--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: They have elevated him on a pedestal…" description: "\"“They have elevated him on a pedestal, but...a pedestal is nothing more than an elegant cage. No walls, no locks, but unless one has wings to fly away,..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/890/neal-shusterman-412_pedestal_they-have-elevated-him-on-a-pedestal-but_2863038.png" --- # They have elevated him on a pedestal, but...a pedestal is… ![“They have elevated him on a pedestal, but...a pedestal is nothing more than an elegant cage. No walls, no locks, but unless one has wings to fly away, one is trapped. A pedestal is the most insidious prison ever devised.” quote by Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/890/neal-shusterman-412_pedestal_they-have-elevated-him-on-a-pedestal-but_2863038.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/890/neal-shusterman-412_pedestal_they-have-elevated-him-on-a-pedestal-but_2863038.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/890/neal-shusterman-412_pedestal_they-have-elevated-him-on-a-pedestal-but_2863038.png) > ““They have elevated him on a pedestal, but...a pedestal is nothing more than an elegant cage. No walls, no locks, but unless one has wings to fly away, one is trapped. A pedestal is the most insidious prison ever devised.”” [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Elevating someone creates a beautiful yet invisible prison; without the ability to escape, admiration becomes confinement. **In simple terms:** Admiration can trap without freedom. Key Takeaway Recognize when praise limits growth. Themes recognition freedom illusion power control Mood reflective melancholic Type cautionary philosophical When to use this quote - career advancement - celebrity culture - public scrutiny - personal relationships Key Concepts psychology social dynamics identity autonomy Questions to Reflect On - Do you feel praised but confined? - How can you create agency within admiration? A Different Perspective Even admired individuals may feel trapped if they lack agency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prison/) [Wings to fly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wings-to-fly/) ## Related quotes > [A pedestal is the most insidious prison ever devised.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/a-pedestal-is-the-most-insidious-prison-ever-devised/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [“That's right, pick on Emby," says Connor. "Show everyone just how low you are.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/that-s-right-pick-on-emby-says-connor-show-everyone-just-how-low-you/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [Dead kids are put on pedestals, but mentally ill kids get hidden under the rug.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/dead-kids-are-put-on-pedestals-but-mentally-ill-kids-get-hidden-under/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [My mother wanted me to be her wings, to fly as she never quite had the courage to do. I love her for that.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/my-mother-wanted-me-to-be-her-wings-to-fly-as-she-never-quite-had-the/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [“A room that motivates you to dream is like a magician who gives you wings to fly!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/a-room-that-motivates-you-to-dream-is-like-a-magician-who-gives-you/) [Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [Feet, what do I need you for when I have wings to fly?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frida-kahlo/feet-what-do-i-need-you-for-when-i-have-wings-to-fly/) [Frida Kahlo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frida-kahlo/) > [Passion is what gives you the wings to fly when there is no more path to walk. Olivier Bassil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivier-bassil/passion-is-what-gives-you-the-wings-to-fly-when-there-is-no-more-path/) Olivier Bassil > [“Katsa has wondered if a person could ever build wings to fly with." "What do you mean, to fly with?" said Bitterblue, suddenly irate.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-cashore/katsa-has-wondered-if-a-person-could-ever-build-wings-to-fly-with/) [Kristin Cashore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-cashore/) > [“What is it to discover you have wings? What is it to be afraid of your wings? What is it to discover at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mimi-novic/what-is-it-to-discover-you-have-wings-what-is-it-to-be-afraid-of-your/) [Mimi Novic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mimi-novic/) > [Foot is superior to wing, because even when we have wings to fly in the sky, we still need feet so as not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/foot-is-superior-to-wing-because-even-when-we-have-wings-to-fly-in/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“A great poet gives words wings to fly in the reader's perceptual sky.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debasish-mridha/a-great-poet-gives-words-wings-to-fly-in-the-reader-s-perceptual-sky/) [Debasish Mridha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debasish-mridha/) > [Dont spend your life just crawling, because you have wings to fly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/dont-spend-your-life-just-crawling-because-you-have-wings-to-fly/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Just as the bird needs wings to fly, a leader needs useful information to flow. Leaders learn.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/just-as-the-bird-needs-wings-to-fly-a-leader-needs-useful-information/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [Because these wings are no longer wings to fly But merely vans to beat the air The air which is now thoroughly small and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/because-these-wings-are-no-longer-wings-to-fly-but-merely-vans-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Give the ones you love wings to fly, roots to come back, and reasons to stay.” ~Dalai Lama”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-noelle/give-the-ones-you-love-wings-to-fly-roots-to-come-back-and-reasons-to/) [Erin Noelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-noelle/) ## More by Neal Shusterman > [“Picking locks was not a skill he had ever cultivated, but he persisted day after day, turning the tip of his talon into different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/picking-locks-was-not-a-skill-he-had-ever-cultivated-but-he-persisted/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [“If you come anywhere near my daughter, I will see to it that you are taken apart piece by bloody piece. Do I make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/if-you-come-anywhere-near-my-daughter-i-will-see-to-it-that-you-are/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [Dead kids are put on pedestals, but mentally ill kids get hidden under the rug.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/dead-kids-are-put-on-pedestals-but-mentally-ill-kids-get-hidden-under/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [“The fear of not living is a deep, abiding dread of watching your own potential decompose into irredeemable disappointment when “should be” gets crushed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/the-fear-of-not-living-is-a-deep-abiding-dread-of-watching-your-own/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [That's wisdom you can take to the grave, and dig up when you need it!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/that-s-wisdom-you-can-take-to-the-grave-and-dig-up-when-you-need-it/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [“And you know the darkness beyond despair, just as intimately as you know the soaring heights. Because in this and all universes, there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/and-you-know-the-darkness-beyond-despair-just-as-intimately-as-you/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [You may feel a tugging sensation near your ankles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/you-may-feel-a-tugging-sensation-near-your-ankles/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [“while an adult could rarely be universally loved, everyone could love the right kid.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/while-an-adult-could-rarely-be-universally-loved-everyone-could-love/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [“It's like art, you know? Picasso had to prove to the world he can paint the right way, before he goes putting both eyes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/it-s-like-art-you-know-picasso-had-to-prove-to-the-world-he-can-paint/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [The way I see it, the impossible happens all the time; but we're so good at taking it for granted, we forget it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/the-way-i-see-it-the-impossible-happens-all-the-time-but-we-re-so/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [“a true leader never puts his ego ahead of his assets.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/a-true-leader-never-puts-his-ego-ahead-of-his-assets/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [If you have to ask then you don't deserve an answer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/if-you-have-to-ask-then-you-don-t-deserve-an-answer/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [“There was never anything wrong with my life. Perhaps that was the problem... The crack in my life was the fact that I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/there-was-never-anything-wrong-with-my-life-perhaps-that-was-the/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [“But fate is a freak when it comes to messing with your future in ways you don't see coming.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/but-fate-is-a-freak-when-it-comes-to-messing-with-your-future-in-ways/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [“The sad truth about humanity, Risa was quick to realize, is that people believe what they are told. Maybe not the first time, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/the-sad-truth-about-humanity-risa-was-quick-to-realize-is-that-people/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) [Explore all 573 Neal Shusterman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) ## More Pedestal quotes > [Dead kids are put on pedestals, but mentally ill kids get hidden under the rug.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/dead-kids-are-put-on-pedestals-but-mentally-ill-kids-get-hidden-under/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [“Don't let someone bring you down they're already lower then you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-let-someone-bring-you-down-they-re-already-lower-then-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“There’s a big middle ground between pedestal and porn.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-harlow/there-s-a-big-middle-ground-between-pedestal-and-porn/) [Melanie Harlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-harlow/) > [People will try to bring you down, but you gotta go up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dj-khaled/people-will-try-to-bring-you-down-but-you-gotta-go-up/) [DJ Khaled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dj-khaled/) > [“Remember...Whoever is trying to bring you down is already below you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ziad-k-abdelnour/remember-whoever-is-trying-to-bring-you-down-is-already-below-you/) [Ziad K. Abdelnour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ziad-k-abdelnour/) > [When greatness descends from its lofty pedestal, it assumes human dimensions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-colet/when-greatness-descends-from-its-lofty-pedestal-it-assumes-human/) [Louise Colet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-colet/) > [A man who builds his own pedestal had better use strong cement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/a-man-who-builds-his-own-pedestal-had-better-use-strong-cement/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [“Don't let them trample you.You are a person too not a cockroach.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roque-cole/don-t-let-them-trample-you-you-are-a-person-too-not-a-cockroach/) [Roque Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roque-cole/) > [You know it's never fifty-fifty in a marriage. It's always seventy-thirty, or sixty-forty. Someone falls in love first. Someone puts someone else up on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/you-know-it-s-never-fifty-fifty-in-a-marriage-it-s-always-seventy/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“Dear young woman, do not place your sense of beauty and self worth, upon the plastic pedestal called "what other people say to you",…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-joybell-c/dear-young-woman-do-not-place-your-sense-of-beauty-and-self-worth/) [C. JoyBell C](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-joybell-c/) > [I have to put you on a pedestal otherwise I would have to look down on you](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-j-hernandez-drg/i-have-to-put-you-on-a-pedestal-otherwise-i-would-have-to-look-down/) Felix J Hernandez - DRG > [When you're growing up, your dad is your superhero. Once you've let yourself fall that in love with someone, once you put him on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-z/when-you-re-growing-up-your-dad-is-your-superhero-once-you-ve-let/) [Jay-Z](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-z/) > [The practice of putting women on pedestals began to die out when it was discovered that they could give better orders from there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-grable/the-practice-of-putting-women-on-pedestals-began-to-die-out-when-it/) [Betty Grable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-grable/) > [Pedestals are always lonely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/myrtle-reed/pedestals-are-always-lonely/) [Myrtle Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/myrtle-reed/) > [History fades into fable; fact becomes clouded with doubt and controversy; the inscription molders from the tablet: the statue falls from the pedestal. Columns,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washington-irving/history-fades-into-fable-fact-becomes-clouded-with-doubt-and/) [Washington Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washington-irving/) Browse all 370 Pedestal quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“They have elevated him on a pedestal, but...a pedestal is nothing more than an elegant cage. No walls, no locks, but unless one has wings to fly away, one is trapped. 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