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Decent Quality Since 1847

The Sublime Answer

8/1/2013

2 Comments

 
The other day, I had a pop quiz -- where does the expression "From the ridiculous to the sublime" come from?  The only slight hint I gave most people won't likely know unless you read history.  (Which admittedly isn't much of a hint, as far as hints go.)  I also noted that the actual phrase was, contrary to popular usage, "From the sublime to the ridiculous."

So, who said it?

Though the answer is pretty obscure, the person saying it is not.  Nor is the context.  In fact, it's the context that I find most fascinating at all, because it adds such richness to the quote.

I discovered the quote when reading the last volume of Will and Ariel Durant's epic Story of Civilization.  That eleventh book, The Age of Napoleon, covers the years 1789-1815.  In case that helps.

The person who made the statement is none other than -- Napoleon Bonaparte!

And even more remarkably, the context is that he was on his way back to France, escaping with his life after the disastrous campaign in Moscow.  To avoid detection, Napoleon took three carriages from the town Smorgonie, changing them along the way.  Here's what the Durants wrote, on page 711 --

"Napoleon rode with Caulaincourt, who arranged relays of horses, and with General Wonsowicz, who acted as interpreter.  To him Napoleon handed two pistols, saying, 'In case of real danger kill me rather than let me be taken.'  Fearing capture or assassination, he disguised himself by exchanging costumes with Caulaincourt.  'Passing through Poland,' Caulaincourt recalled, 'it was always I who was the distinguished travelor, and the Emperor was simply my secretary.'

"The ride to Paris was continuous, night and day.  The longest stop was at Warsaw, where Napoleon surprised the French representative, the Abbé de Pradt, with a now proverbial remark:  'From the sublime to the ridiculous is but a step.'"

You can now amaze and enthrall your friends, and probably win a lot of bar bets.

Me, I find that remarkable.
2 Comments
Jim Pettinger
8/1/2013 07:35:52 am

You'll probably enjoy the label I had created for this beer then. (Art by John Keane, quote searching by me.) http://www.cityanddale.com/city-and-dale/2011/6/22/neapolitan-ice-cream-meets-beer.html

Reply
Robert Elisberg
8/1/2013 08:03:48 am

Jim, yes, I do love it. Fine art and impressive quote searching. You are probably one of the few who would have been able to answer the pop quiz.

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    Robert J. Elisberg is a political commentator, screenwriter, novelist, tech writer and also some other things that I just tend to keep forgetting. 

    Elisberg is a two-time recipient of the Lucille Ball Award for comedy screenwriting. He's written for film, TV, the stage, and two best-selling novels, is a regular columnist for the Writers Guild of America and was for
    the Huffington Post.  Among his other writing, he has a long-time column on technology (which he sometimes understands), and co-wrote a book on world travel.  As a lyricist, he is a member of ASCAP, and has contributed to numerous publications.

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