156+ Quotes by Playwrights: Ink, Imagination, and Inspiration (Images)

“Quotes by Playwrights” is a treasure mine of wisdom, wit, and profound insights from the brilliant minds behind some of the world’s most enduring and thought-provoking theatrical works.

Playwrights have a unique ability to compress the intricacies of human experience into beautifully constructed words and conversations.

In this article, we dig into the worlds of theater and literature, examining the most engaging and profound quotations by playwrights that have left an unforgettable effect on our cultural environment.

These statements provide insight into the human condition and inspire writers, actors, and anybody who loves the power of expressive narrative.

Quotes by Playwrights

-Even though we are aware of what we are, we do not know what we might become. -William Shakespeare

-Winged Cupid is painted blind because love sees with the mind, not the eyes. -William Shakespeare

Quotes by Famous Playwrights

-Some people are great from birth; some people have greatness as an inherent quality, while others have it forced upon them. -William Shakespeare

-Knowledge is the pair of wings that fly us to heaven, while ignorance is a curse thrust upon us by God. -William Shakespeare

-The journey of true love is hardly smooth and filled with obstacles. -William Shakespeare

-The journey of true love is hardly smooth and filled with obstacles. -William Shakespeare

-Craving for happiness in life is the basic characteristic of the revolutionary spirit. -Henrik Ibsen

-I think all of you will agree that foolish people form an absolute majority throughout the world in this age. -Henrik Ibsen

-The point of the matter is that the man who stands alone is the strongest in this world. -Henrik Ibsen

-You do not love me. You just find the feeling of being in love with me to be pleasant. -Henrik Ibsen

-A single deed leaves a deeper impression than a thousand words. -Henrik Ibsen

-Being alive is like going to a war with trolls. -Henrik Ibsen

-There are some people that one loves and there are others with whom he would rather be. -Henrik Ibsen

-I must decide which is correct- The society or myself. -Henrik Ibsen

-I believe that, above all, I am a rational human being and so are you and I must strive to become one under all circumstances. -Henrik Ibsen

-The most powerful men are the loneliest. -Henrik Ibsen

-The day-to-day life wears a person out and not times of crisis. A crisis can be faced even by an idiot. -Anton Chekhov

-An artist’s job is to ask questions, not answer them. -Anton Chekhov

-The weather is so good today that I cannot decide whether to drink tea or to hang myself. -Anton Chekhov

-It is our conception of the world that constitutes it. -Anton Chekhov

-Learning and education bring wisdom. It is not gained with age. -Anton Chekhov

-Maybe the feeling experienced when in love is the normal state of mind. The true character of a person is revealed when he is in love. -Anton Chekhov

-Look for it, and you will definitely find it. You will never find what you do not search. –Sophocles

-Without the feeling of happiness, a man is not alive. He is like a breathing dead body. –Sophocles

-The knowledge of truth can be deadly when the truth does not provide any help. –Sophocles

Playwright Quotes

-Much wisdom is contained in short proverbs. –Sophocles

-Unlike the truth, a lie is short-lived. –Sophocles

-Not rationing justice is the only commandment to be followed for retaining democracy. –Sophocles

-Bad advice is worse than all enemies. –Sophocles

-The quality of the resources in the hands of ignorant men are not realized by them until they have thrown it away. –Sophocles

-Our conscience dwelling inside us is the most terrible witness and the most powerful accuser. –Sophocles

-For me, failing with honor is better than succeeding by cheating. –Sophocles

-The weak fighting for the right cause will defeat the strong. –Sophocles

-Speaking about the correct thing and doing the wrong thing is a terrible sin. –Sophocles

-Realizing that we are responsible for all our misery is terrible. –Sophocles

-I always feel wrong whenever I see people agree with me. –Oscar Wilde

-A dreamer finds his way from the light of the moon. He is punished by having to see the dawn before anyone else. –Oscar Wilde

-Some people bring joy wherever they go, and others bring joy whenever they go. –Oscar Wilde

-Forgiving your enemies annoys them the most. –Oscar Wilde

-Always keep your heart full of love. Without love, our lives will be like a garden with dead flowers where the sun does not shine. –Oscar Wilde

-An idea is not worth calling an idea if it is not dangerous. –Oscar Wilde

-All of us are born mad. Some of us remain that way throughout our life. –Samuel Beckett

-Dancing is the natural order. So, start dancing without thinking. . –Samuel Beckett

-There is no cure for you being on earth. –Samuel Beckett

-Keep trying. If you fail, you will fail better than the last time. –Samuel Beckett

-Even though I can’t, I will still keep going. –Samuel Beckett

-We always find something that gives us the impression that we exist. –Samuel Beckett

-Every spoken word acts like an unnecessary spot of nothingness and silence. –Samuel Beckett

-The Sun was shining on the same old things as it did not have an alternative. –Samuel Beckett

-That is my character. Either I forget about it instantly, or I do not forget at all. –Samuel Beckett

-Do not ask me any questions! Do not talk to me! Do not lay your hands on me! Just be with me! –Samuel Beckett

-Forty years is considered to be the old age of youth, while fifty is the youth of old age. –Victor Hugo

-It is extremely adorable when someone wrinkles with grace. Old age, when happy, is extremely beautiful. –Victor Hugo

-Some thoughts are like prayers. At times, the soul comes down on its knees irrespective of the attitude of the body. –Victor Hugo

-God has written the word ‘Hope’ on the brow of every human being. –Victor Hugo

-Things that are impossible to express and cannot be left unsaid are expressed by music. –Victor Hugo

-A man absorbed in thought is not idle. There are two kinds of labor: Visible and Invisible. –Victor Hugo

-The illusion that a communication has taken place is the most problematic thing about it. –George Bernard Shaw

-Just like you use a mirror made of glass to see your face, works of art is used to look inside your soul. –George Bernard Shaw

-I add spice to my conversations by quoting myself. –George Bernard Shaw

-The mistakes of a thief is the same as the virtues of a financier. –George Bernard Shaw

-Most people fear liberty because it brings responsibility along with it. –George Bernard Shaw

-If there is enough time, everybody experiences everything. –George Bernard Shaw

-Instead of considering art as a mirror held up to reality, we should consider it as a hammer to shape reality. –Bertolt Brecht

-The hungry man should reach for the book as it acts as a weapon for him. –Bertolt Brecht

-The founding of a bank is a greater wrongdoing than the robbing of a bank. –Bertolt Brecht

-You should open your mind before opening your mouth. –Aristophanes

-In order for me to say something clever, I must wet my mind with a beaker of wine. –Aristophanes

-Always cook the people something delicious that they will like if you want to please them. –Aristophanes

-Words give wings to the mind. –Aristophanes

-Wise people would live the same life even if all the laws of the land were abolished. –Aristophanes

-Every man should exercise the art he has mastered. –Aristophanes

-Cities learn the lesson of surrounding themselves with high walls not from their friends but their foes. –Aristophanes

-The desire and pursuit of the whole is named love. –Aristophanes

-You are a fool to challenge me to a war as you could have easily had me as your ally. –Aristophanes

quotes by world famous playwrights

Playwriting Quotes

“A play is a poem standing up.” – W. H. Auden

“The play is not in the words; it’s in you.” – Stella Adler

“Theater is the art of looking at ourselves.” – August Wilson

“Drama is anticipation mingled with uncertainty.” – William Archer

“A play is a story that’s meant to be seen, not read.” – David Mamet

“A playwright lives in an occupied country. And if you can’t live that way, you don’t stay.” – Arthur Miller

“In playwriting, the element of surprise is the most important element of all.” – Arthur Miller

“Theater is the place where an actor can make magic.” – Gene Wilder

“A playwright’s job is to provoke questions, not provide answers.” – Tony Kushner

“In the theater, while you recognized that you were looking at a house, it was a house in quotation marks.” – Arthur Miller

“All you can do is write the play. You can’t decide how it’s produced.” – Tony Kushner

“To write a good play, you must know how to build a house. You must know how to make a structure that will stand.” – Anton Chekhov

“Drama is life with the dull bits cut out.” – Alfred Hitchcock

“A good play is never finished, only abandoned.” – Paul Valéry

“There is a kind of beauty in imperfection.” – Conrad Hall

“A play is the place where you can go to deal with all the stuff you can’t deal with anywhere else.” – Sam Shepard

“I think the duty of the playwright is to take the brief moment when a story is about to snap.” – Sam Shepard

“Words are but the vague shadows of the volumes we mean. Little audible links, they are, chaining together great inaudible feelings and purposes.” – Theodore Dreiser

“A play should give you something to think about. When I see a play and understand it the first time, then I know it can’t be much of a play.” – T. S. Eliot

“Theater is a verb before it is a noun, an act before it is a place.” – Martha Graham

“In theater, the wellspring is the playwright.” – Arthur Miller

“You’re never as good as everyone tells you when you win, and you’re never as bad as they say when you lose.” – Lou Holtz

“In every play, there must be some motive in search of an outlet; every character has an object, which, if nothing else, will supply an impulse.” – George Henry Lewes

“In the theater, it’s about taking time in an urgent way.” – Lee Strasberg

“Theater is, of course, a reflection of life. Maybe we have to improve life before we can hope to improve theater.” – William Ralph Inge

Quotes by World famous Dramatists

“It is not love if there is no madness.” – Pedro Calderon de la Barca

“If there is no madness there is no love.” – Pedro Calderon de la Barca

“Without madness, there cannot be any love.” – Pedro Calderon de la Barca

“If there is love, there will surely be madness.” – Pedro Calderon de la Barca

“Love cannot exist without madness according.” – Pedro Calderon de la Barca

“Love needs madness to survive.” – Pedro Calderon de la Barca

“Love without madness is nothing.” – Pedro Calderon de la Barca

“There can be no love if there is no madness.” – Pedro Calderon de la Barca

“The book your soul is writing, your dreams are an illustration of that.” – Marsha Norman

“Dreams are the artwork of the book written by your soul.” – Marsha Norman

“We are brought together by dreams and anguish. Ideologies separate us.” – Eugene Ionesco

“We are brought close to each other by imagination and sufferings. Beliefs tear us apart.” – Eugene Ionesco

“We are brought collectively by ideas and torment. Principles isolate us from each other.” – Eugene Ionesco

“We are brought up as one by thoughts and pain. Philosophies detach us.” – Eugene Ionesco

“Broom of anger is needed to drive away the beast of fear.” – Zora Neale Hurston

“To drive away the beast of fear, broom of anger is needed.” – Zora Neale Hurston

“You have to pick up your anger broom to push away your ghost of fear.” – Zora Neale Hurston

“Anger is required to make your fear go away.” – Zora Neale Hurston

“The highest price that can be paid for maturity is age.” – Tom Stoppard

“You can pay any price for maturity by age is just too much.” – Tom Stoppard

“According to Tom Stoppard, paying age as the price for maturity is too much.” – Tom Stoppard

“If the cost of your maturity is your age, then you are paying too much.” – Tom Stoppard

“Probability comes from principles, facts come from truth and certainty.” – Tom Stoppard

“Chance comes from values, facts come from reality and certainty.” – Tom Stoppard

“Possibility comes from ideologies, facts come from accuracy and certainty.” – Tom Stoppard

“Likelihood comes from ethics, facts come from exactness and certainty.” – Tom Stoppard

“Prospect comes from main beliefs, facts come from veracity and certainty.” – Tom Stoppard

“You cannot change anything if you cannot change your mind.” – George Bernard Shaw

“If you need to change anything, change your mind first.” – George Bernard Shaw

“Before changing anything, you should change your mind.” – George Bernard Shaw

“One who has to bring a change needs to start by changing their minds.” – George Bernard Shaw

“Before bringing any change, changing your own mindset is important.” – George Bernard Shaw

“Change the world, change your mind.” – George Bernard Shaw

“Everything can be changed if you can change your mind.” – George Bernard Shaw

“If you commonly hate someone, it will unite you with people more than any kind of love, friendship, and respect will ever do.” – Anton Chekhov

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Quotes by Famous Playwrights

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