--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: it were as wise to cast a violet into a…" description: "\"“it were as wise to cast a violet into a crucible that you might discover the formal principle of its color and odor, as seek to transfuse from one lan..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/percy-bysshe-shelley-476_crucible_it-were-as-wise-to-cast-a-violet-into-a_2287052.jpg" --- # it were as wise to cast a violet into a crucible that you… ![“it were as wise to cast a violet into a crucible that you might discover the formal principle of its color and odor, as seek to transfuse from one language into another the creations of a poet” quote by Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/percy-bysshe-shelley-476_crucible_it-were-as-wise-to-cast-a-violet-into-a_2287052.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/percy-bysshe-shelley-476_crucible_it-were-as-wise-to-cast-a-violet-into-a_2287052.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/percy-bysshe-shelley-476_crucible_it-were-as-wise-to-cast-a-violet-into-a_2287052.jpg) > ““it were as wise to cast a violet into a crucible that you might discover the formal principle of its color and odor, as seek to transfuse from one language into another the creations of a poet”” [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Attempting to translate poetry loses its unique essence, like trying to extract a flower’s color in a furnace. **In simple terms:** Translation can’t capture original poetry. Key Takeaway Respect the limits of translation. Themes language art translation creativity Mood reflective philosophical Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - literary translation - creative writing - cross‑cultural communication Key Concepts Linguistics aesthetics Questions to Reflect On - Can any translation ever fully convey the original? - What aspects of poetry are most lost in translation? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Crucible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crucible/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Violet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/violet/) ## Related quotes > [It were as wise to cast a violet into a crucible that you might discover the formal principle of its color and odor, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/it-were-as-wise-to-cast-a-violet-into-a-crucible-that-you-might-2/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [“Hence the vanity of translation; it were as wise to cast a violet into a crucible that you might discover the formal principle of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/hence-the-vanity-of-translation-it-were-as-wise-to-cast-a-violet-into/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [Music, when soft voices die, Vibrates in the memory; Odors, when sweet violets sicken, Live within the sense they quicken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/music-when-soft-voices-die-vibrates-in-the-memory-odors-when-sweet/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [Music, when soft voices die, Vibrates in the memory; Odours, when sweet violets sicken, Live within the sense they quicken. Rose leaves, when the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/music-when-soft-voices-die-vibrates-in-the-memory-odours-when-sweet/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [The cemetery is an open space among the ruins, covered in winter with violets and daisies. It might make one in love with death,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/the-cemetery-is-an-open-space-among-the-ruins-covered-in-winter-with/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [“If the most precious are tried in the fire, are we to escape the crucible? If the diamond must be vexed upon the wheel,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-h-spurgeon/if-the-most-precious-are-tried-in-the-fire-are-we-to-escape-the/) [Charles H. Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-h-spurgeon/) > [With 'Crucible,' any big changes I wanted to make I only had to run by Lucasfilm, not other authors whose stories I might affect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/troy-denning/with-crucible-any-big-changes-i-wanted-to-make-i-only-had-to-run-by/) [Troy Denning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/troy-denning/) > [It is not through the way in which someone speaks about God that I can see whether that person has passed through the crucible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-weil/it-is-not-through-the-way-in-which-someone-speaks-about-god-that-i/) [Simone Weil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-weil/) > [But this is predicated upon the man's becoming in very fact an American and nothing but an American. If he tries to keep segregated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/but-this-is-predicated-upon-the-man-s-becoming-in-very-fact-an/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [“Because all books ARE the Book of Job -- man in the crucible like Jack in the Box…”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-elkin/because-all-books-are-the-book-of-job-man-in-the-crucible-like-jack/) [Stanley Elkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-elkin/) > [“Worldbuilding: Giving my characters a crucible in which to form.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathryn-louis/worldbuilding-giving-my-characters-a-crucible-in-which-to-form/) [Cathryn Louis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathryn-louis/) > [ When I can see my face in it \[the liquid gold in the crucible\] then it is pure. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-carmichael/when-i-can-see-my-face-in-it-the-liquid-gold-in-the-crucible-then-it/) [Amy Carmichael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-carmichael/) > [As any opera fan knows, lawyers and judges do not fare well in most operas. Just consider the productions of 'Andrea Chenier,' 'Aida, Norma,'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-decrow/as-any-opera-fan-knows-lawyers-and-judges-do-not-fare-well-in-most/) [Karen DeCrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-decrow/) > [Men since the beginning of time have sought peace...military alliances, balances of power, leagues of nations, all in turn have failed, leaving the only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-macarthur/men-since-the-beginning-of-time-have-sought-peace-military-alliances/) [Douglas MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-macarthur/) > [New York is large, glamorous, easy-going, kindly and incurious, but above all it is a crucible - because it is large enough to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ford-madox-ford/new-york-is-large-glamorous-easy-going-kindly-and-incurious-but-above/) [Ford Madox Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ford-madox-ford/) ## More by Percy Bysshe Shelley > [The everlasting universe of things Flows through the mind, and rolls its rapid waves, Now dark--now glittering--now reflecting gloom-- Now lending splendour, where from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/the-everlasting-universe-of-things-flows-through-the-mind-and-rolls/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [The quick Dreams, The passion-winged Ministers of thought.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/the-quick-dreams-the-passion-winged-ministers-of-thought/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [Hail to thee, blithe Spirit!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/hail-to-thee-blithe-spirit/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [The jealous keys of truth's eternal doors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/the-jealous-keys-of-truth-s-eternal-doors/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [“Though we eat little flesh and drink no wine, Yet let's be merry; we'll have tea and toast; Custards for supper, and an endless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/though-we-eat-little-flesh-and-drink-no-wine-yet-let-s-be-merry-we-ll/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [A dream has power to poison sleep.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/a-dream-has-power-to-poison-sleep/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [Titles are tinsel, power a corrupter, glorya bubble, and excessive wealth a libel on its possessor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/titles-are-tinsel-power-a-corrupter-glorya-bubble-and-excessive/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [“I fall upon the thorns of life! I bleed !”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/i-fall-upon-the-thorns-of-life-i-bleed/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [“Poets and philosophers are the unacknowledged legislators of the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/poets-and-philosophers-are-the-unacknowledged-legislators-of-the-world/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [Dar'st thou amid the varied multitude To live alone, an isolated thing?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/dar-st-thou-amid-the-varied-multitude-to-live-alone-an-isolated-thing/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [Spirit of BEAUTY, that dost consecrate With thine own hues all thou dost shine upon Of human thought or form, where art thou gone?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/spirit-of-beauty-that-dost-consecrate-with-thine-own-hues-all-thou/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [I love tranquil solitude, And such society As is quiet, wise, and good; Between thee and me What difference? but thou dost possess The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/i-love-tranquil-solitude-and-such-society-as-is-quiet-wise-and-good/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [The practice of utter sincerity towards other men would avail to no good end, if they were incapable of practising it towards their own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/the-practice-of-utter-sincerity-towards-other-men-would-avail-to-no/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [Thou shoreless flood, which in thy ebb and flow claspest the limits of mortality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/thou-shoreless-flood-which-in-thy-ebb-and-flow-claspest-the-limits-of/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [Senseless is the breast and cold Which relenting love would fold; Bloodless are the veins and chill Which the pulse of pain did fill;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/senseless-is-the-breast-and-cold-which-relenting-love-would-fold/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) [Explore all 533 Percy Bysshe Shelley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) ## More Crucible quotes > [New York is large, glamorous, easy-going, kindly and incurious, but above all it is a crucible - because it is large enough to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ford-madox-ford/new-york-is-large-glamorous-easy-going-kindly-and-incurious-but-above/) [Ford Madox Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ford-madox-ford/) > [Men since the beginning of time have sought peace...military alliances, balances of power, leagues of nations, all in turn have failed, leaving the only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-macarthur/men-since-the-beginning-of-time-have-sought-peace-military-alliances/) [Douglas MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-macarthur/) > [As any opera fan knows, lawyers and judges do not fare well in most operas. Just consider the productions of 'Andrea Chenier,' 'Aida, Norma,'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-decrow/as-any-opera-fan-knows-lawyers-and-judges-do-not-fare-well-in-most/) [Karen DeCrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-decrow/) > [ When I can see my face in it \[the liquid gold in the crucible\] then it is pure. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-carmichael/when-i-can-see-my-face-in-it-the-liquid-gold-in-the-crucible-then-it/) [Amy Carmichael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-carmichael/) > [“Worldbuilding: Giving my characters a crucible in which to form.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathryn-louis/worldbuilding-giving-my-characters-a-crucible-in-which-to-form/) [Cathryn Louis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathryn-louis/) > [“Because all books ARE the Book of Job -- man in the crucible like Jack in the Box…”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-elkin/because-all-books-are-the-book-of-job-man-in-the-crucible-like-jack/) [Stanley Elkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-elkin/) > [But this is predicated upon the man's becoming in very fact an American and nothing but an American. If he tries to keep segregated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/but-this-is-predicated-upon-the-man-s-becoming-in-very-fact-an/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [It is not through the way in which someone speaks about God that I can see whether that person has passed through the crucible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-weil/it-is-not-through-the-way-in-which-someone-speaks-about-god-that-i/) [Simone Weil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-weil/) > [With 'Crucible,' any big changes I wanted to make I only had to run by Lucasfilm, not other authors whose stories I might affect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/troy-denning/with-crucible-any-big-changes-i-wanted-to-make-i-only-had-to-run-by/) [Troy Denning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/troy-denning/) > [“If the most precious are tried in the fire, are we to escape the crucible? If the diamond must be vexed upon the wheel,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-h-spurgeon/if-the-most-precious-are-tried-in-the-fire-are-we-to-escape-the/) [Charles H. Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-h-spurgeon/) > [“They did not arrive alone but were attended by six cohorts, an assortment of dark-suited men so stern and judgmental of mien as to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-keenan/they-did-not-arrive-alone-but-were-attended-by-six-cohorts-an/) [Joe Keenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-keenan/) > [Professional critics are incapable of distinguishing and appreciating either diamonds in the rough or gold in bars. They are traders, and in literature know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-joubert/professional-critics-are-incapable-of-distinguishing-and-appreciating/) [Joseph Joubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-joubert/) > [Only in the crucible of self-mastery can freedom be smelted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/only-in-the-crucible-of-self-mastery-can-freedom-be-smelted/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [Recognize that the very molecules that make up your body...are traceable to the crucibles that were once the centers of high mass stars that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/recognize-that-the-very-molecules-that-make-up-your-body-are/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [In my last year of drama school, I was Abigail in 'The Crucible' and Nina in 'The Seagull,' and I did some Shakespeare with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberley-nixon/in-my-last-year-of-drama-school-i-was-abigail-in-the-crucible-and/) [Kimberley Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberley-nixon/) [Browse all 112 Crucible quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crucible/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“it were as wise to cast a violet into a crucible that you might discover the formal principle of its color and odor, as seek to transfuse from one language into another the creations of a poet”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Percy Bysshe Shelley" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/it-were-as-wise-to-cast-a-violet-into-a-crucible-that-you-might/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Crucible" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/it-were-as-wise-to-cast-a-violet-into-a-crucible-that-you-might/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/percy-bysshe-shelley-476_crucible_it-were-as-wise-to-cast-a-violet-into-a_2287052.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/percy-bysshe-shelley-476_crucible_it-were-as-wise-to-cast-a-violet-into-a_2287052.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/percy-bysshe-shelley-476_crucible_it-were-as-wise-to-cast-a-violet-into-a_2287052.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“it were as wise to cast a violet into a crucible that you might discover the formal principle of its color…” — Percy Bysshe Shelley", "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": "Percy Bysshe Shelley", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“it were as wise to cast...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/it-were-as-wise-to-cast-a-violet-into-a-crucible-that-you-might/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/it-were-as-wise-to-cast-a-violet-into-a-crucible-that-you-might/#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 } } ] } ```