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...when dogma enters the brain, all intellectual activity ceases.
Robert Anton Wilson
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Interpretation

What this quote means

The quote warns against the dangers of rigid beliefs that stifle critical thinking.

Robert Anton Wilson's quote emphasizes that when one becomes entrenched in dogmatic beliefs, the ability to think critically or engage in intellectual discourse is severely diminished. It serves as a cautionary reminder to be open-minded and critical of one’s beliefs, as dogma can inhibit exploration and understanding, leading to stagnation in thought and intellectual growth.

Themes

DogmaIntellectualityCritical ThinkingBeliefsOpen-Mindedness

In practice

Example use cases

This quote can be used during a debate to highlight the importance of questioning beliefs.

More from Robert Anton Wilson

My goal is to try to get people into a state of generalized agnosticism, not agnosticism about God alone, but agnosticism about everything.
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There is no governor anywhere. You are all absolutely free. There is no restraint that cannot be escaped. If anybody could go into dhyana at will, nobody could be controlled - by fear of prison, by fear of whips or electroshock, by fear of death, even. All existing society is based on keeping those fears alive, to control the masses. Ten people who know would be more dangerous than a million armed anarchists.
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I see anarchism as the theoretical ideal to which we are all gradually evolving to a point where everybody can tell the truth to everybody else and nobody can get punished for it. That can only happen without hierarchy and without people having the authority to punish other people.
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To work for libertarianism - to oppose the growth of government and aid the liberation of the individual - used to be an idealistic choice taken for purely idealistic reasons. Now it is an act of intelligent and almost desperate self-defense.
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The abandoned infant's cry is rage, not fear.
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The only way to stave off boredom, in a complex domesticated primate like humankind, is to increase one's intelligence. This is not appealing to the average primate, who instead invents emotional games (soap opera and grand opera dramatics).
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