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The line of dialogue was written for Dick the Butcher, in ''Henry VI,'' Part II. Dick was a follower of the rebel, Jack Cade, who believed the best way to become powerful was to disrupt a society's law and order.
The passage has often been misinterpreted and misused over the years as a swipe at those in the law profession. However, Shakespeare (who in his own life was very litigious) intended the dialogue as a compliment to attorneys and judges who might be the only thing standing between justice and anarchy in a civilized society.
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