"When you were very small, perhaps someone read to you the insipid story —the word "insipid" here means "not worth reading to someone" of the Boy Who Cried Wolf. A very dull boy, you may remember, cried "Wolf!" when there was no wolf, and the gullible villagers ran to rescue him only to find the whole thing was a joke. Then he cried "Wolf!" when it wasn't a joke, and the villagers didn't come running, and the boy was eaten and the story, thank goodness, was over. The story's moral, of course, ought to be "Never live somewhere where wolves are running around loose," but whoever read you the story probably told you that the moral was not to lie. This is an absurd moral, for you and I both know that sometimes not only is it good to lie, it is necessary to lie. For example, it was perfectly appropriate, after Violet left the Reptile Room, for Sunny to crawl over to the cage that held the Incredibly Deadly Viper, unlatch the cage, and begin screaming as loudly as she could even though nothing was really wrong."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Novelists from the United StatesShort story writers from the United StatesScreenwriters from the United StatesPostmodern authorsPeople from San Francisco
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
Imported from EN Wikiquote
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Daniel_Handler
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Daniel Handler
155 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Daniel Handler →
Related Quotes
"If i were a little braver i would have asked her something like, "Do you think Kickass: the movie is a comedy in the …"
"This world is suchier than we are, and the best thing to do is keep moving and find your keys."
"Love was in the air so both of us walked through love on our way to the corner."
"I'm frightened by your behaviour. I woke up this morning and you said good morning and i said good morning, what do y…"
"Standing ten feet away from Lila was sort of kickass with her nails drumming on the box with the slot in, where we pu…"
"Keith has one of those all terrain things that will come in so handy when the world ends and we need a nine-thousand …"
"This is love, and the trouble with it: it can make you embarrassed. Love is really liking someone a whole lot and not…"
"Mike could see the fellow cooked and ate and sat on a sofa and put his feet up on the table it magazines. Mike didn't…"
"The world gets grimy and the love object is in stark relief from its surroundings. This is love, a pretty thing on an…"
"Money money money money money money money money money. Let no one say it has no place in a love story. It has a parti…"