“Better a witty fool than a foolish wit.”
Permalink: William Shakespeare
About this quote
Feste says it to Sir Toby, who has just told him to go and say he is not in love, and the clown declines the assignment on comic grounds. The proverb it quotes goes back centuries, but Shakespeare puts it in the mouth of a man who profits by knowing how much wit is worth.
Source: Twelfth Night, Act 1, Scene 5