Quotes About Subtlety

The difference between stupid and intelligent people—and this is true whether or not they are well-educated—is that intelligent people can handle subtlety. They are not baffled by ambiguous or even contradictory situations—in fact, they expect them and are apt to become suspicious when things seem overly straightforward.

These women stared out from the canvases with arched brows, enormous eyes and tiny mouths, seeing much, and saying little.

Do you know about lock picking?" "I'm sure it's like sex." "I'm sure it's not like sex." "How would you know? Everything's like sex. It's the universal metaphor. To pick a lock, let me guess, you have to go slow at first, but then you have to pull off some fancy moves, and you have to stay concentrated, and you have to stick something in something, right?

It's the art of letting people deceive themselves without actually telling them lies.

But it wasn't the intermittent reception or even the whispering that exasperated Amina so much as a familiar trick of her mother's: to bring up a subject in such a roundabout way that Amina had to pry it out of her, as if she were the one who'd wanted to discuss it in the first place.

Diplomacy is the art of saying nice doggy, until you can find a rock.

The British are masters of disinformation, the Americans have learned from them, the French think they invented it, and the Germans are not subtle enough to put out a good lie. As for the Italians, your former colonial masters, they believe their own disinformation and act on it.

Men like women who know how to be subtle.

But then, even with sex, I'm more in the school of less is more in movies.

Sometimes what you don't show creates more of a mystery.

He wasn't going to get caught staring at her and reveal that she had the upper hand.

Be extremely subtle, even to the point of formlessness. Be extremely mysterious, even to the point of soundlessness. Thereby, you can be the director of the opponent's fate.

In the early days, computers inspired widespread awe and the popular press dubbed them giant brains. In fact, the computer's power resembled that of a bulldozer; it did not harness subtlety, though subtlety went into its design.

A lee-tle bit

rather than giving out information someone would be able to check, it's better to limit yourself to insinuation.

Bonapartist democrat. Grey shades of a quiet mouse colour.

In the case of sand as in that of woman, there is a fineness which is treacherous.

One of the best ways to keep a great secret is to shout it.

She, however, stood and said nothing. / Small, unnoticed, she stood in the crowd, listened, and said / nothing.

La semplicità dev'esser tale che lo scrittore, o chiunque l'adopra in qualsivoglia caso, non si accorga, o mostri di non accorgersi di esser semplice, e molto meno di esser pregevole per questo capo. Egli dev'esser come inconsapevole non solo di tutte le altre bellezze dello scrivere, ma della stessa semplicità.

A truly thoughtful lover would not attempt to arouse you with the subtlety of a chimp trying to dial a rotary phone.

O poder é feito de minúcias.

Her hair was the gold of gold paintings and had been fussed with just enough but not too much.

It is a thing I have noted, that men will compete with one another even when there is no prize to be gained. Mayhap women are no better, on the whole, but we are more subtle about it, and quicker to reckon the stakes. And quicker to play men for fools.