"Who breaks a butterfly upon a wheel?" is a quotation – sometimes misquoted with "on" in place of "upon" – from Alexander Pope's "Epistle to Dr Arbuthnot" of January 1735. The line is sometimes encountered and has become associated with more recent figures.
It can be taken as referring to putting massive effort into achieving something minor or unimportant, and alludes to "breaking on the wheel", a form of torture in which victims had their long bones broken by an iron bar while tied to a Catherine wheel.
Read more about Who Breaks A Butterfly Upon A Wheel?: Pope's Satire, Modern Use
Famous quotes containing the word breaks:
“You will learn one day, great king, that there are but three things that men respect: the lash that descends, the yoke that breaks and the sword that slays. By the power and terror of these you may conquer the earth.”
—Miles Malleson (1888–1969)