"I am like God and God like me. I am as large as God, he is as small as I. He cannot be above me, nor I beneath him be."

In Cape Fear, Robert De Niro's bombastic exclamation is often thought to be a biblical quote. Why? First, it just sounds biblical, and the way that he says it certainly doesn't hurt. But, also, he follows it up with a name and a number — after the above quote, he says, "Silesius, 17th century." He's really referring to a quote from a poet, but the confusion is understandable, especially for those not well-acclimated to the Bible.

De Niro's Cape Fear character, Max Cady, is the antagonist of the 1991 remake, hell-bent on revenge after he suspects that his public defender did not render him the most accurate defense. The Silesius quote is perfect for the character: a psychopath who prides himself on being well-read and well-learned. Thus, the relative obscurity of the quote is part of the point.

And the quote itself is quite interesting — in it, the poet Silesius is reflecting upon the relationship between man and God and perhaps intimating that God and man are truly one entity. Solipsistic, the poet asks us to consider that if we ourselves can fathom God, then we also contain God, not far off from a message the Bible might portray.

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