Jonathan Swift, Tale of a Tub: Author's Preface.

It is with wits as with razors, which are never so apt to cut those they are employed on as when they have lost their edge.

— Jonathan Swift on Wit

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "It is with wits as with razors, which are never so apt to cut those they are employed on as when they have lost their edge." in the context of "Jonathan Swift, Tale of a Tub: Author's Preface." to mean that wisdom is timeless.

Quote Image
Source: Wikiquote: "Wit" (Quotes, Hoyt's New Cyclopedia Of Practical Quotations: Quotes reported in Hoyt's New Cyclopedia Of Practical Quotations (1922), p. 883-86.) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
Jonathan Swift

About Jonathan Swift

Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish writer and satirist. Acclaimed as one of the finest prose satirists in the English language, he was also well known for his poetry and essays.