--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Look on the bee upon the wing 'mong…" description: "\"Look on the bee upon the wing 'mong flowers; How brave, how bright his life! then mark, him hiv'd, Cramp'd, cringing in his self-built, social cell, Th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/philip-james-bailey-2904_bees_look-on-the-bee-upon-the-wing-mong-flowe_2135677.jpg" --- # Look on the bee upon the wing 'mong flowers; How brave… ![“Look on the bee upon the wing 'mong flowers; How brave, how bright his life! then mark, him hiv'd, Cramp'd, cringing in his self-built, social cell, Thus it is in the world-hive; most where men Lie deep in cities as in drifts.” quote by Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/philip-james-bailey-2904_bees_look-on-the-bee-upon-the-wing-mong-flowe_2135677.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/philip-james-bailey-2904_bees_look-on-the-bee-upon-the-wing-mong-flowe_2135677.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/philip-james-bailey-2904_bees_look-on-the-bee-upon-the-wing-mong-flowe_2135677.jpg) > “Look on the bee upon the wing 'mong flowers; How brave, how bright his life! then mark, him hiv'd, Cramp'd, cringing in his self-built, social cell, Thus it is in the world-hive; most where men Lie deep in cities as in drifts.” [Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human societies confine individuals like bees in cells, limiting freedom and creativity, contrasting with natural bravery and brightness. **In simple terms:** Society traps people like bees, stifling their bright, brave nature. Key Takeaway Break free from restrictive social structures. Themes society freedom creativity Mood thoughtful critical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - urban living - career constraints - artistic expression - community building Key Concepts philosophy metaphor social critique Questions to Reflect On - What " boxes limit your potential? - How can you nurture bravery in daily life? A Different Perspective Not all social bonds are restrictive; some provide support. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bees/) [Brave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brave/) [Cities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cities/) [Flower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flower/) [Hive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hive/) [Lying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [We fell in love. Mine became ours, minutes turned to hours, chocolates and flowers, you made me brave when life created a coward.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raghib-clitso/we-fell-in-love-mine-became-ours-minutes-turned-to-hours-chocolates/) [Raghib Clitso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raghib-clitso/) > [“Mr. President I confess that there are several parts of this constitution which I do not at present approve, but I am not sure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/mr-president-i-confess-that-there-are-several-parts-of-this/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [The beautiful laws of time and space, once dislocated by our inaptitude, are holes and dens. If the hive be disturbed by rash and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-beautiful-laws-of-time-and-space-once-dislocated-by-our/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“Legend of the Hive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tui-t-sutherland/legend-of-the-hive/) [Tui T. Sutherland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tui-t-sutherland/) > [What does not benefit the hive is no benefit to the bee.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/what-does-not-benefit-the-hive-is-no-benefit-to-the-bee/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [“I am not a part of this home any longer. I am a tiny thing created by indifferent scientists. I am an experiment, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-tate/i-am-not-a-part-of-this-home-any-longer-i-am-a-tiny-thing-created-by/) [James Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-tate/) > [“A hive mind is a social organization of RISTs that are capable of processing semantic memes ("thinking"). These could be either carbon-based or silicon-based.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-stephenson/a-hive-mind-is-a-social-organization-of-rists-that-are-capable-of/) Neil Stephenson > [I'm extremely excited about working with Troika on 'The Hive.' This script has two elements I always look for in a thriller - strong,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-anderson/i-m-extremely-excited-about-working-with-troika-on-the-hive-this/) [Brad Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-anderson/) > [No matter how you seem to fatten on a crime, there can never be good for the bee which is bad for the hive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/no-matter-how-you-seem-to-fatten-on-a-crime-there-can-never-be-good/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The tools that a society uses to create and maintain itself are as central to human life as a hive is to bee life.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clay-shirky/the-tools-that-a-society-uses-to-create-and-maintain-itself-are-as/) [Clay Shirky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clay-shirky/) > [That which is not good for the bee-hive cannot be good for the bees.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/that-which-is-not-good-for-the-bee-hive-cannot-be-good-for-the-bees/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [Do not discount the psychic warmth of the hive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/do-not-discount-the-psychic-warmth-of-the-hive/) [Chang-Rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [Most people don't have any idea about all the complicated life going on inside a hive. Bees have a secret life we don't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/most-people-don-t-have-any-idea-about-all-the-complicated-life-going/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“My head is a hive of words that won't settle.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/my-head-is-a-hive-of-words-that-won-t-settle/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [“you don’t usually help the bees by destroying the hive. Finally,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-haidt/you-don-t-usually-help-the-bees-by-destroying-the-hive-finally/) [Jonathan Haidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-haidt/) ## More by Philip James Bailey > [The strongest passion which I have is honor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/the-strongest-passion-which-i-have-is-honor/) [Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) > [When pride thaws, look for floods.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/when-pride-thaws-look-for-floods/) [Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) > [Thou art a woman, And that is saying the best and worst of thee.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/thou-art-a-woman-and-that-is-saying-the-best-and-worst-of-thee/) [Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) > [The death-change comes. Death is another life. We bow our heads At going out, we think, and enter straight Another golden chamber of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/the-death-change-comes-death-is-another-life-we-bow-our-heads-at/) [Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) > [It is fine to stand upon some lofty mountain thought, and feel the spirit stretch into a view.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/it-is-fine-to-stand-upon-some-lofty-mountain-thought-and-feel-the/) [Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) > [Death, thou art infinite; it is life is little.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/death-thou-art-infinite-it-is-life-is-little/) [Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) > [Kindness is wisdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/kindness-is-wisdom/) [Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) > [None but God can fill the perfect whole.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/none-but-god-can-fill-the-perfect-whole/) [Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) > [The ground of all great thoughts is sadness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/the-ground-of-all-great-thoughts-is-sadness/) [Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) > [The dew, 'Tis of the tears which stars weep, sweet with joy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/the-dew-tis-of-the-tears-which-stars-weep-sweet-with-joy/) [Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) > [My favoured temple is an humble heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/my-favoured-temple-is-an-humble-heart/) [Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) > [Fine thoughts are wealth, for the right use of which Men are and ought to be accountable,-- If not to Thee, to those they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/fine-thoughts-are-wealth-for-the-right-use-of-which-men-are-and-ought/) [Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) > [The sole equality on earth is death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/the-sole-equality-on-earth-is-death/) [Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) > [The goodness of the heart is shown in deeds Of peacefulness and kindness. Hand and heart Are one thing with the good, as thou…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/the-goodness-of-the-heart-is-shown-in-deeds-of-peacefulness-and/) [Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) > [He is a fool who is not for love and beauty. I speak unto the young, for I am of them and always shall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/he-is-a-fool-who-is-not-for-love-and-beauty-i-speak-unto-the-young/) [Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) [Explore all 146 Philip James Bailey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) ## More Bees quotes > [Those who have not been stung will hardly fear a bee the same as those who have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/those-who-have-not-been-stung-will-hardly-fear-a-bee-the-same-as/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [Arouse a bee and it will come at you with the force of a dragon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/takeda-shingen/arouse-a-bee-and-it-will-come-at-you-with-the-force-of-a-dragon/) [Takeda Shingen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/takeda-shingen/) > [Pray look upon the plants and birds, the ants, spiders, and bees, and you will see them all exerting their nature, and busy in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/pray-look-upon-the-plants-and-birds-the-ants-spiders-and-bees-and-you/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [You see, years ago I was just an ordinary bee minding my own business, smelling flowers all day, and occasionally picking up part-time work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norton-juster/you-see-years-ago-i-was-just-an-ordinary-bee-minding-my-own-business/) [Norton Juster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norton-juster/) > [As the bee collecteth honey with great zest, so the fool collecteth wealth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kabir/as-the-bee-collecteth-honey-with-great-zest-so-the-fool-collecteth/) [Kabir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kabir/) > [It is hard to imagine a world without bees. It would be even harder to live in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-gardiner/it-is-hard-to-imagine-a-world-without-bees-it-would-be-even-harder-to/) [Barry Gardiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-gardiner/) > [When I heard that the bees were in trouble, the fact that they're disappearing and not coming back to the hive, which is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louie-schwartzberg/when-i-heard-that-the-bees-were-in-trouble-the-fact-that-they-re/) [Louie Schwartzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louie-schwartzberg/) > [Precise, graceful, and generous, the poems in SuperLoop, seem to be born out of a deep, careful attention and a profound compassion. Sometimes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ada-limon/precise-graceful-and-generous-the-poems-in-superloop-seem-to-be-born/) [Ada Limon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ada-limon/) > [The little bee returns with evening's gloom, To join her comrades in the braided hive, Where, housed beside their might honey-comb, They dream their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-tennyson-turner/the-little-bee-returns-with-evening-s-gloom-to-join-her-comrades-in/) [Charles Tennyson Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-tennyson-turner/) > [“This time of year, the purple blooms were busy with life- not just the bees, but butterflies and ladybugs, skippers and emerald-toned beetles, flitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-wiggs/this-time-of-year-the-purple-blooms-were-busy-with-life-not-just-the/) [Susan Wiggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-wiggs/) > [“Bees chase flowers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-l-shreve/bees-chase-flowers/) Tracy L. Shreve > [My banks they are furnish'd with bees, Whose murmur invites one to sleep.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shenstone/my-banks-they-are-furnish-d-with-bees-whose-murmur-invites-one-to/) [William Shenstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shenstone/) > [There are certain pursuits which, if not wholly poetic and true, do at least suggest a nobler and finer relation to nature than we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/there-are-certain-pursuits-which-if-not-wholly-poetic-and-true-do-at/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The Bee Gees are a fly-by-night sort of group.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-gibb/the-bee-gees-are-a-fly-by-night-sort-of-group/) [Barry Gibb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-gibb/) > [“I don't like to hear cut and dried sermons. No—when I hear a man preach, I like to see him act as if he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/i-don-t-like-to-hear-cut-and-dried-sermons-no-when-i-hear-a-man/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) [Browse all 770 Bees quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bees/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Look on the bee upon the wing 'mong flowers; How brave, how bright his life! then mark, him hiv'd, Cramp'd, cringing in his self-built, social cell, Thus it is in the world-hive; most where men Lie deep in cities as in drifts.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Philip James Bailey" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/look-on-the-bee-upon-the-wing-mong-flowers-how-brave-how-bright-his/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bees" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/look-on-the-bee-upon-the-wing-mong-flowers-how-brave-how-bright-his/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/philip-james-bailey-2904_bees_look-on-the-bee-upon-the-wing-mong-flowe_2135677.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/philip-james-bailey-2904_bees_look-on-the-bee-upon-the-wing-mong-flowe_2135677.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/philip-james-bailey-2904_bees_look-on-the-bee-upon-the-wing-mong-flowe_2135677.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Look on the bee upon the wing 'mong flowers; How brave, how bright his life! then mark, him hiv'd, Cramp'd…” — Philip James Bailey", "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": "Philip James Bailey", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Look on the bee upon the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/look-on-the-bee-upon-the-wing-mong-flowers-how-brave-how-bright-his/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/look-on-the-bee-upon-the-wing-mong-flowers-how-brave-how-bright-his/#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 } } ] } ```