--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A man renowned for repartee will seldom…" description: "\"A man renowned for repartee will seldom scruple to make free with friendship's finest feeling, will thrust a dagger at your breast, and say he wounded ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b95/william-cowper-779_breasts_a-man-renowned-for-repartee-will-seldom_2347612.png" --- # A man renowned for repartee will seldom scruple to make… ![“A man renowned for repartee will seldom scruple to make free with friendship's finest feeling, will thrust a dagger at your breast, and say he wounded you in jest, by way of balm for healing.” quote by William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b95/william-cowper-779_breasts_a-man-renowned-for-repartee-will-seldom_2347612.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b95/william-cowper-779_breasts_a-man-renowned-for-repartee-will-seldom_2347612.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b95/william-cowper-779_breasts_a-man-renowned-for-repartee-will-seldom_2347612.png) > “A man renowned for repartee will seldom scruple to make free with friendship's finest feeling, will thrust a dagger at your breast, and say he wounded you in jest, by way of balm for healing.” [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A witty friend may betray under the guise of humor, yet the pain can be a strange remedy. **In simple terms:** Friends can hurt while pretending to help. Key Takeaway Beware of jokes that mask hurtful intent. Themes friendship betrayal humor healing Mood cautious reflective serious Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal relationships - workplace interactions - social gatherings - conflict resolution - null Key Concepts social dynamics psychology trust emotional intelligence Questions to Reflect On - When does a joke cross the line into harm? - How can we address betrayal without destroying the friendship? A Different Perspective Humor can mask deeper issues, making it hard to address the underlying hurt. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Breasts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breasts/) [Daggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/daggers/) [Feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feelings/) [Finest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/finest/) [Free Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/free-friendship-5704022/) [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) [Healing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/healing/) [Jest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jest/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Renowned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/renowned/) [Renowned Repartee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/renowned-repartee-5704020/) [Repartee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/repartee/) [Repartee Seldom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/repartee-seldom-5704018/) [Scruples](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scruples/) [Seldom Scruple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seldom-scruple-5704021/) [Thrust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thrust/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Wounded](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wounded/) [Wounded Jest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wounded-jest-5704019/) ## Related quotes > [“The Never Unfriended Promise I promise I will never unfriend you. 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Before 'Iron…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-hall/one-of-the-great-things-about-the-iron-man-franchise-is-that-they/) [Rebecca Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-hall/) > [I love to engage in repartee with people who are stupider than I am.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-coulter/i-love-to-engage-in-repartee-with-people-who-are-stupider-than-i-am/) [Ann Coulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-coulter/) > [ Beneath the surface of repartee and mock seriousness, \[Plato's Phaedrus\] is asking whether we ought to prefer a neuter form of speech to the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/beneath-the-surface-of-repartee-and-mock-seriousness-plato-s-phaedrus/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) > [The impromptu reply is precisely the touchstone of the man of wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moliere/the-impromptu-reply-is-precisely-the-touchstone-of-the-man-of-wit/) [Moliere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moliere/) > [Repartee is altogether a natural endowment, and is the lightning of the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-musset/repartee-is-altogether-a-natural-endowment-and-is-the-lightning-of/) [Alfred de Musset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-musset/) > [Repartee is the soul of conversation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/repartee-is-the-soul-of-conversation/) [John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/) > [A talent for repartee is one that increases with practice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lothrop-motley/a-talent-for-repartee-is-one-that-increases-with-practice/) [John Lothrop Motley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lothrop-motley/) > [He has never been known to use a word that might send a reader to the dictionary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-faulkner/he-has-never-been-known-to-use-a-word-that-might-send-a-reader-to-the/) [William Faulkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-faulkner/) > [“Tell me now, fairy as you are - can't you give me a charm, or a philter, or something of that sort, to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/tell-me-now-fairy-as-you-are-can-t-you-give-me-a-charm-or-a-philter/) [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [REPARTEE, n. Prudent insult in retort. Practiced by gentlemen with a constitutional aversion to violence, but a strong disposition to offend. In a war…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/repartee-n-prudent-insult-in-retort-practiced-by-gentlemen-with-a/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [Repartee is perfect when it effects its purpose with a double edge. It is the highest order of wit, as it indicates the coolest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/repartee-is-perfect-when-it-effects-its-purpose-with-a-double-edge-it/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [If we ever established contact with intelligent life on another world, there would be barriers to communication. First, they would be many light years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/if-we-ever-established-contact-with-intelligent-life-on-another-world/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [Cannot possibly attend first night, will attend second... if there is one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/cannot-possibly-attend-first-night-will-attend-second-if-there-is-one/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) ## More by William Cowper > [And hast thou sworn on every slight pretence, Till perjuries are common as bad pence, While thousands, careless of the damning sin, Kiss the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/and-hast-thou-sworn-on-every-slight-pretence-till-perjuries-are/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [No wild enthusiast could rest, till half the world like him was possessed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/no-wild-enthusiast-could-rest-till-half-the-world-like-him-was/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [Admirals extolled for standing still, or doing nothing with a deal of skill.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/admirals-extolled-for-standing-still-or-doing-nothing-with-a-deal-of/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [“The good we never miss we rarely prize”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/the-good-we-never-miss-we-rarely-prize/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [Thus happiness depends, as nature shows, less on exterior things than most suppose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/thus-happiness-depends-as-nature-shows-less-on-exterior-things-than/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [Stamps God's own name upon a lie just made, To turn a penny in the way of trade.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/stamps-god-s-own-name-upon-a-lie-just-made-to-turn-a-penny-in-the-way/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [But oars alone can ne'er prevail To reach the distant coast; The breath of Heaven must swell the sail, Or all the toil is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/but-oars-alone-can-ne-er-prevail-to-reach-the-distant-coast-the/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [“Nature is but a name for an effect whose cause is God"...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/nature-is-but-a-name-for-an-effect-whose-cause-is-god/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [But conversation, choose what theme we may, And chiefly when religion leads the way, Should flow, like waters after summer show'rs, Not as if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/but-conversation-choose-what-theme-we-may-and-chiefly-when-religion/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [Remorse, the fatal egg that pleasure laid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/remorse-the-fatal-egg-that-pleasure-laid/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [“When we don't pray, we quit the fight. Prayer keeps the Christian's armor bright. And Satan trembles when he sees. The weakest saint upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/when-we-don-t-pray-we-quit-the-fight-prayer-keeps-the-christian-s/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [But animated nature sweeter still, to soothe and satisfy the human ear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/but-animated-nature-sweeter-still-to-soothe-and-satisfy-the-human-ear/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [A fretful temper will divide the closest knot that may be tied, by ceaseless sharp corrosion; a temper passionate and fierce may suddenly your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/a-fretful-temper-will-divide-the-closest-knot-that-may-be-tied-by/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [Ten thousand casks, Forever dribbling out their base contents, Touch'd by the Midas finger of the state, Bleed gold for ministers to sport away.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/ten-thousand-casks-forever-dribbling-out-their-base-contents-touch-d/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [The art of poetry is to touch the passions, and its duty to lead them on the side of virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/the-art-of-poetry-is-to-touch-the-passions-and-its-duty-to-lead-them/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) [Explore all 371 William Cowper quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) ## More Breasts quotes > [Women still, when they have breast cancer, go to work; they still lead their lives. They have to. I just did what I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-potter/women-still-when-they-have-breast-cancer-go-to-work-they-still-lead/) [Monica Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-potter/) > [Ye youths and virgins, when your generous blood Has drunk the warmth of fifteen summers, now The loves invite; now to new rapture wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-armstrong/ye-youths-and-virgins-when-your-generous-blood-has-drunk-the-warmth/) [John Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-armstrong/) > [The bird with the thorn in its breast, it follows an immutable law; it is driven by it knows not what to impale itself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-mccullough/the-bird-with-the-thorn-in-its-breast-it-follows-an-immutable-law-it/) [Colleen McCullough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-mccullough/) > [Where shall the lover rest, Whom the fates sever From his true maiden's breast, Parted for ever? Where, through groves deep and high, Sounds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-scott/where-shall-the-lover-rest-whom-the-fates-sever-from-his-true-maiden/) [Walter Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-scott/) > [The earth is like the breasts of a woman: useful as well as pleasing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/the-earth-is-like-the-breasts-of-a-woman-useful-as-well-as-pleasing/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [I feel that between my experience and my mother's, breast cancer is a little bit like someone who lives next door. I know what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-nixon/i-feel-that-between-my-experience-and-my-mother-s-breast-cancer-is-a/) [Cynthia Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-nixon/) > [Poems come from ordinary experiences and objects, I think. Out of memory - a dress I lent my daughter on her way back to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-olds/poems-come-from-ordinary-experiences-and-objects-i-think-out-of/) [Sharon Olds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-olds/) > [Beloved, let your eyes half close, and your heart beat Over my heart, and your hair fall over my breast, Drowning love's lonely hour…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-butler-yeats/beloved-let-your-eyes-half-close-and-your-heart-beat-over-my-heart/) [William Butler Yeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-butler-yeats/) > [Boasting and bravado may exist in the breast even of the coward, if he is successful through a mere lucky hit; but a just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thucydides/boasting-and-bravado-may-exist-in-the-breast-even-of-the-coward-if-he/) [Thucydides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thucydides/) > [The headline here is not that a woman exposed a breast. 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