--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As I get older I find myself thinking it…" description: "\"As I get older I find myself thinking it all begins with Shakespeare.\" — Ron Rash" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38f/ron-rash-10377_shakespeare_as-i-get-older-i-find-myself-thinking-it_2692975.png" --- # As I get older I find myself thinking it all begins with… ![“As I get older I find myself thinking it all begins with Shakespeare.” quote by Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38f/ron-rash-10377_shakespeare_as-i-get-older-i-find-myself-thinking-it_2692975.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38f/ron-rash-10377_shakespeare_as-i-get-older-i-find-myself-thinking-it_2692975.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38f/ron-rash-10377_shakespeare_as-i-get-older-i-find-myself-thinking-it_2692975.png) > “As I get older I find myself thinking it all begins with Shakespeare.” [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Shakespeare’s work underpins much of modern literature and personal reflection. **In simple terms:** Shakespeare influences modern writing and thought. Key Takeaway Study Shakespeare to deepen literary insight. Themes literature influence history reflection Mood reflective inspired Type educational philosophical When to use this quote - education - writing workshops - personal essays Key Concepts classicism creative writing Questions to Reflect On - What Shakespeare themes resonate today? - How does his work shape your writing? A Different Perspective Modern contexts may misinterpret Shakespeare. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Begins Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/begins-shakespeare-2672208/) [Older Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/older-thinking-1105594/) [Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shakespeare/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Thinking Begins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking-begins-1634684/) ## Related quotes > [It's embarrassing that we're in the 21st century and we don't even know what makes gravity work. I'm getting older and thinking maybe I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-norris/it-s-embarrassing-that-we-re-in-the-21st-century-and-we-don-t-even/) [Woody Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-norris/) > [I am thinking about those things now. More so than all my friends - they're a lot older than me, but they're not even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billie-piper/i-am-thinking-about-those-things-now-more-so-than-all-my-friends-they/) [Billie Piper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billie-piper/) > [I'm not sure if it's because I'm older and I'm thinking about family more, but I'm trying to set up this thing where I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/i-m-not-sure-if-it-s-because-i-m-older-and-i-m-thinking-about-family/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [All thinking begins with wondering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/all-thinking-begins-with-wondering/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [“Thinking only begins at the point where we have come to know that Reason, glorified for centuries, is the most obstinate adversary of thinking.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-heidegger/thinking-only-begins-at-the-point-where-we-have-come-to-know-that/) [Martin Heidegger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-heidegger/) > [Thinking begins when you ask really difficult questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/slavoj-i-ek/thinking-begins-when-you-ask-really-difficult-questions/) [Slavoj Žižek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/slavoj-i-ek/) > [Thinking begins only when we have come to know that reason, glorified for centuries, is the stiff-necked adversary of thought.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-heidegger/thinking-begins-only-when-we-have-come-to-know-that-reason-glorified/) [Martin Heidegger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-heidegger/) > [“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/) > [“Shakespeare’s Hamlet: “There is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-robinson/shakespeare-s-hamlet-there-is-nothing-either-good-or-bad-but-thinking/) [Ken Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-robinson/) > [The difficulty with poetry is that it doesn't have the life that Shakespeare or Jane Austen have beyond the page. You can't make a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/the-difficulty-with-poetry-is-that-it-doesn-t-have-the-life-that/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [“It was wonderful flirting with him, all the razor-edged literary banter, like Beatrice and Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing. A battle of wit,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wein/it-was-wonderful-flirting-with-him-all-the-razor-edged-literary/) [Elizabeth Wein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wein/) > [Anything well written with good language and clarity and honesty is worth doing. It comes out of the same tradition as Shakespeare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moriarty/anything-well-written-with-good-language-and-clarity-and-honesty-is/) [Michael Moriarty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moriarty/) > [Its extremely dangerous to compare anyone else to Shakespeare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-spacey/its-extremely-dangerous-to-compare-anyone-else-to-shakespeare/) [Kevin Spacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-spacey/) > [“This was going to be worse than the time I table danced in the diner in high school!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-bryson/this-was-going-to-be-worse-than-the-time-i-table-danced-in-the-diner/) [Kathy Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-bryson/) > [It's like saying French shouldn't be taught because you don't understand it because it's new. Shakespeare is just like learning a new, exciting language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-barnett/it-s-like-saying-french-shouldn-t-be-taught-because-you-don-t/) [Samuel Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-barnett/) ## More by Ron Rash > [John Lane has long been recognized as one of the South's finest poets and memoirists. This debut establishes him as one of our finest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/john-lane-has-long-been-recognized-as-one-of-the-south-s-finest-poets/) [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) > [“Maybe calling it being hitched ain’t the prettiest way to say you’re married, but it’s the truth to my mind and true in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/maybe-calling-it-being-hitched-ain-t-the-prettiest-way-to-say-you-re/) [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) > [Short fiction is the medium I love the most, because it requires that I bring everything I've learned about poetry - the concision, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/short-fiction-is-the-medium-i-love-the-most-because-it-requires-that/) [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) > [“Dead and still in the world was worse than dead and in the ground. Dead in the ground at least gave you the hope…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/dead-and-still-in-the-world-was-worse-than-dead-and-in-the-ground/) [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) > [“We want what's in this world but we also want what ain't.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/we-want-what-s-in-this-world-but-we-also-want-what-ain-t/) [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) > [“The song was wistful as the ballads Slidell and the Clayton brothers played, except words weren't needed to feel the yearning. That made the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/the-song-was-wistful-as-the-ballads-slidell-and-the-clayton-brothers/) [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) > [“What does eminent domain mean?” Stewart asked. “It means you’re shit out of luck,” Ross said.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/what-does-eminent-domain-mean-stewart-asked-it-means-you-re-shit-out/) [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) > [“The world is ripe, and we'll pluck it like an apple from a tree.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/the-world-is-ripe-and-we-ll-pluck-it-like-an-apple-from-a-tree/) [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) > [Steve Yarbrough is a writer of many gifts, but what makes Safe from the Neighbors such a magnificent achievement is its moral complexity. .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/steve-yarbrough-is-a-writer-of-many-gifts-but-what-makes-safe-from/) [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) > [“The lift of her heart she'd felt on the outcrop she now felt again, and it wasn't just love. She'd felt love before, known…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/the-lift-of-her-heart-she-d-felt-on-the-outcrop-she-now-felt-again/) [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) > [“Most folks stay in the dark and then complain they can’t see nothing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/most-folks-stay-in-the-dark-and-then-complain-they-can-t-see-nothing/) [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) > [“Rachel kneeled beside Jacob. She took the child's hand and pressed it to the dirt. Her father had told Rachel that Harmons had been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/rachel-kneeled-beside-jacob-she-took-the-child-s-hand-and-pressed-it/) [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) > [Faulkner came from my region and taught me how you could write about a place.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/faulkner-came-from-my-region-and-taught-me-how-you-could-write-about/) [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) > [I usually do at least a dozen drafts and progressively make more-conscious decisions. Because I've always believed stories are closer to poems than novels,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/i-usually-do-at-least-a-dozen-drafts-and-progressively-make-more/) [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) > [The woman doesn't look up. It's as if she's deaf. Maybe she is. Maybe she's like the Cambodian women I've read about, the ones…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/the-woman-doesn-t-look-up-it-s-as-if-she-s-deaf-maybe-she-is-maybe/) [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) [Explore all 66 Ron Rash quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) ## More Shakespeare quotes > [It's like saying French shouldn't be taught because you don't understand it because it's new. Shakespeare is just like learning a new, exciting language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-barnett/it-s-like-saying-french-shouldn-t-be-taught-because-you-don-t/) [Samuel Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-barnett/) > [“This was going to be worse than the time I table danced in the diner in high school!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-bryson/this-was-going-to-be-worse-than-the-time-i-table-danced-in-the-diner/) [Kathy Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-bryson/) > [Its extremely dangerous to compare anyone else to Shakespeare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-spacey/its-extremely-dangerous-to-compare-anyone-else-to-shakespeare/) [Kevin Spacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-spacey/) > [Anything well written with good language and clarity and honesty is worth doing. It comes out of the same tradition as Shakespeare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moriarty/anything-well-written-with-good-language-and-clarity-and-honesty-is/) [Michael Moriarty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moriarty/) > [“It was wonderful flirting with him, all the razor-edged literary banter, like Beatrice and Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing. A battle of wit,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wein/it-was-wonderful-flirting-with-him-all-the-razor-edged-literary/) [Elizabeth Wein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wein/) > [The difficulty with poetry is that it doesn't have the life that Shakespeare or Jane Austen have beyond the page. You can't make a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/the-difficulty-with-poetry-is-that-it-doesn-t-have-the-life-that/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [“Shakespeare’s Hamlet: “There is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-robinson/shakespeare-s-hamlet-there-is-nothing-either-good-or-bad-but-thinking/) [Ken Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-robinson/) > [“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/) > [“Nernst was a great admirer of Shakespeare, and it is said that in a conference concerned with naming units after appropriate persons, he proposed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-partington/nernst-was-a-great-admirer-of-shakespeare-and-it-is-said-that-in-a/) [J.R. Partington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-partington/) > [Shakespeare put no children in his plays for a reason," Sir Godfrey muttered, glaring at Alf and Binnie. "You're forgetting the Little Prince," Polly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/connie-willis/shakespeare-put-no-children-in-his-plays-for-a-reason-sir-godfrey/) [Connie Willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/connie-willis/) > [Juilliard is wonderful in that they don't pick just one way of working. They give you a palette. There is method acting. There is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-camargo/juilliard-is-wonderful-in-that-they-don-t-pick-just-one-way-of/) [Christian Camargo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-camargo/) > [This was Shakespeare's form ; Who walk'd in every path of human life, Felt every passion ; and to all mankind Doth now, will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-akenside/this-was-shakespeare-s-form-who-walk-d-in-every-path-of-human-life/) [Mark Akenside](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-akenside/) > [I've definitely learned that if you want to have power as a woman in Shakespeare's time, and it's still relevant today, that you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-barnett/i-ve-definitely-learned-that-if-you-want-to-have-power-as-a-woman-in/) [Samuel Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-barnett/) > [“I'm afraid I always find Shakespeare terribly dreary. All those long scenes where everybody is drunk and it's supposed to be funny.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agatha-christie/i-m-afraid-i-always-find-shakespeare-terribly-dreary-all-those-long/) [Agatha Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agatha-christie/) > [“Life... is a paradise to what we fear of death.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/life-is-a-paradise-to-what-we-fear-of-death/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) [Browse all 1,516 Shakespeare quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shakespeare/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As I get older I find myself thinking it all begins with Shakespeare.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ron Rash" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/as-i-get-older-i-find-myself-thinking-it-all-begins-with-shakespeare/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Shakespeare" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/as-i-get-older-i-find-myself-thinking-it-all-begins-with-shakespeare/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38f/ron-rash-10377_shakespeare_as-i-get-older-i-find-myself-thinking-it_2692975.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38f/ron-rash-10377_shakespeare_as-i-get-older-i-find-myself-thinking-it_2692975.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38f/ron-rash-10377_shakespeare_as-i-get-older-i-find-myself-thinking-it_2692975.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“As I get older I find myself thinking it all begins with Shakespeare.” — Ron Rash", "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": "Ron Rash", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "As I get older I find...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/as-i-get-older-i-find-myself-thinking-it-all-begins-with-shakespeare/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/as-i-get-older-i-find-myself-thinking-it-all-begins-with-shakespeare/#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 } } ] } ```