--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Shakespeare said, \"Kill all the lawyers.\"…" description: "\"Shakespeare said, \"Kill all the lawyers.\" There were no agents then.\" — Robin Williams" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/761/robin-williams-682_agents_shakespeare-said-kill-all-the-lawyers-th_2047851.jpg" --- # Shakespeare said, "Kill all the lawyers." There were no… ![“Shakespeare said, "Kill all the lawyers." There were no agents then.” quote by Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/761/robin-williams-682_agents_shakespeare-said-kill-all-the-lawyers-th_2047851.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/761/robin-williams-682_agents_shakespeare-said-kill-all-the-lawyers-th_2047851.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/761/robin-williams-682_agents_shakespeare-said-kill-all-the-lawyers-th_2047851.jpg) > “Shakespeare said, "Kill all the lawyers." There were no agents then.” [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A comedic twist on Shakespeare’s line, noting the absence of lawyers in the past. **In simple terms:** Shakespeare joked about lawyers; there were none then. Key Takeaway Question the relevance of outdated critiques. Themes humor legal criticism historical context literary reference Mood witty critical Type comedic satirical When to use this quote - legal reform debates - media analysis - education curricula Key Concepts Satire social commentary temporal relevance Questions to Reflect On - What modern parallels exist for “kill all the lawyers”? - How does satire influence public perception? A Different Perspective Humor can oversimplify complex issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) [Humour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humour/) [Lawyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lawyer/) [Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shakespeare/) ## Related quotes > [The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/the-first-thing-we-do-let-s-kill-all-the-lawyers/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I have been surrounded by some of the smartest, brightest, most caring lawyers, by agents who are willing to risk their lives for others,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-reno/i-have-been-surrounded-by-some-of-the-smartest-brightest-most-caring/) [Janet Reno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-reno/) > [Movies in Hollywood now, for the past 20 or 30 years, are made mainly by lawyers or agents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-luc-godard/movies-in-hollywood-now-for-the-past-20-or-30-years-are-made-mainly/) [Jean-Luc Godard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-luc-godard/) > [The first thing we do, let's kill all lawyers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakeapeare/the-first-thing-we-do-let-s-kill-all-lawyers/) William Shakeapeare > [Let us kill all lawyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/let-us-kill-all-lawyers/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Just listen,” she said. “You can’t kill him in cold blood.” “Whyever not?” Ye gods grant me patience. “Because he’ll be dead,” she said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loretta-chase/just-listen-she-said-you-can-t-kill-him-in-cold-blood-whyever-not-ye/) [Loretta Chase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loretta-chase/) > [“Get moving. We need to find that stag so I don’t have to chop your head off.” “I never said you had to chop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leigh-bardugo/get-moving-we-need-to-find-that-stag-so-i-don-t-have-to-chop-your/) [Leigh Bardugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leigh-bardugo/) > [“You should have me restrained,' she said. 'I could kill you. You never know when I might have a razor blade tucked up my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-cain/you-should-have-me-restrained-she-said-i-could-kill-you-you-never/) [Chelsea Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-cain/) > [“The silence stretched. Finally Al added one more sentence that I have been thinking about ever since. ‘And if you did it again,’ he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-simmons/the-silence-stretched-finally-al-added-one-more-sentence-that-i-have/) [Dan Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-simmons/) > [Tariq tucked the gun into the waist of his denims. Then he said a thing both lovely and terrible. "For you," he said. "I'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/tariq-tucked-the-gun-into-the-waist-of-his-denims-then-he-said-a/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [You said you would kill anyone who hurt me..does that mean your going to kill yourself??](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-said-you-would-kill-anyone-who-hurt-me-does-that-mean-your-going/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“One day we heard on the radio that a woman in the suburbs had seen a mountain lion behind her house and had called…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeannette-walls/one-day-we-heard-on-the-radio-that-a-woman-in-the-suburbs-had-seen-a/) [Jeannette Walls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeannette-walls/) > [“Let's make a game of it, shall we?" she said. "Whoever kills the most, wins." "I will kill twenty!" Lydia declared. "I will kill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-hockensmith/let-s-make-a-game-of-it-shall-we-she-said-whoever-kills-the-most-wins/) [Steve Hockensmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-hockensmith/) > [Who said to kill does not require gentleness?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nawal-el-saadawi/who-said-to-kill-does-not-require-gentleness/) [Nawal El Saadawi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nawal-el-saadawi/) > [All four days I didn't think. I just hit. Squeaky (Medlen, his caddy) said 'kill' and I killed it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-daly/all-four-days-i-didn-t-think-i-just-hit-squeaky-medlen-his-caddy-said/) [John Daly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-daly/) ## More by Robin Williams > [On stage you're free. You can say and do things that if you said and did any place else, you'd be arrested.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/on-stage-you-re-free-you-can-say-and-do-things-that-if-you-said-and/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [Humor is a great defense, and an offense too. Usually the recipient isn't too happy about it, but the people around are laughing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/humor-is-a-great-defense-and-an-offense-too-usually-the-recipient-isn/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [What's wrong with death sir? What are we so mortally afraid of? Why can't we treat death with a certain amount of humanity and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/what-s-wrong-with-death-sir-what-are-we-so-mortally-afraid-of-why-can/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [Spring is nature's way of saying, 'Let's party!'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/spring-is-nature-s-way-of-saying-let-s-party/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [I had sex with a prostitute when I was 21, I was so bad, she gave me a refund.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/i-had-sex-with-a-prostitute-when-i-was-21-i-was-so-bad-she-gave-me-a/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [We were talking briefly about cocaine... yeah. Anything that makes you paranoid and impotent, give me more of that!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/we-were-talking-briefly-about-cocaine-yeah-anything-that-makes-you/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [In America they really do mythologise people when they die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/in-america-they-really-do-mythologise-people-when-they-die/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [I always thought the idea of education was to learn to think for yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/i-always-thought-the-idea-of-education-was-to-learn-to-think-for/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [I was a serious method actor until I visited this site.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/i-was-a-serious-method-actor-until-i-visited-this-site/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [I'm history! No, I'm mythology! Nah, I don't care what I am, I'm free!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/i-m-history-no-i-m-mythology-nah-i-don-t-care-what-i-am-i-m-free/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [But only in their dreams can men be truly free. It was always thus and always thus will be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/but-only-in-their-dreams-can-men-be-truly-free-it-was-always-thus-and/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [People say satire is dead. It's not dead; it's alive and living in the White House.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/people-say-satire-is-dead-it-s-not-dead-it-s-alive-and-living-in-the/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [For me, comedy starts as a spew, a kind of explosion, and then you sculpt it from there, if at all. It comes out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/for-me-comedy-starts-as-a-spew-a-kind-of-explosion-and-then-you/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [Carpe per diem - seize the check.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/carpe-per-diem-seize-the-check/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [Cable is not bound because people pay for it. It's literally a choice, that's the operative word. If you don't like the language, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/cable-is-not-bound-because-people-pay-for-it-it-s-literally-a-choice/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) [Explore all 413 Robin Williams quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) ## More Agents quotes > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I don't see \[ Trainspotting \] as an albatross, I see it more as a calling card. It's got me out to Hollywood, I've… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irvine-welsh/i-don-t-see-trainspotting-as-an-albatross-i-see-it-more-as-a-calling/) [Irvine Welsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irvine-welsh/) > [Our attitude towards evil must be freed from hatred, and has itself need to be enlightened in character...Satan rejoices when he succeeds in inspiring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikolai-berdyaev/our-attitude-towards-evil-must-be-freed-from-hatred-and-has-itself/) [Nikolai Berdyaev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikolai-berdyaev/) > [We are coming to a place where the road ends. From here on out, we will be making the road as we walk it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-atlee/we-are-coming-to-a-place-where-the-road-ends-from-here-on-out-we-will/) Tom Atlee > [Love is the supreme form of communication. In the hierarchy of needs, love stands as the supreme developing agent of the humanity of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley-montagu/love-is-the-supreme-form-of-communication-in-the-hierarchy-of-needs/) [Ashley Montagu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashley-montagu/) > [I have always believed that women are not victims, we are agents of change, we are drivers of progress, we are makers of peace…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-have-always-believed-that-women-are-not-victims-we-are-agents-of/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [Many American TV actors employ agents, managers, business managers, publicists and stylists, and are now adding digital media manager to the list. Their job…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-bellman/many-american-tv-actors-employ-agents-managers-business-managers/) [Gina Bellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-bellman/) > [The ultimate goal of radical politics is gradually to displace the limit of social exclusions, empowering the excluded agents (sexual and ethnic minorities) by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/slavoj-i-ek/the-ultimate-goal-of-radical-politics-is-gradually-to-displace-the/) [Slavoj Žižek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/slavoj-i-ek/) > [In politics we face the choice between warmongering, nation-state loving, big-business agents on one hand; and risk-blind, top-down, epistemic arrogant big servants of large…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/in-politics-we-face-the-choice-between-warmongering-nation-state/) [Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/) > [My first job was a film called 'Storm Damage' for the BBC. I was 16 and working with really respected British actors. I didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley-madekwe/my-first-job-was-a-film-called-storm-damage-for-the-bbc-i-was-16-and/) [Ashley Madekwe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashley-madekwe/) > [Government is the agent of those who are too refined to do their own mugging.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/government-is-the-agent-of-those-who-are-too-refined-to-do-their-own/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) > [While much of modern behavioral and social science treats individuals as autonomous agents, it is absolutely clear that the way we think and act…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-r-nelson/while-much-of-modern-behavioral-and-social-science-treats-individuals/) Richard R. Nelson > [People went out there and they wrote articles and went on television shows saying that I am an operative that the CIA who used…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bassem-youssef/people-went-out-there-and-they-wrote-articles-and-went-on-television/) [Bassem Youssef](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bassem-youssef/) > [The chief beneficiary of life insurance policies for young, single people is the life insurance agent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-smith/the-chief-beneficiary-of-life-insurance-policies-for-young-single/) [Wes Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-smith/) > [“Honestly,” he says, “I judge writers on how they write queries. If you’re a good writer, you’re a good writer.” And if not, then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-gessen/honestly-he-says-i-judge-writers-on-how-they-write-queries-if-you-re/) [Keith Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-gessen/) Browse all 1,567 Agents quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Shakespeare said, \"Kill all the lawyers.\" There were no agents then.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robin Williams" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/shakespeare-said-kill-all-the-lawyers-there-were-no-agents-then/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Agents" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/shakespeare-said-kill-all-the-lawyers-there-were-no-agents-then/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/761/robin-williams-682_agents_shakespeare-said-kill-all-the-lawyers-th_2047851.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/761/robin-williams-682_agents_shakespeare-said-kill-all-the-lawyers-th_2047851.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/761/robin-williams-682_agents_shakespeare-said-kill-all-the-lawyers-th_2047851.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Shakespeare said, \"Kill all the lawyers.\" There were no agents then.” — Robin Williams", "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": "Robin Williams", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Shakespeare said, \"Kill all the lawyers.\"...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/shakespeare-said-kill-all-the-lawyers-there-were-no-agents-then/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/shakespeare-said-kill-all-the-lawyers-there-were-no-agents-then/#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 } } ] } ```