Malvolio

“Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon ’em.”

— Malvolio, scene v, “Twelfth Night”, William Shakespeare

“Some men are born mediocre, some men achieve mediocrity, and some men have mediocrity thrust upon them. With Major Major it had been all three.”
— “Catch-22”, Joseph Heller

Ignorance of the contents of the letter that Malvolio ‘stumbles upon’ may make  Heller’s quote appear ingenious– as one of those funny lines that almost make  sense. In light of Shakespeare’s genius though, the quote acquires a new colour. It is one of  those moments of faith when a man bows down before his God with  exclamations of unworthiness that barely leave his lips. Heller’s self-confessed mediocrity in comparison with Shakespeare is just that.  Heller might admit to this description as long as we don’t use ‘religion’ to describe it. But then, the Bard covered the topic of names too!

 

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