For a Fool
On earth the wise man makes the rules, And is the fool’s adviser, But here the wise are as the fools, (And no man is the wiser).
Countee Cullen
On earth the wise man makes the rules, And is the fool’s adviser, But here the wise are as the fools, (And no man is the wiser).
Countee Cullen’s four-line epigram sets up a quiet punchline about death. On earth, the wise man makes the rules and the fool needs guidance. But “here”—meaning the grave or the afterlife—that distinction disappears. The wise are no better off than fools, and nobody has any advantage.
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