--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Eloquence is relative. One can no more…" description: "\"Eloquence is relative. One can no more pronounce on the eloquence of any composition than the wholesomeness of a medicine, without knowing for whom it ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22a/richard-whately-3892_composition_eloquence-is-relative-one-can-no-more-pr_121855.png" --- # Eloquence is relative. One can no more pronounce on the… ![“Eloquence is relative. One can no more pronounce on the eloquence of any composition than the wholesomeness of a medicine, without knowing for whom it is intended.” quote by Richard Whately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22a/richard-whately-3892_composition_eloquence-is-relative-one-can-no-more-pr_121855.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22a/richard-whately-3892_composition_eloquence-is-relative-one-can-no-more-pr_121855.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22a/richard-whately-3892_composition_eloquence-is-relative-one-can-no-more-pr_121855.png) > “Eloquence is relative. One can no more pronounce on the eloquence of any composition than the wholesomeness of a medicine, without knowing for whom it is intended.” [Richard Whately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-whately/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Eloquence must be judged by its relevance to the audience; a well‑crafted message is ineffective if it doesn’t suit its listeners. **In simple terms:** Speech is only eloquent if it fits its audience. Key Takeaway Context determines rhetorical success. Themes rhetoric communication audience effectiveness relativity Mood thoughtful analytical Type aphorism maxim advice When to use this quote - Public speaking - Marketing copy - Academic writing Key Concepts situational appropriateness intentionality Practical Applications - Adapt tone to audience - Test messages with target group Questions to Reflect On - How do we assess whether a message matches its audience? - When is it acceptable to prioritize style over relevance? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Composition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/composition/) [Composition Wholesomeness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/composition-wholesomeness-1419509/) [Eloquence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eloquence/) [Eloquence Composition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eloquence-composition-1419508/) [Eloquence Relative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eloquence-relative-1419506/) [Knowing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowing/) [Medicine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medicine/) [Pronounce Eloquence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pronounce-eloquence-1419507/) [Relative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/relative/) [Relative Pronounce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/relative-pronounce-1419510/) [Wholesomeness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wholesomeness/) ## Related quotes > [As far as stimulus from the visual arts specifically, there is today in most of us a visual appetite that is hungry, that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-walford/as-far-as-stimulus-from-the-visual-arts-specifically-there-is-today/) [John Walford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-walford/) > [Even though life may have moved wearily and painfully through such a person, they have still managed not to let it corrode their soul.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-o-donohue/even-though-life-may-have-moved-wearily-and-painfully-through-such-a/) [John O'Donohue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-o-donohue/) > [Zen is the spirit of a man. 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Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-t-suzuki/) > [We ought to regard ourselves and to act as socialists--believers in the wholesomeness and beneficence of the body politic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woodrow-wilson/we-ought-to-regard-ourselves-and-to-act-as-socialists-believers-in/) [Woodrow Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woodrow-wilson/) > [“Any aggressive lust lacks balance and is unwholesome and obstructive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/any-aggressive-lust-lacks-balance-and-is-unwholesome-and-obstructive/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [It may be safely averred that good cookery is the best and truest economy, turning to full account every wholesome article of food, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliza-acton/it-may-be-safely-averred-that-good-cookery-is-the-best-and-truest/) [Eliza Acton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliza-acton/) > [There is no peace in Southern Africa. 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just so, historians give us the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-whately/geologists-complain-that-when-they-want-specimens-of-the-common-rocks/) [Richard Whately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-whately/) > [Reason can no more influence the will, and operate as a motive, than the eyes which show a man his road can enable him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-whately/reason-can-no-more-influence-the-will-and-operate-as-a-motive-than/) [Richard Whately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-whately/) > [Falsehood, like poison, will generally be rejected when administered alone; but when blended with wholesome ingredients may be swallowed unperceived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-whately/falsehood-like-poison-will-generally-be-rejected-when-administered/) [Richard Whately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-whately/) > [Happiness is no laughing matter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-whately/happiness-is-no-laughing-matter/) [Richard Whately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-whately/) > [Though not always called upon to condemn ourselves, it is always safe to suspect ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-whately/though-not-always-called-upon-to-condemn-ourselves-it-is-always-safe/) [Richard Whately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-whately/) > [Even supposing there were some spiritual advantage in celibacy, it ought to be completely voluntary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-whately/even-supposing-there-were-some-spiritual-advantage-in-celibacy-it/) [Richard Whately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-whately/) > [Some men's reputation seems like seed-wheat, which thrives best when brought from a distance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-whately/some-men-s-reputation-seems-like-seed-wheat-which-thrives-best-when/) [Richard Whately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-whately/) > [He who is not aware of his ignorance will be only misled by his knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-whately/he-who-is-not-aware-of-his-ignorance-will-be-only-misled-by-his/) [Richard Whately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-whately/) > [Nothing but the right can ever be expedient, since that can never be true expediency which would sacrifice a great good to a less.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-whately/nothing-but-the-right-can-ever-be-expedient-since-that-can-never-be/) [Richard Whately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-whately/) [Explore all 119 Richard Whately quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-whately/) ## More Composition quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) [Ted Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-martinez/) > [“The composition of Shakespeare is a forest, in which oaks extend in the air, interspersed sometimes with weeds and brambles, and sometimes giving shelting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-composition-of-shakespeare-is-a-forest-in-which-oaks-extend-in/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [At the risk of some oversimplification, if the skill composition of our work force meshed fully with the needs of our increasingly complex capital-stock,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-greenspan/at-the-risk-of-some-oversimplification-if-the-skill-composition-of/) [Alan Greenspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-greenspan/) > [Writers and musicians know well the importance of extensive reading for successful writing or extensive listening for musical composition. 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The Mozart Quintet is not shut up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-rabaud/musical-compositions-it-should-be-remembered-do-not-inhabit-certain/) [Henri Rabaud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-rabaud/) > [Science does not enter a chaotic society to put order into it anymore, to simplify its composition, and to put an end to controversies.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-latour/science-does-not-enter-a-chaotic-society-to-put-order-into-it-anymore/) [Bruno Latour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-latour/) > [If measure and symmetry are absent from any composition in any degree, ruin awaits both the ingredients and the composition... 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