QUOTING? KNOW YOUR ONIONS

Okay, forgive the nerdy Onions pun…
Why use quotations? Because cultural references resonate with the reader and perhaps add a dash of style. An apposite quotation can also demonstrate a level of versatility and literary awareness.
But…

Taken out of their literary and historical context, quotations may not have the desired effect – as illustrated recently by two spectacular examples in just one week in the British media.

First to come a cropper by waxing intellectual was vaccine sceptic Toby Young. His anti-lockdown piece in a national newspaper, in which he dismissed scientists as “Cassandras in lab coats”, prompted howls of derision. Opponents gleefully pointed out that in Greek mythology, Cassandra’s curse was to utter prophecies that were true but not believed.

More amusement followed when Jacob Rees-Mogg, MP, responded to the dismissal of a complaint against him concerning failure to declare loans by quoting from Othello:

“Who steals my purse steals trash… but he that filches from me my good name robs me of that which not enriches him and makes me poor indeed.”

This also invited mockery and ridicule, because by quoting Iago, Rees-Mogg had implicitly (and presumably unwittingly!) associated himself with one of Shakespeare’s most villainous, manipulative and deceitful characters. Another spectacular backfire…


Quoting isn’t so difficult and it can add so much to a speech or a text.

Tip: For belt-and-braces certainty, always check with a reliable source – probably one that will at least give the act and scene, which makes double checking easier. You probably already know that ‘image quote’ sites aren’t always the most reliable…