"Brevity is the soul of wit". Who said this legendary phrase?

Everyone knows a lot of sayings andproverbs. But often speech is interspersed with quotations, the origin of which is not known to all. An example of this can be a statement that everyone probably knows: "A man is a wolf to man". But very few people know that it belongs to the Roman playwright III century BC - Plautus.

Where did the expression come from?

Similarly, with the statement "Brevity - Sistertalent ". Who said this? But, perhaps, those who know the answer more, because the author of the phrase found the twentieth century, and even in the Soviet school it was necessary to know it. This Anton Pavlovich Chekhov, whose years of life - 1860-1904. The phrase - "winged", use it often. She was taken from a letter to her older brother Alexander Chekhov, also a writer and playwright. This is a professional conversation between two people who create plays. It is with respect to dramaturgy that the phrase "brevity is the sister of talent" is appropriate. Who said that it can be guided by the description of feelings, nature, portrait of the hero? And what about the "War and Peace" of Leo Tolstoy?

Is an expression suitable for all genres

It is not very relevant when writing historicalworks, where every detail of the past era is important, when creating memoirs, too. And in the epistolary genre, does she have a place? The complete collection of Ivan Turgenev's works consists of 28 volumes, of which letters are 13. And it is interesting to read them. Most of them contain messages to Pauline Viardot, a woman who replaced the whole world with him. There were a lot of letters, but in all collections of statements about the love of great people, one phrase is always given - about the day that is lost to him, if Viardot's eyes did not shine to meet him. What else can you add to convey the power of love? Hence, here again one can be guided by the phrase "Brevity is the sister of talent". Who said that we must long and tediously talk around to explain ourselves in love? It turns out that there are times when brevity is important, and the ability to express lapidary and accurately testifies to the author's unconditional talent, but there are moments, and there are many of them when laconism is undesirable.

The phrase of Chekhov - the essence of drama

Having written to his brother the phrase "Brevity is the sister of talent"Chekhov talked about drama. And really, here, as nowhere, it is important to keep the viewer's attention. And a long monologue makes it quite difficult. The great writer himself possessed this talent to the highest degree. He is not only a great playwright, but also a master of short stories. His works are capacious and accurate, despite their short duration. AP Chekhov became famous for his skill in the ages. Therefore, so many people, even those who are far from regular reading, know the phrase "Brevity is the sister of talent", who said it, and that it means the ability to express their thoughts clearly.

And it is not at all surprising that another brilliant playwright - William Shakespeare expressed this idea long before Chekhov, he called brevity the soul of the mind.

The relevance of the expression

Certainly, the conciseness of speech, the ability to clearlyto express the very essence of being extolled always. Legends tell us about the Spartans, who have been known in centuries for the ability to present their thoughts briefly, like no other. It is said that the father of Alexander the Great, Philip II, also a well-known conqueror, approached the walls of Sparta, and began to call on the defenders of the city to open the gates. His speech was full of the "if" union. He said that if the townspeople do not obey him, if he is forced to take the city by force, and if he pierces the passage to the troops with a ram, and so on ... He threatened, admiring himself. The Spartans gave him an answer, in which there was only one word "If."

Synonyms do not belong in this phrase

A.P. Chekhov could not fail to know this beautiful legend. Saying his famous phrase "Brevity - the sister of talent", the author had in mind just such, as in the Spartans, a brilliant ability to clearly and clearly express the very essence of the matter.

The very word "brevity" has a number of synonyms: "Laconism", "laconicity", "conciseness", "lapidary" and a few more, among which there is even "kuzot". The last word expresses, rather, a disregard for the manner of speaking briefly. The synonyms "conciseness" and "lapidary" approach most of all, but they can not be inserted into the studied phrase, because its beauty and accuracy are lost.