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College Composition II Peer Review Assignment 1
The Elements of a Great Quote
Brian Miller
Madonna University








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Quotes, sayings and proverbs have always been a part of popular culture. Quotes such as a
winner never quits and a quitter never wins and if life hands you lemons, make lemonade are
well known and often used in our society. Quotes make their way onto office walls and
calendars to act as subtle reminders, to state beliefs, to remind everyone of a vision or direction
or offer a bit of comic relief. They act as rallying cries for sports teams with such quotes as
Those who stay will be champions from the University of Michigan Football team still being
used some 45 years later. Although some quotes may be memorable or used frequently, I believe
that a truly great quote has a couple of specific characteristics.
As a young police officer just beginning my career, I stumbled across a quote by Friedrich
Nietzsche that I would consider a great quote. This quote has stuck with me ever since. In his
book Beyond Good and Evil (1886) Nietzsche states, He who fights monsters should look to
it that he himself does not become a monster. And when you gaze long into an abyss the abyss
also gazes into you. The reason this particular quote stuck with me is that it was applicable to
the career I had chosen and offered an interesting view of what may lay ahead.
For any quote to be considered great it must contain a couple of key elements. First and
foremost, a great quote must be bold and contain strong imagery. Through the use of intense,
graphic, or powerful words and metaphors a quote has the ability to drive home a point and make
it memorable. Bold words and the imagery associated with those words can convey the emotion
or seriousness the source of the quote intended. Bold words and metaphors convey the
importance of the subject being discussed and offer an insight into what the true meaning of the
quote may be.
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As an example to the above point, to say someone is a snake or weasel will invoke a
different level of emotion and convey a different meaning than if you were to simply call that
person dishonest. Also, to say someone yelled at you would not carry the same imagery as
if you described the outburst as erupting, exploding or barking. Using a word like
erupting or exploded may imply there was a more violent (possibly physical?) response.
This may even evoke the image of an erupting volcano or explosive going off. When examining
a quote, the reader should ask themselves why the source chose to use the words they did and
what associations may be present.
By provoking strong imagery or using vivid metaphors a person is more likely to remember the
quote or saying. It is well established that humans remember better when they can relate a
thought to an object or thing rather than something abstract. Although it is nice for a quote to
be memorable, it is not a necessity for a quote to be great.
The second element to a great quote or proverb is that it is thought provoking and complex.
Although most quotes or proverbs are brief, a great quote allows the reader to examine it on
many different levels. A great quote is not limited in meaning by its brevity.
When a person reads or hears a quote, the overt meaning or message is usually obvious or
apparent. A great quote distinguishes itself by inviting further examination or debate, it hints at a
deeper meaning. The person examining the quote must not only pay attention to the words used,
but also how they play in relation to each other.
Because a great quote is complex, it may mean different things to different people. It may also
mean different things to the same person as their perspective evolves. In examining the
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complexity and meaning of a quote, it is helpful to look at the assumptions or traditional
meanings associated with the chosen words or metaphors.
I believe the aforementioned quote by Friedrich Nietzsche is bold in its use of words and
imagery and is thought provoking as well. It should therefore be considered a great quote.
The quote consists of two sentences. The first sentence makes use of the word monster. The
use of this word usually provokes a strong reaction in people based on images or associations
they may have with science fiction or mythology. Everyone usually has a very immediate
association to something when this word is mentioned. It is bold and leaves no doubt that
Nietzsche is referring to something terrible.
The use of the term monster is also thought provoking since Nietzsche is obviously not
referring to a mythical creature. In looking at Nietzsches choice of words further, it can be
argued that he is referring to a particularly heinous person, persons or organization. It is at this
point the person examining the quote must decide what level of evil the term monster applies
to, and what the their monster may be.
The first sentence also uses the term fight. Again, this is a bold choice of words and it is up to
the person examining the quote to determine what Nietzsche means. Does this mean a police
officer who is responsible for fighting criminals? A soldier fighting a war? A prosecutor
fighting in court to get a conviction? Or, a person fighting a mental illness? This is a highly
subjective word depending on the lens through which it is viewed.
This sentence also issues the warning that if you fight monsters you should make sure not to
become a monster yourself. This statement carries with it the implication that those involved in
this type of battle may be affected by the fight. This statement can spawn a whole line of
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debate about the effects of exposure to traumatic events, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or
the effects of mental illness.
The second sentence in the quote deals with looking into an abyss. Again, this is a very bold
choice of words, the meaning of which is ominous. The conflict or debate in this sentence lies
more in what is meant by the sentence as a whole as opposed to what the subjective meaning of
the word abyss is.
When I apply this sentence to the law enforcement profession I relate it not to the tendency of
veteran officers to get jaded or cynical but to how those officers react to the cynicism. The
constant exposure to traumatizing events and situations could be viewed as gazing into an
abyss. The officers reaction to those circumstances could be viewed as the manifestation of
what the abyss sees when it gazes back.
Analysis of this quote seems to create more questions than answers, many of which can be
considered correct based on the lens through which it is interpreted.
In applying my criteria to Nietzsches quote, I believe both sentences make use of bold words
and metaphors. Both sentences are complex and thought provoking as evidenced by the
numerous questions and interpretations each sentence produces. Each of these interpretations
could be considered plausible depending on the explanations given. As a whole I believe this
should be considered a great quote.