--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Give those who are gentle strength, Give…" description: "\"“Give those who are gentle strength, Give those who are strong a generous imagination, And make their half-truth true and let the crooked Footpath find..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5dc/louis-macneice-13584_original-sin_give-those-who-are-gentle-strength-give_1051002.jpg" --- # Give those who are gentle strength, Give those who are… ![“Give those who are gentle strength, Give those who are strong a generous imagination, And make their half-truth true and let the crooked Footpath find its parent road at length. ... For never to begin Anything new because we know there is nothing New, is an academic sophistry-- The original sin. I…” quote by Louis MacNeice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5dc/louis-macneice-13584_original-sin_give-those-who-are-gentle-strength-give_1051002.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5dc/louis-macneice-13584_original-sin_give-those-who-are-gentle-strength-give_1051002.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5dc/louis-macneice-13584_original-sin_give-those-who-are-gentle-strength-give_1051002.jpg) > ““Give those who are gentle strength, Give those who are strong a generous imagination, And make their half-truth true and let the crooked Footpath find its parent road at length. ... For never to begin Anything new because we know there is nothing New, is an academic sophistry-- The original sin. I have already had friends Among things and hours and people But taking them one by one--odd hours and passing people; Now I must make amends And try to correlate event with instinct And me with you or you with you with all, No longer think of time as a waterfall Abstracted from a river.”” [Louis MacNeice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-macneice/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Encourages giving gentleness strength, imagination to the strong, and transforming half‑truths into fuller understanding while acknowledging the difficulty of beginning anew. **In simple terms:** Support the gentle, imagine beyond limits, and seek truth. Key Takeaway Embrace creativity and honesty. Themes creativity truth imagination Mood reflective inspirational Type poetic philosophical When to use this quote - personal growth - artistic creation - conflict resolution - self‑reflection Key Concepts philosophy psychology literature Questions to Reflect On - How can you turn a half‑truth into a fuller reality? - What imagination helps you confront a difficult truth? A Different Perspective Half‑truths may persist despite effort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Academic Sophistry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/academic-sophistry-2513440/) [Original sin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/original-sin/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Sin Friends](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sin-friends-2513441/) [Sophistry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sophistry/) [Sophistry Original](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sophistry-original-2513439/) ## Related quotes > [If you and sin are friends, you and God are not yet reconciled.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-c-ryle/if-you-and-sin-are-friends-you-and-god-are-not-yet-reconciled/) [J. C. Ryle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-c-ryle/) > [I don't think it's a sin to be friends with your ex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liza-soberano/i-don-t-think-it-s-a-sin-to-be-friends-with-your-ex/) [Liza Soberano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liza-soberano/) > [We cannot by a little verbal sophistry confound the qualities of different minds, nor force opposite excellences into a union by all the intolerance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-hazlitt/we-cannot-by-a-little-verbal-sophistry-confound-the-qualities-of/) [William Hazlitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-hazlitt/) > [Why should not every individual man have existed more than once upon this world? 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and the mask is for lying and falsehood which conceal truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/fire-is-to-represent-truth-because-it-destroys-all-sophistry-and-lies/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [Fire destroys all sophistry, that is deceit; and maintains truth alone, that is gold.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/fire-destroys-all-sophistry-that-is-deceit-and-maintains-truth-alone/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [We find sects and parties in most branches of science; and disputes which are carried on from age to age, without being brought to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-reid/we-find-sects-and-parties-in-most-branches-of-science-and-disputes/) [Thomas Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-reid/) > [“The dangers of sophistry and scholasticism are present in the possibility of philosophy itself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-neiman/the-dangers-of-sophistry-and-scholasticism-are-present-in-the/) [Susan Neiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-neiman/) > [Education without social action is a one-sided value because it has no true power potential.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/education-without-social-action-is-a-one-sided-value-because-it-has/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [If a close examination of the evidences of Christianity may be expected of one class of men more than another, it would seem incumbent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-greenleaf/if-a-close-examination-of-the-evidences-of-christianity-may-be/) [Simon Greenleaf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-greenleaf/) > [Oh, children, growing up to be Adventurers into sophistry, Forbear, forbear to be of those That read the rood to learn the rose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-st-vincent-millay/oh-children-growing-up-to-be-adventurers-into-sophistry-forbear/) [Edna St. Vincent Millay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-st-vincent-millay/) > [“The Devil answer'd: bray a fool in a morter with wheat, yet shall not his folly be beaten out of him; if Jesus Christ…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/the-devil-answer-d-bray-a-fool-in-a-morter-with-wheat-yet-shall-not/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [There must be sophistry in all this; but the condition of a slave confuses all principles of morality, and, in fact, renders the practice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-ann-jacobs/there-must-be-sophistry-in-all-this-but-the-condition-of-a-slave/) [Harriet Ann Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-ann-jacobs/) ## More by Louis MacNeice > [World is crazier and more of it than we think, Incorrigibly plural.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-macneice/world-is-crazier-and-more-of-it-than-we-think-incorrigibly-plural/) [Louis MacNeice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-macneice/) > [“Bagpipe Music' It's no go the merrygoround, it's no go the rickshaw, All we want is a limousine and a ticket for the peepshow.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-macneice/bagpipe-music-it-s-no-go-the-merrygoround-it-s-no-go-the-rickshaw-all/) [Louis MacNeice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-macneice/) > [Let them not make me a stone and let them not spill me, otherwise kill me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-macneice/let-them-not-make-me-a-stone-and-let-them-not-spill-me-otherwise-kill/) [Louis MacNeice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-macneice/) > [“Thus were we weaned to knowledge of the Will That wills the natural world, but wills us dead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-macneice/thus-were-we-weaned-to-knowledge-of-the-will-that-wills-the-natural/) [Louis MacNeice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-macneice/) > [Politics: distrust all parties but consider capitalism must go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-macneice/politics-distrust-all-parties-but-consider-capitalism-must-go/) [Louis MacNeice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-macneice/) > [“If war is the test of reality, then all poetry is unreal; but in that case unreality is a virtue.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-macneice/if-war-is-the-test-of-reality-then-all-poetry-is-unreal-but-in-that/) [Louis MacNeice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-macneice/) > [“If war is the test of reality, than all poetry is unreal; but in that case unreality is a virtue.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-macneice/if-war-is-the-test-of-reality-than-all-poetry-is-unreal-but-in-that/) [Louis MacNeice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-macneice/) > [Why do we like being Irish? Partly because It gives us a hold on the sentimental English As members of a world that never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-macneice/why-do-we-like-being-irish-partly-because-it-gives-us-a-hold-on-the/) [Louis MacNeice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-macneice/) > [A city built upon mud; A culture built upon profit; Free speech nipped in the bud, The minority always guilty. Why should I want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-macneice/a-city-built-upon-mud-a-culture-built-upon-profit-free-speech-nipped/) [Louis MacNeice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-macneice/) > [“Cradle Song for Eleanor”: Sleep, my darling, sleep; The pity of it all Is all we compass if We watch disaster fall. Put off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-macneice/cradle-song-for-eleanor-sleep-my-darling-sleep-the-pity-of-it-all-is/) [Louis MacNeice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-macneice/) > [A pharaoh's profile, a Krishna's grace, tail like a question mark.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-macneice/a-pharaoh-s-profile-a-krishna-s-grace-tail-like-a-question-mark/) [Louis MacNeice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-macneice/) > [I was the rector's son, born to the anglican order, Banned for ever from the candles of the Irish poor; The Chichesters knelt in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-macneice/i-was-the-rector-s-son-born-to-the-anglican-order-banned-for-ever/) [Louis MacNeice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-macneice/) > [Better authentic mammon than a bogus god.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-macneice/better-authentic-mammon-than-a-bogus-god/) [Louis MacNeice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-macneice/) > [Dublin was a glorious name in our family and had pleasurable associations of violence …Today I am so at home in Dublin, more than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-macneice/dublin-was-a-glorious-name-in-our-family-and-had-pleasurable/) [Louis MacNeice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-macneice/) > [So they were married-to be the more together- And found they were never again so much together, Divided by the morning tea, By the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-macneice/so-they-were-married-to-be-the-more-together-and-found-they-were/) [Louis MacNeice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-macneice/) [Explore all 50 Louis MacNeice quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-macneice/) ## More Original sin quotes > [“The next time believers tell you that 'separation of church and state' does not appear in our founding document, tell them to stop using…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-barker/the-next-time-believers-tell-you-that-separation-of-church-and-state/) [Dan Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-barker/) > [The original sin is to limit the Is. Don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-bach/the-original-sin-is-to-limit-the-is-don-t/) [Richard Bach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-bach/) > [The most devastating thing though that biology did to Christianity was the discovery of biological evolution. Now that we know that Adam and Eve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-zindler/the-most-devastating-thing-though-that-biology-did-to-christianity/) [Frank Zindler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-zindler/) > [Blood sin and desecration of the race are the original sin in this world and the end of a humanity which surrenders to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-hitler/blood-sin-and-desecration-of-the-race-are-the-original-sin-in-this/) [Adolf Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-hitler/) > [In the past we believed both sexes were born with original sin. Today, we have come to unconsciously believe in the original sin of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-farrell/in-the-past-we-believed-both-sexes-were-born-with-original-sin-today/) [Warren Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-farrell/) > [“Fusing the doctrines of Plotinus and Proclus with the creeds and beliefs of Christianity, Dionysius the Pseudo-Areopagite combined the Neo-Platonic conviction of the fundamental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-panofsky/fusing-the-doctrines-of-plotinus-and-proclus-with-the-creeds-and/) [erwin panofsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-panofsky/) > [“When I am a good host, I can order the world precisely as I believe it ought to be. It is a world that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-browner/when-i-am-a-good-host-i-can-order-the-world-precisely-as-i-believe-it/) [Jesse Browner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-browner/) > [I think the Buddhist ethic is clearer and more systematic in some ways. The Buddhist notion is that our chief problems are greed, hatred…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ninian-smart/i-think-the-buddhist-ethic-is-clearer-and-more-systematic-in-some/) [Ninian Smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ninian-smart/) > [Every father is given the opportunity to corrupt his daughter's nature, and the educator, husband, or psychiatrist then has to face the music. For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/every-father-is-given-the-opportunity-to-corrupt-his-daughter-s/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) > [“We have therefore to inquire what there is about Machiavelli to impress the mind of Europe so prodigiously and so curiously, and why the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot-2/we-have-therefore-to-inquire-what-there-is-about-machiavelli-to/) [T.S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot-2/) > [“By definition, a human being is endowed with free will. He can use this to choose between good and evil. 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The apostles, to whom were committed the secrets of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/origen/the-church-received-from-the-apostles-the-tradition-of-giving-baptism/) [Origen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/origen/) [Browse all 260 Original sin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/original-sin/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Give those who are gentle strength, Give those who are strong a generous imagination, And make their half-truth true and let the crooked Footpath find its parent road at length. ... For never to begin Anything new because we know there is nothing New, is an academic sophistry-- The original sin. 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