Wit & Attitude Quote by Jerome Cady

The line lands like a warning shot aimed at the swaggering myth that bravery is always virtuous. Coming from a screenwriter, it reads less like a philosophical maxim and more like a piece of character triage: the moment a protagonist stops being admirable and starts being a liability. The “wise man” isn’t the fearless one; he’s the one with calibrated self-knowledge, the rare figure who can measure risk without confusing it for destiny.

What makes it work is the hinge word “where.” Courage and stupidity aren’t opposites here, they’re adjacent territories with a poorly marked border. That framing punctures a lot of cultural storytelling, especially the kind that treats reckless action as proof of authenticity. The quote implies that the same act can be heroic or idiotic depending on context: motive, stakes, competence, what’s being protected, who else gets hurt. It’s less about moral purity than about consequence.

Subtextually, it’s also a critique of performative masculinity: the social reward system that hands out applause for “boldness” while outsourcing the cleanup to everyone else. “Wise” becomes a stand-in for restraint, humility, and the willingness to admit you’re not the exception.

In screenplay terms, it’s the difference between a character taking a necessary leap and one taking a leap because the camera is on him. The quote’s intent is pragmatic, almost clinical: courage without judgment isn’t courage at all, it’s just motion.