The Pen and the Sword Hug it Out

I was on Pinterest yesterday when my mind was blown. I was looking up images for the old and divisive quote,

“The pen is mightier than the sword,”

when I found a picture of its author, with the full quote inscribed on top. I had never realized that the first “T” in that quote is lower-case. That’s only half the full sentence! Any argument about the validity of this quote is entirely off base, because it misses the words’ full meaning and context.

This is a great example of why arguments should be formed before they are made. These famous words have been touted as a token of wisdom and intellect for a long time ­– almost a couple centuries – and have been fervently contested and joked about by those who find it naïve. There are entire blog posts, alive with comments, about why it’s a dumb quote. A long list of spin-off quotes include:

 “The Pen is mightier than the sword, but the tongue is mightier than them both put together.” –Marcus Garvy

“The pen is mightier than the sword if the sword is very short and the pen is very sharp“ –Terry Pratchet

“The pen is mightier than the sword, if you shoot that pen out of a gun.“ –Stephen Colbert

“The pen isn’t mightier than the sword. Pens don’t win battles and swords don’t write poetry. Mighty is the hand that knows when to pick the pen and when to pick the sword.” –Anonymous (apparently. Hard to attribute this quote, but it’s all over the internet.)

 “Whoever said the pen is mightier than sword, obviously never encountered automatic weapons.”   –General Douglass MacArthur

MacArthur’s wisecrack is probably the most famous spin-off quote (or at least one with the best SEO). On one hand, he’s right. The person who said it died in 1873, so he probably saw some guns but never any automatic weapons. On the other hand, MacArthur’s words are only one interpretation (and they admit he didn’t know who authored the original quote). The opposing interpretation is that communication has more potential to change the world than violence does.

Okay, so here you go. [Drum roll!] The full quote debuted in 1839 in Richelieu, by the British playwright Edwin George Bulwer-Lytton, and it is this:

“Beneath the rule of men entirely great, the pen is mightier than the sword.”

(Let’s update it to the 21st century to say “Under the rule of those entirely great…”) It’s not an absolute statement; it’s conditional! It means that in the right social and political times, the power of communication is greater than that of violence. Great leaders are those who can bring out this truth in the societies they preside over. Beneath the rule of not-so-great leaders (like tyrants), perhaps the sword becomes mightier than the pen (though there you may have an even stronger case for the pen as a tool for resistance).

It’s a relief to realize that this quote has always had more to it. I myself have wondered at the popular, incomplete version of the quote, It’s a nice notion… but really?

Moreover, I just think this is an interesting example of everyone getting their panties in a bunch about something taken out of context, that few people even really understand.

Now, does anybody want to go see Richelieu with me, so we can really get the full scoop?