--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Amplification is the vice of modern…" description: "\"Amplification is the vice of modern oratory.\" — Thomas Jefferson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/07e/thomas-jefferson-43_amplification_amplification-is-the-vice-of-modern-orat_1373382.jpg" --- # Amplification is the vice of modern oratory. ![“Amplification is the vice of modern oratory.” quote by Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/07e/thomas-jefferson-43_amplification_amplification-is-the-vice-of-modern-orat_1373382.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/07e/thomas-jefferson-43_amplification_amplification-is-the-vice-of-modern-orat_1373382.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/07e/thomas-jefferson-43_amplification_amplification-is-the-vice-of-modern-orat_1373382.jpg) > “Amplification is the vice of modern oratory.” [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Modern speakers often inflate arguments, turning emphasis into a flaw. **In simple terms:** Excessive emphasis weakens speech. Key Takeaway Practice restraint in rhetoric. Themes communication politics clarity Mood analytical critical Type educational philosophical When to use this quote - political debates - public speaking - media analysis Key Concepts rhetoric media literacy public discourse Questions to Reflect On - When does emphasis become a vice? - How to balance emphasis and clarity? A Different Perspective Some emphasis is needed for emphasis. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Amplification](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amplification/) [Amplification Vice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amplification-vice-4735270/) [Modern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modern/) [Modern Oratory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modern-oratory-4735269/) [Oratory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oratory/) [Vice Modern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vice-modern-4735271/) [Vices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vices/) ## Related quotes > [Amplification is the vice of modern oratory. It is an insult to an assembly of reasonable men, disgusting and revolting instead ofpersuading. Speeches measured…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/amplification-is-the-vice-of-modern-oratory-it-is-an-insult-to-an/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [The art of reasoning becomes of first importance. In this line antiquity has left us the finest models for imitation; I should consider the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/the-art-of-reasoning-becomes-of-first-importance-in-this-line/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [To wade in marshes and sea margins is the destiny of certain bird, and they are so accurately made for this that they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/to-wade-in-marshes-and-sea-margins-is-the-destiny-of-certain-bird-and/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Amplification of guitars revolutionized the popular music scene. Youngsters look for quick fame and big money with amplified guitars and working with rock groups.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-mancini/amplification-of-guitars-revolutionized-the-popular-music-scene/) [Henry Mancini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-mancini/) > [What I really like about Cuba is that you can go into a local bar in a provincial town and you'll get jazz played…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gimlette/what-i-really-like-about-cuba-is-that-you-can-go-into-a-local-bar-in/) [John Gimlette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gimlette/) > [ “\[T\]he relentless note of incipient hysteria, the invitation to panic, the ungrounded scenarios--the overwhelming and underlying desire for something truly terrible to happen so… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-gopnik/t-he-relentless-note-of-incipient-hysteria-the-invitation-to-panic/) [Adam Gopnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-gopnik/) > [Some of the most remarkable and profound worship encounters I've experienced have happened in churches with no production, no lighting, no exciting visuals or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-hughes/some-of-the-most-remarkable-and-profound-worship-encounters-i-ve/) [Tim Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-hughes/) > [If all history is only an amplification of biography, the history of science may be most instructively read in the life and work of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/archibald-geikie/if-all-history-is-only-an-amplification-of-biography-the-history-of/) [Archibald Geikie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/archibald-geikie/) > [When a human being without amplification makes a sound that is high and loud, it is almost unworldly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renee-fleming/when-a-human-being-without-amplification-makes-a-sound-that-is-high/) [Renee Fleming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renee-fleming/) > [I love the whole kind of notion of transformation for me is (what) excites me about not only acting, but storytelling. I love, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-serkis/i-love-the-whole-kind-of-notion-of-transformation-for-me-is-what/) [Andy Serkis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-serkis/) > [Madness is only an amplification of what you already are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/madness-is-only-an-amplification-of-what-you-already-are/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [I was never afraid on stage. That's where I was the least afraid. I could just do what I do and I had the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-bollen/i-was-never-afraid-on-stage-that-s-where-i-was-the-least-afraid-i/) [Christopher Bollen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-bollen/) > [I attach the greatest importance to an amplification of the peace efforts in the Middle East. I would also like to see a greater…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-hollande/i-attach-the-greatest-importance-to-an-amplification-of-the-peace/) [Francois Hollande](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-hollande/) > [I was playing with steel picks on a steel guitar, and there was no amplification needed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brownie-mcghee/i-was-playing-with-steel-picks-on-a-steel-guitar-and-there-was-no/) [Brownie McGhee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brownie-mcghee/) > [Rock music is electronic music, dependent entirely on electronic circuitry and amplification.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-frusciante/rock-music-is-electronic-music-dependent-entirely-on-electronic/) [John Frusciante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-frusciante/) ## More by Thomas Jefferson > [A man has a right to use a saw, an axe, a plane, separately; may he not combine their uses on the same piece…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/a-man-has-a-right-to-use-a-saw-an-axe-a-plane-separately-may-he-not/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [ \[States and the Federal government are\] coordinate departments of one simple and integral whole... The one is the domestic, the other the foreign branch… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/states-and-the-federal-government-are-coordinate-departments-of-one/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [I am for freedom of religion, and against all maneuvers to bring about a legal ascendency of one sect over another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/i-am-for-freedom-of-religion-and-against-all-maneuvers-to-bring-about/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Single acts of tyranny may be ascribed to the accidental opinion of a day; but a series of oppressions, begun at a distinguished period…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/single-acts-of-tyranny-may-be-ascribed-to-the-accidental-opinion-of-a/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [“Perceiving the order of nature to be that individual happiness shall be inseparable from the practice of virtue, I am willing to hope it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/perceiving-the-order-of-nature-to-be-that-individual-happiness-shall/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Free government is founded in jealousy, and not in confidence; it is jealousy, and not confidence, which prescribes limited constitutions, to bind down those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/free-government-is-founded-in-jealousy-and-not-in-confidence-it-is/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Though you cannot see, when you take one step, what will be the next, yet follow truth, justice, and plain dealing, and never fear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/though-you-cannot-see-when-you-take-one-step-what-will-be-the-next/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [A well informed citizenry is the best defense against tyranny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/a-well-informed-citizenry-is-the-best-defense-against-tyranny/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [The two principles on which our conduct towards the Indians should be founded are justice and fear. After the injuries we have done them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/the-two-principles-on-which-our-conduct-towards-the-indians-should-be/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Knowledge is power...knowled ge is safety...knowle dge is happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/knowledge-is-power-knowled-ge-is-safety-knowle-dge-is-happiness/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [There is... an artificial aristocracy founded on wealth and birth, without either virtue or talents... The artificial aristocracy is a mischievous ingredient in government,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/there-is-an-artificial-aristocracy-founded-on-wealth-and-birth/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Nothing but free argument, raillery and even ridicule will preserve the purity of religion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/nothing-but-free-argument-raillery-and-even-ridicule-will-preserve/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [When the people are afraid of the government, that's tyranny. But when the government is afraid of the people, that's liberty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/when-the-people-are-afraid-of-the-government-that-s-tyranny-but-when/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable Rights,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/we-hold-these-truths-to-be-self-evident-that-all-men-are-created/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) [Explore all 2,098 Thomas Jefferson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) ## More Amplification quotes > [Rock music is electronic music, dependent entirely on electronic circuitry and amplification.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-frusciante/rock-music-is-electronic-music-dependent-entirely-on-electronic/) [John Frusciante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-frusciante/) > [I was playing with steel picks on a steel guitar, and there was no amplification needed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brownie-mcghee/i-was-playing-with-steel-picks-on-a-steel-guitar-and-there-was-no/) [Brownie McGhee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brownie-mcghee/) > [I attach the greatest importance to an amplification of the peace efforts in the Middle East. I would also like to see a greater…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-hollande/i-attach-the-greatest-importance-to-an-amplification-of-the-peace/) [Francois Hollande](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-hollande/) > [I was never afraid on stage. That's where I was the least afraid. I could just do what I do and I had the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-bollen/i-was-never-afraid-on-stage-that-s-where-i-was-the-least-afraid-i/) [Christopher Bollen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-bollen/) > [Madness is only an amplification of what you already are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/madness-is-only-an-amplification-of-what-you-already-are/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [I love the whole kind of notion of transformation for me is (what) excites me about not only acting, but storytelling. I love, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-serkis/i-love-the-whole-kind-of-notion-of-transformation-for-me-is-what/) [Andy Serkis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-serkis/) > [When a human being without amplification makes a sound that is high and loud, it is almost unworldly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renee-fleming/when-a-human-being-without-amplification-makes-a-sound-that-is-high/) [Renee Fleming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renee-fleming/) > [If all history is only an amplification of biography, the history of science may be most instructively read in the life and work of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/archibald-geikie/if-all-history-is-only-an-amplification-of-biography-the-history-of/) [Archibald Geikie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/archibald-geikie/) > [Some of the most remarkable and profound worship encounters I've experienced have happened in churches with no production, no lighting, no exciting visuals or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-hughes/some-of-the-most-remarkable-and-profound-worship-encounters-i-ve/) [Tim Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-hughes/) > [ “\[T\]he relentless note of incipient hysteria, the invitation to panic, the ungrounded scenarios--the overwhelming and underlying desire for something truly terrible to happen so… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-gopnik/t-he-relentless-note-of-incipient-hysteria-the-invitation-to-panic/) [Adam Gopnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-gopnik/) > [The art of reasoning becomes of first importance. In this line antiquity has left us the finest models for imitation; I should consider the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/the-art-of-reasoning-becomes-of-first-importance-in-this-line/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [What I really like about Cuba is that you can go into a local bar in a provincial town and you'll get jazz played…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gimlette/what-i-really-like-about-cuba-is-that-you-can-go-into-a-local-bar-in/) [John Gimlette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gimlette/) > [Amplification of guitars revolutionized the popular music scene. Youngsters look for quick fame and big money with amplified guitars and working with rock groups.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-mancini/amplification-of-guitars-revolutionized-the-popular-music-scene/) [Henry Mancini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-mancini/) > [To wade in marshes and sea margins is the destiny of certain bird, and they are so accurately made for this that they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/to-wade-in-marshes-and-sea-margins-is-the-destiny-of-certain-bird-and/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The relation of repetitions for learning and for repeating English stanzas needs no amplification. These were learned by heart on the first day with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-ebbinghaus/the-relation-of-repetitions-for-learning-and-for-repeating-english/) [Hermann Ebbinghaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-ebbinghaus/) [Browse all 36 Amplification quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amplification/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Amplification is the vice of modern oratory.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thomas Jefferson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/amplification-is-the-vice-of-modern-oratory/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Amplification" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/amplification-is-the-vice-of-modern-oratory/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/07e/thomas-jefferson-43_amplification_amplification-is-the-vice-of-modern-orat_1373382.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/07e/thomas-jefferson-43_amplification_amplification-is-the-vice-of-modern-orat_1373382.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/07e/thomas-jefferson-43_amplification_amplification-is-the-vice-of-modern-orat_1373382.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Amplification is the vice of modern oratory.” — Thomas Jefferson", "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": "Thomas Jefferson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Amplification is the vice of modern...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/amplification-is-the-vice-of-modern-oratory/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/amplification-is-the-vice-of-modern-oratory/#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 } } ] } ```