Brander Matthews Quotes & Sayings

There is a homely directness about these rustic apothegms which makes them far more palatable than the strained and sophisticated epigrams of the characters of Oscar Wilde's plays, who are ever striving strenuously to dazzle us with verbal pyrotechnics. — Brander Matthews

To be clear is the first duty of a writer; to charm and to please are graces to be acquired later. — Brander Matthews

A highbrow is a person educated beyond his intelligence. — Brander Matthews

Be brief, be buoyant, and be brilliant. — Brander Matthews

A gentleman need not know Latin, but he should at least have forgotten it. — Brander Matthews

When I have no idea, I gnaw my nails and invoke the aid of Providence. — Brander Matthews

In every artist we can perceive a man with both a message and a method. His message may be innate in him, but his method he has to acquire from others. — Brander Matthews

Give a good deed the credit of a good motive; and give an evil deed the benefit of the doubt. — Brander Matthews

The art of the dramatist is very like the art of the architect. A plot has to be built up just as a house is built-story after story; and no edifice has any chance of standing unless it has a broad foundation and a solid frame. — Brander Matthews