy. You were created to be victorious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/you-were-never-created-to-live-depressed-defeated-guilty-condemned/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [I never wonder to see men wicked, but I often wonder to see them not ashamed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-swift/i-never-wonder-to-see-men-wicked-but-i-often-wonder-to-see-them-not/) [Jonathan Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-swift/) > [“To survive during the Khmer Rouge, you had to steal, cheat, lie, point fingers at others, even kill. And now you are ashamed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-brinkley/to-survive-during-the-khmer-rouge-you-had-to-steal-cheat-lie-point/) [Joel Brinkley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-brinkley/) [Browse all 1,607 Ashamed quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ashamed/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The master was an old Turtle--we used to call him Tortoise--' Why did you call him Tortoise, if he wasn't one?' Alice asked. We called him Tortoise because he taught us,' said the Mock Turtle angrily; 'really you are very dull!' 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