Less glory is more liberty. When the drum is silent, reason sometimes speaks.
Man's real genius and knowledge remains preserved in books
Interpretation
What this quote means
Books are the vessel of human knowledge and creativity.
The quote by Albert Pike emphasizes the idea that the true intellect and creativity of humanity are captured and preserved in written works. Books serve as a repository of ideas, history, and wisdom, ensuring that the achievements and thoughts of humanity can be shared across generations. They allow one to connect with the minds of others, past and present, enabling the transmission of knowledge that is essential for personal and societal growth.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech at a literacy event, one could say, 'As Albert Pike once said, 'Man's real genius and knowledge remains preserved in books.' This highlights the importance of reading.'
More from Albert Pike
All quotes βHe who endeavors to serve, to benefit, and improve the world, is like a swimmer, who struggles against a rapid current, in a river lashed into angry waves by the winds. Often they roar over his head, often they beat him back and baffle him. Most men yield to the stress of the current... Only here and there the stout, strong heart and vigorous arms struggle on toward ultimate success.
Let us drink together, fellows, as we did in days of yore. And still enjoy the golden hours that Fortune has in store; The absent friends remembered be, in all thatβs sung or said, And Love immortal consecrate the memory of the dead.
War is a series of catastrophes which result in victory.
Two forms of government are favorable to the prevalence of falsehood and deceit. Under a Despotism, men are false, treacherous, and deceitful through fear, like slaves dreading the lash. Under a Democracy they are so as a means of attaining popularity and office, and because of the greed for wealth.
What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal.
Similar quotes
Nothing is more common than for men to think that because they are familiar with words they understand the ideas they stand for.
Those who have no record of what their forebears have accomplished lose the inspiration which comes from the teaching of biography and history.
The whole art of teaching is only the art of awakening the natural curiosity of young minds for the purpose of satisfying it afterwards.
I want to promote the introduction of art history in primary schools and to convince the general public that, even in a period of economic crisis, arts funding is an absolute necessity at the federal, state, and local levels.
Wherever they went the Irish brought with them their books, many unseen in Europe for centuries and tied to their waists as signs of triumph, just as Irish heroes had once tied to their waists their enemies' heads. Where they went they brought their love of learning and their skills in bookmaking. In the bays and valleys of their exile, they reestablished literacy and breathed new life into the exhausted literary culture of Europe. And that is how the Irish saved civilization.
I always wanted to grow up in a house full of books, English books, and I wanted the sort of fireplaces that worked, overstuffed chairs, that whole kind of fantasy of a bookish New England life. So the library gave me that; for the hours that I was there, I was surrounded by that atmosphere that I craved in my life.