---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The average politician goes through a…"
description: "\"The average politician goes through a sentence like a man exploring a disused mine shaft-blind, groping, timorous and in imminent danger of cracking hi..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62d/robertson-davies-834_average_the-average-politician-goes-through-a-se_2955124.png"
---

#  The average politician goes through a sentence like a man…

![“The average politician goes through a sentence like a man exploring a disused mine shaft-blind, groping, timorous and in imminent danger of cracking his shins on a subordinate clause or a nasty bit of subjunctive.” quote by Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62d/robertson-davies-834_average_the-average-politician-goes-through-a-se_2955124.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62d/robertson-davies-834_average_the-average-politician-goes-through-a-se_2955124.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62d/robertson-davies-834_average_the-average-politician-goes-through-a-se_2955124.png)

> “The average politician goes through a sentence like a man exploring a disused mine shaft-blind, groping, timorous and in imminent danger of cracking his shins on a subordinate clause or a nasty bit of subjunctive.”

[Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Political language is a treacherous mine, full of hidden traps that can injure the unwary.

**In simple terms:** Political language is a dangerous maze.

Key Takeaway

Navigate language carefully.

Themes

politics language communication

Mood

analytical cautious

Type

educational philosophical

When to use this quote

- legislative drafting
- media reporting
- public speaking

Key Concepts

rhetorical analysis political discourse

Questions to Reflect On

- How can we clarify political speech?
- What strategies avoid misinterpretation?

A Different Perspective

Complexity may obscure intent.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Blind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blind/) [Danger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/danger/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Politician](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politician/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/)

## Related quotes

> [The average politician speaks out of both sides of their mouth. No matter if it's Canada or the United States. And it's all three…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-ford-jr/the-average-politician-speaks-out-of-both-sides-of-their-mouth-no/)

[Doug Ford, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-ford-jr/)

> [Every politician goes through a lean patch during which they go back to their main area of expertise. Some return to business, some practice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaya-prada/every-politician-goes-through-a-lean-patch-during-which-they-go-back/)

[Jaya Prada](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaya-prada/)

> [I think the journey for a politician goes from wanting to please all the people all the time, to a political leader that realises…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/i-think-the-journey-for-a-politician-goes-from-wanting-to-please-all/)

[Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/)

> [Boris is a naturally energetic and optimistic politician. And when he goes on the campaign trail that just becomes so evident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cleverly/boris-is-a-naturally-energetic-and-optimistic-politician-and-when-he/)

[James Cleverly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-cleverly/)

> [With this recitation of paraphernalia and detritus, O'Brien manages to encapsulate the experience of an army and of a particular war, of a mined…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francine-prose/with-this-recitation-of-paraphernalia-and-detritus-o-brien-manages-to/)

[Francine Prose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francine-prose/)

> [The prospect of his future life stretched before him like a sentence; not a prison sentence but a long-winded sentence with a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/the-prospect-of-his-future-life-stretched-before-him-like-a-sentence/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [Language is not merely a set of unrelated sounds, clauses, rules, and meanings; it is a total coherent system of these integrating with each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/language-is-not-merely-a-set-of-unrelated-sounds-clauses-rules-and/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [The Supreme Court has never ruled that Congress can use the Commerce Clause to require individuals to engage in an activity they have chosen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cornyn/the-supreme-court-has-never-ruled-that-congress-can-use-the-commerce/)

[John Cornyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cornyn/)

> [A comma . . . catches the gentle drift of the mind in thought, turning in on itself and back on itself, reversing, redoubling,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/a-comma-catches-the-gentle-drift-of-the-mind-in-thought-turning-in-on/)

[Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/)

> [The men who wrote the First Amendment religion clause did not view paid legislative chaplains and opening prayers as a violation of that amendment...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-e-burger/the-men-who-wrote-the-first-amendment-religion-clause-did-not-view/)

[Warren E. Burger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-e-burger/)

> [It's never been integral to the story that I take my clothes off. I've always had clauses in my contracts saying no nudity and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-jessica-parker/it-s-never-been-integral-to-the-story-that-i-take-my-clothes-off-i-ve/)

[Sarah Jessica Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-jessica-parker/)

> [It is triple ultra forbidden to respond to criticism with violence. There are a very few injunctions in the human art of rationality that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliezer-yudkowsky/it-is-triple-ultra-forbidden-to-respond-to-criticism-with-violence/)

[Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliezer-yudkowsky/)

> [Believe in your dreams. If you don't, who will?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-bon-jovi/believe-in-your-dreams-if-you-don-t-who-will/)

[Jon Bon Jovi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-bon-jovi/)

> [She told me that all the girls in Annezin prayed every night for the war to end and for the English to go away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-graves/she-told-me-that-all-the-girls-in-annezin-prayed-every-night-for-the/)

[Robert Graves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-graves/)

> [I would have had a clause in my contract; I would've definitely put some fine print in my contract that said, "If the president…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-budden/i-would-have-had-a-clause-in-my-contract-i-would-ve-definitely-put/)

[Joe Budden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-budden/)

## More by Robertson Davies

> [“...the irrational will have its say, perhaps because 'irrational' is the wrong word for it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/the-irrational-will-have-its-say-perhaps-because-irrational-is-the/)

[Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/)

> [If you're going to do something that looks evil, don't smear it with icing and pretend it's good; just bloody well do it and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/if-you-re-going-to-do-something-that-looks-evil-don-t-smear-it-with/)

[Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/)

> [Extraordinary people survive under the most terrible circumstances and they become more extraordinary because of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/extraordinary-people-survive-under-the-most-terrible-circumstances/)

[Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/)

> [Although there may be nothing new under the sun, what is old is new to us and so rich and astonishing that we never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/although-there-may-be-nothing-new-under-the-sun-what-is-old-is-new-to/)

[Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/)

> [If I had to describe my remarks this evening frankly as if I were in police court and on oath, so to speak I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/if-i-had-to-describe-my-remarks-this-evening-frankly-as-if-i-were-in/)

[Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/)

> [The people of the United States, perhaps more than any other nation in history, love to abase themselves and proclaim their unworthiness, and seem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/the-people-of-the-united-states-perhaps-more-than-any-other-nation-in/)

[Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/)

> [I don't suppose God laughs at the people who think He doesn't exist. He's above jokes. But the devil isn't. That's one of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/i-don-t-suppose-god-laughs-at-the-people-who-think-he-doesn-t-exist/)

[Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/)

> [Inactivity and deprivation of all accustomed stimulus is not rest; it is a preparation for the tomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/inactivity-and-deprivation-of-all-accustomed-stimulus-is-not-rest-it/)

[Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/)

> [“My lifelong involvement with Mrs Dempster began at 5:58 o'clock p.m. on 27 December 1908, at which time I was ten years and seven months old.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/my-lifelong-involvement-with-mrs-dempster-began-at-5-58-o-clock-p-m/)

[Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/)

> [In a government like ours, the Crown is the abiding and unshakable element in government; politicians may come and go, but the Crown remains…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/in-a-government-like-ours-the-crown-is-the-abiding-and-unshakable/)

[Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/)

> [The art of the quoter is to know when to stop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/the-art-of-the-quoter-is-to-know-when-to-stop/)

[Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/)

> [There can be no doubt that Samuel Marchbanks is one of the choice and master spirits of this age. If there were such a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/there-can-be-no-doubt-that-samuel-marchbanks-is-one-of-the-choice-and/)

[Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/)

> [Nobody who looks as though he enjoyed life is ever called distinguished, though he is a man in a million.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/nobody-who-looks-as-though-he-enjoyed-life-is-ever-called/)

[Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/)

> [They're all so highly educated, you know. Education is a great shield against experience. It offers so much, ready-made and all from the best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/they-re-all-so-highly-educated-you-know-education-is-a-great-shield/)

[Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/)

> [Students today are a pretty solemn lot. One of the really notable achievements of the twentieth century has been to make the young old…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/students-today-are-a-pretty-solemn-lot-one-of-the-really-notable/)

[Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/)

[Explore all 357 Robertson Davies quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/)

## More Average quotes

> [I genuinely did not expect more than half our nation to choose to walk away from our long-term allies into the arms of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-reade/i-genuinely-did-not-expect-more-than-half-our-nation-to-choose-to/)

Brian Reade

> [There were times last year when people looked at the scoreboard and thought my batting average was the temperature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buck-martinez/there-were-times-last-year-when-people-looked-at-the-scoreboard-and/)

Buck Martinez

> [The average condition of the people improving or deteriorating, depends upon whether population is advancing faster than improvement, or improvement than population.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-stuart-mill/the-average-condition-of-the-people-improving-or-deteriorating/)

[John Stuart Mill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-stuart-mill/)

> [In comparative terms, there's no poverty in America by a long shot. Heritage Foundation political scientist Robert Rector has worked up figures showing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/in-comparative-terms-there-s-no-poverty-in-america-by-a-long-shot/)

[P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/)

> [The average well-being of our societies is not dependent any longer on national income and economic growth. ... But the differences between us and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-g-wilkinson/the-average-well-being-of-our-societies-is-not-dependent-any-longer/)

[Richard G. Wilkinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-g-wilkinson/)

> [I really focus more to hit for average, just try to put the ball in play as much as I can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-soto/i-really-focus-more-to-hit-for-average-just-try-to-put-the-ball-in/)

[Juan Soto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juan-soto/)

> [You give me enough shots, I'll average 20. You give me a particular system where I stick close to the basket, I'll average 10 rebounds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-bosh/you-give-me-enough-shots-i-ll-average-20-you-give-me-a-particular/)

[Chris Bosh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-bosh/)

> [The average ordinary citizen can do a lot of different things when it comes to the climate crisis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-bender/the-average-ordinary-citizen-can-do-a-lot-of-different-things-when-it/)

[Lawrence Bender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-bender/)

> [The average American expends more time becoming informed about choosing a car than choosing a candidate. But, then, the consequences of the former choice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/the-average-american-expends-more-time-becoming-informed-about/)

[George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/)

> [My phone rings, they call me up and say, 'Chael, your testosterone level is too high.' I say, 'Well, how high was it?' They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chael-sonnen/my-phone-rings-they-call-me-up-and-say-chael-your-testosterone-level/)

[Chael Sonnen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chael-sonnen/)

> [In one century, we've added 28 years to our average life span - a change so rapid that our brains couldn't possibly have evolved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-beck/in-one-century-we-ve-added-28-years-to-our-average-life-span-a-change/)

[Martha Beck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-beck/)

> [So-called Western Civilization, as practised in half of Europe, some of Asia and a few parts of North America, is better than anything else…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/so-called-western-civilization-as-practised-in-half-of-europe-some-of/)

[P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/)

> [I feel like what motivates me is what would motivate the regular average person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rico-nasty/i-feel-like-what-motivates-me-is-what-would-motivate-the-regular/)

[Rico Nasty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rico-nasty/)

> [We're trying to do something so that when the average person uses Pinterest, it has to make the service better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-silbermann/we-re-trying-to-do-something-so-that-when-the-average-person-uses/)

[Ben Silbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-silbermann/)

> [The extraordinary woman depends on the ordinary woman. It is only when we know what were the conditions of the average woman's life -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/the-extraordinary-woman-depends-on-the-ordinary-woman-it-is-only-when/)

[Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/)

Browse all 2,816 Average quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "The average politician goes through a sentence like a man exploring a disused mine shaft-blind, groping, timorous and in imminent danger of cracking his shins on a subordinate clause or a nasty bit of subjunctive.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Robertson Davies"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/the-average-politician-goes-through-a-sentence-like-a-man-exploring-a/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Average"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/the-average-politician-goes-through-a-sentence-like-a-man-exploring-a/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62d/robertson-davies-834_average_the-average-politician-goes-through-a-se_2955124.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62d/robertson-davies-834_average_the-average-politician-goes-through-a-se_2955124.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62d/robertson-davies-834_average_the-average-politician-goes-through-a-se_2955124.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The average politician goes through a sentence like a man exploring a disused mine shaft-blind, groping…” — Robertson Davies",
                "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": "Robertson Davies",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "The average politician goes through a...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/the-average-politician-goes-through-a-sentence-like-a-man-exploring-a/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/the-average-politician-goes-through-a-sentence-like-a-man-exploring-a/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
