--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Degrade first the Arts if you'd Mankind…" description: "\"Degrade first the Arts if you'd Mankind Degrade. Hire Idiots to Paint with cold light & hot shade: Give high Price for the worst, leave the best in dis..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f04/william-blake-397_art_degrade-first-the-arts-if-you-d-mankind_2064111.jpg" --- # Degrade first the Arts if you'd Mankind Degrade. Hire… ![“Degrade first the Arts if you'd Mankind Degrade. Hire Idiots to Paint with cold light & hot shade: Give high Price for the worst, leave the best in disgrace, And with Labours of Ignorance fill every place.” quote by William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f04/william-blake-397_art_degrade-first-the-arts-if-you-d-mankind_2064111.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f04/william-blake-397_art_degrade-first-the-arts-if-you-d-mankind_2064111.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f04/william-blake-397_art_degrade-first-the-arts-if-you-d-mankind_2064111.jpg) > “Degrade first the Arts if you'd Mankind Degrade. Hire Idiots to Paint with cold light & hot shade: Give high Price for the worst, leave the best in disgrace, And with Labours of Ignorance fill every place.” [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Society often rewards mediocrity and punishes true talent, leading to cultural decline. **In simple terms:** Mediocre work is praised, talent ignored. Key Takeaway Value genuine skill over superficial hype. Themes art culture mediocrity talent valuation Mood critical thought‑provoking Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - gallery curation - educational curricula - media reviews Key Concepts social criticism economics artistic integrity Questions to Reflect On - What incentives could uplift true artistry? - How does mediocrity affect cultural growth? A Different Perspective Changing entrenched market preferences is difficult. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Cold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cold/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [High prices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/high-prices/) [Idiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idiot/) [Ignorance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ignorance/) [Labour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/labour/) [Light](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/light/) [Mankind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mankind/) [Shade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shade/) ## Related quotes > [The foundation of empire is art and science. Remove them or degrade them, and the empire is no more. Empire follows art and not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/the-foundation-of-empire-is-art-and-science-remove-them-or-degrade/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [Then my verse I dishonor, my pictures despise, my person degrade and my temper chastise; and the pen is my terror, the pencil my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/then-my-verse-i-dishonor-my-pictures-despise-my-person-degrade-and-my/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [We have this highly irrational system of incentivizing innovation for clean and green technologies, where we allow the innovator to have a temporary monopoly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-pogge/we-have-this-highly-irrational-system-of-incentivizing-innovation-for/) [Thomas Pogge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-pogge/) > [It's easy to talk about our system not functioning. It's actually functioning exactly the way we've designed it to function by giving so much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-edwards/it-s-easy-to-talk-about-our-system-not-functioning-it-s-actually/) Mickey Edwards > [High Price: A Neuroscientist's Journey of Self-Discovery That Challenges Everything You Know About Drugs and Society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hart/high-price-a-neuroscientist-s-journey-of-self-discovery-that/) [Carl Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hart/) > [The most realistic distinction between the investor and the speculator is found in their attitude toward stock-market movements. The speculator's primary interest lies in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-most-realistic-distinction-between-the-investor-and-the/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [A high price may be part of the mystique in selling difficult art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-genn/a-high-price-may-be-part-of-the-mystique-in-selling-difficult-art/) [Robert Genn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-genn/) > [To die for an idea is to set a rather high price upon conjecture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatole-france/to-die-for-an-idea-is-to-set-a-rather-high-price-upon-conjecture/) [Anatole France](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatole-france/) > [A woman is not a whole woman without the experience of marriage. In the case of a bad marriage, you win if you lose.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fannie-hurst/a-woman-is-not-a-whole-woman-without-the-experience-of-marriage-in/) [Fannie Hurst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fannie-hurst/) > [There is rarely a creative man who does not have to pay a high price for the divine spark of his greatest gifts... the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/there-is-rarely-a-creative-man-who-does-not-have-to-pay-a-high-price-2/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) > [I am astonished at the high prices paid for works by painters who are dead, prices none of them could expect when they were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-van-gogh/i-am-astonished-at-the-high-prices-paid-for-works-by-painters-who-are/) [Vincent Van Gogh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-van-gogh/) > [“Jesus paid a high price for your peace. Don't give it away.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mcgee/jesus-paid-a-high-price-for-your-peace-don-t-give-it-away/) [David McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mcgee/) > [We legislate against forestalling and monopoly; we would have a common granary for the poor; but the selfishness which hoards thecorn for high prices,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/we-legislate-against-forestalling-and-monopoly-we-would-have-a-common/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Living a lie - pretending everything is fine when we are actually discontented - is hard work and, in the long run, even bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristiane-backer/living-a-lie-pretending-everything-is-fine-when-we-are-actually/) [Kristiane Backer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristiane-backer/) > [In a gallery, there's an expectation of high prices and a somewhat elitist atmosphere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-cotton/in-a-gallery-there-s-an-expectation-of-high-prices-and-a-somewhat/) [Will Cotton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-cotton/) ## More by William Blake > [Poetry fettered, fetters the human race. Nations are destroyed or flourish in proportion as their poetry, painting, and music are destroyed or flourish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/poetry-fettered-fetters-the-human-race-nations-are-destroyed-or/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [Where any view of money exists, art cannot be carried on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/where-any-view-of-money-exists-art-cannot-be-carried-on/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [God only acts and is, in existing beings or men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/god-only-acts-and-is-in-existing-beings-or-men/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [Kill not the moth nor butterfly, For the Last Judgement draweth nigh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/kill-not-the-moth-nor-butterfly-for-the-last-judgement-draweth-nigh/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [The world of imagination is the world of eternity. It is the divine bosom into which we shall all go after death of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/the-world-of-imagination-is-the-world-of-eternity-it-is-the-divine/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [Imagination is the real and eternal world of which this vegetable universe is but a faint shadow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/imagination-is-the-real-and-eternal-world-of-which-this-vegetable/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [Painters are noted for being dissipated and wild.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/painters-are-noted-for-being-dissipated-and-wild/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [Time is the mercy of Eternity; without Time's swiftness Which is the swiftest of all things, all were eternal torment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/time-is-the-mercy-of-eternity-without-time-s-swiftness-which-is-the/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [The difference between a bad artist and a good one is: the bad artist seems to copy a great deal; the good one really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/the-difference-between-a-bad-artist-and-a-good-one-is-the-bad-artist/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [Cruelty has a human heart, and jealousy a human face. Terror, the human form divine, And secrecy, the human dress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/cruelty-has-a-human-heart-and-jealousy-a-human-face-terror-the-human/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [A dead body revenges not injuries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/a-dead-body-revenges-not-injuries/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [Those who restrain desire, do so because theirs is weak enough to be restrained; and the restrainer or reason usurps its place & governs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/those-who-restrain-desire-do-so-because-theirs-is-weak-enough-to-be/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [To generalize is to be an idiot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/to-generalize-is-to-be-an-idiot/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [THE POISON TREE I was angry with my friend: I told my wrath, my wrath did end. I was angry with my foe; I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/the-poison-tree-i-was-angry-with-my-friend-i-told-my-wrath-my-wrath/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [The bird a nest the spider a web the human friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/the-bird-a-nest-the-spider-a-web-the-human-friendship/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) [Explore all 592 William Blake quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) Taf Teh > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Degrade first the Arts if you'd Mankind Degrade. 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