Quotes from thinkers, old and new, about how the humanities relate to our lives.
Freedom of thought in twelfth-century Paris
Freedom of thought in twelfth-century Paris: how Latin learning (and love) left us a legacy of creative inquiry A good man asked the doctors of [twelfth-century] Paris if it were better to learn what one [...]
The virtues (and folly) of science and scholarship
The virtues (and folly) of science and scholarship: learning merits its laurels, but to what ends, if life (and self-knowledge) is neglected? “Envy, curiosity, and a sense of the imperfection of our present state, incline us [...]
The problems a poet would solve
The problems a poet would solve. How does a poet respond to life's problems, in politics and otherwise? W.B. Yeats records one lyrical response to Thomas Mann. ‘In our time the destiny of man presents its [...]
An encounter with Renaissance art, and its consequences
An encounter with Renaissance art, and its consequence: Boris Pasternak reflects on culture and individual genius. The chief thing that everyone carries away from an encounter with Italian art is the sensation of the tangible [...]
Science, religion, and truth
Science, religion, and truth: Rabindranath Tagore speaking with Albert Einstein, Berlin 1930: Truth, which is one with the universal being, must be essentially human; otherwise, whatever we individuals realize as true, never can be called truth. [...]
A scientist reads the book of life, without annotations, but through imagery
A scientist reads the book of life, without annotations, but through imagery To read the book of life can be a great delight and an edifying experience; but only if one abstains from decorating [...]
Nature, time, and self-discovery
Nature, time, and self-discovery: a physicist speaks about the mysteries of our lives, hearkening to Lucretius: Nature is our home, and in nature we are at home. This strange, multicolored, and astonishing world that we explore [...]
Critical reason and the life of the unconscious
Critical reason and the life of the unconscious: at what expense to our lives do we refine our reason, especially when it comes to understanding crucial matters of life and death? A man should be [...]
Wise fools and foolish wits
Wise fools and foolish wits: what experience should teach us, if we would learn from it: "To learn that we have said or done a foolish thing, that is nothing: we must learn that we [...]
Judgments about the arts: mind what you put in!
Judgments about the arts: mind what you put in! Ben Jonson tells his audience how much they may assess what they see, depending on their means: It is further agreed that every person here have [...]