Two painted wooden nesting dolls, one facing forward and one turned away, stand on burgundy velvet.

Original artwork, not a still

The Merchant of Venice · 1600

William Shakespeare

It is a wise father that knows his own child.

Behind the line

What it means

Our interpretation.

The line makes knowing one's own child a test of a father's wisdom. Read as a joke about recognition or certainty, it unsettles something that might seem obvious. Its brief, proverbial form leaves room for both family insight and a more mischievous doubt.

Context reviewed

Share this quote