To his dog, every man is Napoleon; hence the constant popularity of dogs.
Aldous HuxleyRead
Every individual is at once the beneficiary and the victim of the linguistic tradition into which he has been born - the beneficiary inasmuch as language gives access to the accumulated records of other people's experience, the victim in so far as it confirms him in the belief that reduced awareness is the only awareness and as it bedevils his sense of reality, so that he is all too apt to take his concepts for data, his words for actual things.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Language shapes our understanding and perception of the world, making us both enriched and constrained by it.
This quote by Aldous Huxley suggests that while language allows individuals to connect with the experiences and knowledge of others, it simultaneously limits their awareness and understanding of reality. As people rely on words and concepts, they may mistakenly believe that these constructs fully capture the essence of their experiences, leading to a diminished perception of what is possible beyond linguistic boundaries.
Themes
LanguagePerceptionRealityAwarenessExperience
In practice
Example use cases
In a lecture about the influence of language on thought, I might use this quote to illustrate the power and limitations of linguistic frameworks.
More from Aldous Huxley
All quotes →Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored.
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In the course of history many more people have died for their drink and their dope than have died for their religion or their country.
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On no account brood over your wrongdoing. Rolling in the muck is not the best way of getting clean.
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No man ever dared to manifest his boredom so insolently as does a Siamese tomcat when he yawns in the face of his amorously importunate wife.
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The leech's kiss, the squid's embrace, The prurient ape's defiling touch: And do you like the human race? No, not much.
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