The power of being quietly spoken

Softly falls the memory…

Leonardo: Would have been her birthday.

Isabella: She was a wonderful mother. Medical training during the war. Did all the other things too, like sewing and gardening and bottling. 

Leonardo: Un momento di silenzio per ricordare Giovanna.

Isabella: I remember her as always being quietly spoken.

Leonardo: She didn’t like noise. She often used to say, "Empty vessels clang loudest."

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Voice-over

She had a quiet way with words too. Rephrased metaphors, sometimes combining Plato and Shakespeare.

Quotes in biopics

100,000 English cannot control 
350 million Indians.

Directors weigh in on using quotations…

David: Biopics are a reconstruction of a person’s life. So the dialog is also a reconstruction.

We are governed by people who care more
 about feelings than thoughts or ideas.

Stephen: So Gandhi didn’t actually say, “100,000 Englishmen simply cannot control 350 million Indians, if those Indians refuse to cooperate."

David: Sometimes a good scriptwriter can summarize a hero’s thoughts.

Stephen: And sometimes the hero, or heroine, is a source of direct quotes. Margaret Thatcher actually wrote, “We are governed by people who care more about feelings than they do about thoughts and ideas.” So in Iron Lady, we had Meryl Streep say that.

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Voice-over

A quote can be disputed (there is an argument over whether the speaker actually said or wrote it). Or it can be misattributed (somebody else actually said it or wrote it).

The Gandhi line is a quote we might wish he’d said, even if he didn’t.

And the Thatcher quote can be found in her autobiography. It is not disputed, misattributed or a line we might wish she’d said or written.

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Three-liners from the Big Three of science fiction

Best Three Sci-Fi Writers’ Best Three-Liners

Robert Heinlein, Arthur C. Clarke, and Isaac Asimov, meet at a conference.

Isaac: How about a competition? See who can come up with the most memorable quote.

Arthur: You think there will come a time when people will remember us by our one liners, not our books?

Robert: Even politicians can do one-liners.

Arthur: How about three-liners?

Isaac: I can see where this is going. Problem, alternative hypothesis and null hypothesis?

Arthur: Well, just three lines that reveal a story. Like, “New ideas pass through three periods: (1) It can't be done. (2) It probably can be done, but it's not worth doing. (3) I knew it was a good idea all along!”

Robert: Bravo! OK, how about this? “Theology is searching in a dark cellar for a black cat that isn't there.”

Isaac: Three concepts, but only one line, Robert. Sorry. How about this to control robots? “Law 1: A robot may not injure a human. Law 2: A robot must obey human orders, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law. Law 3: A robot must protect itself as long as this protection does not conflict with the First or Second Laws.

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Voice-over

So, the Big Three sci-fi writers have a three-liner competition! Arthur C. Clarke’s quote hints at his ability to prophesy. Robert Heinlein reveals his fondness for philosophy and metaphysics. Isaac Asimov dazzles with his mathematical logic. Who wins? Perhaps Asimov in this case eschews wit to attempt wisdom.

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