“ We'll take the goodwill for the deed, and thank you as much as if we had. ”
François Rabelais, Gargantua and Pantagruel (1534). copy citation
| Author | François Rabelais |
|---|---|
| Source | Gargantua and Pantagruel |
| Topic | goodwill action |
| Date | 1534 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | Translated by Sir Thomas Urquhart of Cromarty and Peter Antony Motteux |
| Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/files/1200/1200-h/1200-h.htm |
Context
“Man of God, answered Panurge, we have seen and descried decrees, and eke decretals enough o' conscience; some on paper, other on parchment, fine and gay like any painted paper lantern, some on vellum, some in manuscript, and others in print; so you need not take half these pains to show us these. We'll take the goodwill for the deed, and thank you as much as if we had. Ay, marry, said Homenas, but you never saw these that are angelically written. Those in your country are only transcripts from ours; as we find it written by one of our old decretaline scholiasts. For me, do not spare me; I do not value the labour, so I may serve you.”
source
Meaning and analysis
