A dogmatic belief in objective value is necessary to the very idea of a rule which is not tyranny or an obedience which is not slavery.
C. S. LewisRead
The very lack of evidence is thus treated as evidence; the absence of smoke proves that the fire is very carefully hidden...A belief in invisible cats cannot be logically disproved although it does tell us a good deal about those who hold it.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The absence of evidence can often be misinterpreted as proof of something hidden, revealing more about people's beliefs than the subject itself.
C. S. Lewis highlights a tendency in human reasoning where the lack of proof is mistakenly regarded as proof of concealment. This illustrates how people's beliefs can cloud judgment, suggesting that irrational convictions often arise not from empirical evidence but from personal biases and interpretations of reality. The mention of 'invisible cats' serves as an analogy for unfounded beliefs that cannot be disproven, reflecting on the nature of human understanding and belief systems.
Themes
EvidenceBeliefReasoningBiasPhilosophy
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about conspiracy theories, one might say, 'As C. S. Lewis pointed out, the lack of evidence can sometimes be taken as proof of a hidden agenda.'
More from C. S. Lewis
All quotes →I enjoyed my breakfast this morning, and I think that was a good thing and do not think it was condemned by God. But I do not think myself a good man for enjoying it.
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Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither.
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Forgiving and being forgiven are two names for the same thing. The important thing is that a discord has been resolved.
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I pray because I can't help myself. I pray because I'm helpless. It doesn't change God - it changes me.
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The instrument through which you see God is your whole self. And if a man's self is not kept clean and bright, his glimpse of God will be blurred
C. S. LewisRead
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Those whose thinking is disciplined by science, like all others, need a basis for the good life, for aspiration, for courage to do great deeds. They need a faith to live by. The hope of the world lies in those who have such faith and who use the methods of science to make their visions become real. Such visions and hope and faith are not a part of science.
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Does such a thing as 'the fatal flaw,' that showy dark crack running down the middle of a life, exist outside literature? I used to think it didn't. Now I think it does. And I think that mine is this: a morbid longing for the picturesque at all costs.
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No one knows what cuases an outer landscape to become an inner one.
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Such a caring for death, an awakening that keeps vigil over death, a conscience that looks death in the face, is another name for freedom.
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