“A cynic is someone who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing” — Oscar Wilde
“A true cynic knows the price of everything and the pricelessness of a stay in Reading Gaol.” — SocraticGadfly
I don’t think Wilde was a cynic about being a cynic. Rather, I think this is a clear case of irony. He knew himself well enough to be speaking tongue in cheek (I think).
If he didn’t, he was wrong about himself about cynics.
Of course, there’s a big difference between cynics, in the social sense, and Cynics, in the philosophical sense.
Philosophical cynics know the value of all sorts of things; they just use a different value system than the vast majority of the public.
My own retort puns, if that is the right word, on the difference between the two types of cynicism, while poking fun at Wilde at the same time.
Got a famous quote you’d like to see updated? Drop me a line at socraticgadflyAThotmailDOTcom.
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