Quotes About Enlightenment

The real reason for a quest is always self-knowledge.

And yet … Ireland, a little island at the edge of Europe that has known neither Renaissance nor Enlightenment—in some ways, a Third World country with, as John Betjeman claimed, a Stone Age culture—had one moment of unblemished glory.

When I want a broad-minded opinion for general enlightenment, distinct from special advice, I never go to a man who deals in the subject professionally. So I like the parson's opinion on law, the lawyer's on doctoring, the doctor's on business, and my business-man's . . . on morals.

But I wish to be enlightened.' 'Let me caution you against it.' 'Is enlightenment on the subject, then, so terrible?' 'Yes, indeed.' She laughingly declared that nothing could have so piqued her curiosity as his statement.

The cruelty of fooled honesty is often great after enlightenment.

The only medicine for suffering, crime, and all the other woes of mankind, is wisdom.

The role of enlightened parents is too strengthen the weak.

He who receives an idea from me, receives instruction himself without lessening mine; as he who lights his taper at mine, receives light without darkening me.

Experience hath shewn, that even under the best forms, those entrusted with power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into tyranny; and it is believed that the most effectual means of preventing this would be, to illuminate, as far as practicable, the minds of the people at large...

Do not be too severe upon the errors of the people, but reclaim them by enlightening them.

Reason and free inquiry are the only effectual agents against error.

A nation which expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, expects that which never was and never will be.

No people who are ignorant can be truly free.

All eyes are opened, or opening, to the rights of man. The general spread of the light of science has already laid open to every view the palpable truth that the mass of mankind has not been born with saddles on their backs, nor a favored few booted and spurred, ready to ride them legitimately, by the grace of God. These are grounds of hope for others. For ourselves, let the annual return of this day forever refresh our recollection of these rights, and an undiminished devotion to them.

Freedom, the first-born of science.

I have given up newspapers in exchange for Tacitus and Thucydides, for Newton and Euclid; and I find myself much the happier.

The clause too, reprobating the enslaving the inhabitants of Africa, was struck out in complaisance to South Carolina and Georgia, who had never attempted to restrain the importation of slaves, and who on the contrary still wished to continue it. Our northern brethren also I believe felt a little tender under those censures; for tho' their people have very few slaves themselves yet they had been pretty considerable carriers of them to others.

It is safer to have a whole people respectably enlightened than a few in a high state of science and the many in ignorance.

I hope that you have nothing against malice, my good engineer. In my eyes it is the brightest sword that reason has against the powers of darkness and ugliness. Malice, sir, is the spirit of criticism, and criticism marks the origin of progress and enlightenment.

Malice, my dear sir, is the animating spirit of criticism; and criticism is the beginning of progress and enlightenment

The human race had come out of darkness, fear, and hate, but now it was moving forward and upward along a shining road toward a final state of understanding, inner illumination, goodness, and happiness—and technology was the most useful vehicle for traveling that road.

My great complaint is that it is my fate to spend my malice upon such insignificant objects. I hope, Engineer, you have nothing against malice? In my eyes, it is reason's keenest dart against the powers of darkness and ugliness. Malice, my dear sir, is the animating spirit of criticism; and criticism is the beginning of progress and enlightenment." And

Volgens mij is [sarcasme] het schitterendste wapen van de rede tegen de machten van de duisternis en de lelijkheid. Sarcasme, mijnheer, is de geest van de kritiek, en kritiek betekent de oorsprong van vooruitgang en verlichting.

La maldad, señor, es el espíritu de la crítica, y la crítica es el origen del progreso y la ilustración.