--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Ridicule has historically proven itself a…" description: "\"Ridicule has historically proven itself a rickety fence for great ideas.\" — Vanna Bonta" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5e/vanna-bonta-2261_fence_ridicule-has-historically-proven-itself_1203483.jpg" --- # Ridicule has historically proven itself a rickety fence… ![“Ridicule has historically proven itself a rickety fence for great ideas.” quote by Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5e/vanna-bonta-2261_fence_ridicule-has-historically-proven-itself_1203483.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5e/vanna-bonta-2261_fence_ridicule-has-historically-proven-itself_1203483.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5e/vanna-bonta-2261_fence_ridicule-has-historically-proven-itself_1203483.jpg) > “Ridicule has historically proven itself a rickety fence for great ideas.” [Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Ridicule undermines serious ideas, acting as a weak barrier that fails to protect innovation **In simple terms:** Mockery blocks great ideas Key Takeaway Avoid dismissive humor in discourse Themes creativity criticism innovation Mood cautious thoughtful Type social psychological When to use this quote - academic debate - creative brainstorming - public speaking - media commentary Key Concepts psychology of humor social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - When is ridicule constructive? - How to respond to mockery? A Different Perspective Ridicule can sometimes expose flaws in ideas ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Great idea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-idea/) [Great ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-ideas/) [Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Ridicule](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ridicule/) ## Related quotes > [Being popular with an audience is a very rickety ladder to be on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-c-k/being-popular-with-an-audience-is-a-very-rickety-ladder-to-be-on/) [Louis C. K](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-c-k/) > [Man seems to be a rickety poor sort of thing, any way you take him; a kind of British Museum of infirmities and inferiorities.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/man-seems-to-be-a-rickety-poor-sort-of-thing-any-way-you-take-him-a/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [“The pair of legs that carried him were rickety, and there was a bias in his gait which inclined him somewhat to the left…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/the-pair-of-legs-that-carried-him-were-rickety-and-there-was-a-bias/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [“with a rickety old fire escape . . . there couldn’t have been anyone”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/with-a-rickety-old-fire-escape-there-couldn-t-have-been-anyone/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [All great ideas should be followed by an exclamation mark - a warning signal similar to the skull and crossbones drawn on high-voltage transformers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-m-cioran/all-great-ideas-should-be-followed-by-an-exclamation-mark-a-warning/) [Emile M. Cioran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-m-cioran/) > [I'm always looking for directors who are very strong, they have great ideas, but on the other hand, that need help. It means they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vilmos-zsigmond/i-m-always-looking-for-directors-who-are-very-strong-they-have-great/) [Vilmos Zsigmond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vilmos-zsigmond/) > [we can't be creative if we refuse to be confused. Change always starts with confusion; cherished interpretations must dissolve to make way for what's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-j-wheatley/we-can-t-be-creative-if-we-refuse-to-be-confused-change-always-starts/) [Margaret J. Wheatley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-j-wheatley/) > [With God's help, I've not had a drink in nine and a half years. That's my whole story right there. And because of that,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ringo-starr/with-god-s-help-i-ve-not-had-a-drink-in-nine-and-a-half-years-that-s/) [Ringo Starr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ringo-starr/) > [Any leader who asks the right questions of the right people has the potential to discover and develop great ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-maxwell/any-leader-who-asks-the-right-questions-of-the-right-people-has-the/) [John C. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-maxwell/) > [Since many things we see were once an idea, let us create good ideas today because they will be the realities of tomorrow! When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/since-many-things-we-see-were-once-an-idea-let-us-create-good-ideas/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [I often think of a quote from entrepreneur Jim Rohn: 'You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-ohanian/i-often-think-of-a-quote-from-entrepreneur-jim-rohn-you-are-the/) [Alexis Ohanian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-ohanian/) > [Most people who have kids are, "Hey, I want another me. I like me. I'm pretty cool, and I've got really great ideas, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cross/most-people-who-have-kids-are-hey-i-want-another-me-i-like-me-i-m/) [David Cross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cross/) > [I do value my work awfully; but in reality only consider this: all this world of ours is nothing but a speck of mildew,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/i-do-value-my-work-awfully-but-in-reality-only-consider-this-all-this/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [Great ideas behave like the Sun. Even in the middle of nowhere, they find people and shine on them!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/great-ideas-behave-like-the-sun-even-in-the-middle-of-nowhere-they/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [The realization that my problem was one that concerned all men, a problem of living and thinking, suddenly swept over me and I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/the-realization-that-my-problem-was-one-that-concerned-all-men-a/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) ## More by Vanna Bonta > [The stars are not the limit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/the-stars-are-not-the-limit/) [Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) > [People at large are becoming more aware that there is much more to reality and to themselves than what meets the eye.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/people-at-large-are-becoming-more-aware-that-there-is-much-more-to/) [Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) > [Corporately contrived art product replaces inspired intellectual property with ineffectual poperty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/corporately-contrived-art-product-replaces-inspired-intellectual/) [Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) > [Our lives are fictions, a work we leave behind, signed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/our-lives-are-fictions-a-work-we-leave-behind-signed/) [Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) > [The real story is not the plot, but how the characters unfold by it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/the-real-story-is-not-the-plot-but-how-the-characters-unfold-by-it/) [Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) > [You are not going to find yourself anywhere except right where you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/you-are-not-going-to-find-yourself-anywhere-except-right-where-you-are/) [Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) > [Popularity is not an indication of quality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/popularity-is-not-an-indication-of-quality/) [Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) > [Unfortunately, in our society, power means the ability to dominate and oppress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/unfortunately-in-our-society-power-means-the-ability-to-dominate-and/) [Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) > [Slander reveals the greatest truth about the coward implementing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/slander-reveals-the-greatest-truth-about-the-coward-implementing-it/) [Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) > [Sex in space is not just a good idea, it's survival.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/sex-in-space-is-not-just-a-good-idea-it-s-survival/) [Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) > [Ideals do exist, the rest is just temporary interruption.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/ideals-do-exist-the-rest-is-just-temporary-interruption/) [Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) > [Patience is being friends with Time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/patience-is-being-friends-with-time/) [Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) > [I didn't have a Barbie doll, so I played with eternity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/i-didn-t-have-a-barbie-doll-so-i-played-with-eternity/) [Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) > [Style of the future is the convergence of function and fashion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/style-of-the-future-is-the-convergence-of-function-and-fashion/) [Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) > [Any time a body goes outside the environmental conditions for which it developed it has to acclimate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/any-time-a-body-goes-outside-the-environmental-conditions-for-which/) [Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) [Explore all 175 Vanna Bonta quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) ## More Fence quotes > [ By profession a biologist, \[Thomas Henry Huxley\] covered in fact the whole field of the exact sciences, and then bulged through its four fences.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/by-profession-a-biologist-thomas-henry-huxley-covered-in-fact-the/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [My dreams were always small and puny. All I ever needed was a little house with a little picket fence by the sea. Little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/imelda-marcos/my-dreams-were-always-small-and-puny-all-i-ever-needed-was-a-little/) [Imelda Marcos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/imelda-marcos/) > [I have yet to see someone attack Obama over his report card. A lot of people I talk to from both sides of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lupe-fiasco/i-have-yet-to-see-someone-attack-obama-over-his-report-card-a-lot-of/) [Lupe Fiasco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lupe-fiasco/) > [She was gone, and all that was left was the space where you'd grown around her, like a tree that grows around a fence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-krauss/she-was-gone-and-all-that-was-left-was-the-space-where-you-d-grown/) [Nicole Krauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-krauss/) > [I only wanted Uncle Vernon standing by his own car (a Hudson) on a clear day, I got him and the car. Ialso got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-friedlander/i-only-wanted-uncle-vernon-standing-by-his-own-car-a-hudson-on-a/) [Lee Friedlander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-friedlander/) > [My loneliness...still comes over me sometimes...It's a liminal, lost sensation of having wandered wide, endless boulevards, among rows of orange trees, winter butterflies, seasons…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-roth/my-loneliness-still-comes-over-me-sometimes-it-s-a-liminal-lost/) [Marco Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-roth/) > [Pedestrian's rights - because we live in California, I've got to address this issue. I don't know where on the fence I am about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janeane-garofalo/pedestrian-s-rights-because-we-live-in-california-i-ve-got-to-address/) [Janeane Garofalo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janeane-garofalo/) > [Life is not that simple. That is why it is called life. That word includes both lie and if. Time to figure out which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corey-taylor/life-is-not-that-simple-that-is-why-it-is-called-life-that-word/) [Corey Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corey-taylor/) > [The first time I played golf was in Flushing Meadows, Queens, when I was about 16 or 17. They had an 18-hole pitch-and-putt. My…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-romano/the-first-time-i-played-golf-was-in-flushing-meadows-queens-when-i/) [Ray Romano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-romano/) > [Coffee arrived and the espresso was excellent, like an aromatic electric fence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/coffee-arrived-and-the-espresso-was-excellent-like-an-aromatic/) [Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/) > [There will come soft rains and the smell of the ground, And swallows circling with their shimmering sound; And frogs in the pool singing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-teasdale/there-will-come-soft-rains-and-the-smell-of-the-ground-and-swallows/) [Sara Teasdale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-teasdale/) > [May the state fence in the harmless mentally ill solely to save its citizens from exposure to those whose ways are different? One might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/potter-stewart/may-the-state-fence-in-the-harmless-mentally-ill-solely-to-save-its/) [Potter Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/potter-stewart/) > [I can't give you the white picket fence, and if I did, you'd set it on fire.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilona-andrews/i-can-t-give-you-the-white-picket-fence-and-if-i-did-you-d-set-it-on/) [Ilona Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilona-andrews/) > [Most folks are like a barb-wire fence. They have their good points.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/texas-bix-bender/most-folks-are-like-a-barb-wire-fence-they-have-their-good-points/) [Texas Bix Bender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/texas-bix-bender/) > [“I ran straight into the wooden fence at the foot of the field. I was lucky that it had been a rail fence, rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keeble/i-ran-straight-into-the-wooden-fence-at-the-foot-of-the-field-i-was/) [Helen Keeble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keeble/) Browse all 673 Fence quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Ridicule has historically proven itself a rickety fence for great ideas.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Vanna Bonta" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/ridicule-has-historically-proven-itself-a-rickety-fence-for-great/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Fence" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/ridicule-has-historically-proven-itself-a-rickety-fence-for-great/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5e/vanna-bonta-2261_fence_ridicule-has-historically-proven-itself_1203483.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5e/vanna-bonta-2261_fence_ridicule-has-historically-proven-itself_1203483.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5e/vanna-bonta-2261_fence_ridicule-has-historically-proven-itself_1203483.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Ridicule has historically proven itself a rickety fence for great ideas.” — Vanna Bonta", "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": "Vanna Bonta", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Ridicule has historically proven itself a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/ridicule-has-historically-proven-itself-a-rickety-fence-for-great/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/ridicule-has-historically-proven-itself-a-rickety-fence-for-great/#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 } } ] } ```