Stupidity, outrage, vanity, cruelty, iniquity, bad faith, falsehood - we fail to see the whole array when it is facing in the same direction as we.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes that our biases can blind us to the full scope of negative qualities that may be present when we align ourselves with harmful ideas.
Jean Rostand's quote highlights the dangers of confirmation bias and the tendency to overlook negative traits in our beliefs or those we agree with. When we are in favor of something, we often fail to see its flaws or the potential for harm it may cause. This quote serves as a reminder to remain critical and aware, even of our own prejudices and the way we align with certain ideas or groups.
In practice
This quote can be shared during discussions about political biases and the importance of critical thinking.
If a given scientist had not made a given discovery, someone else would have done so a little later. Johann Mendel dies unknown after having discovered the laws of heredity: thirty-five years later, three men rediscover them. But the book that is not written will never be written. The premature death of a great scientist delays humanity; that of a great writer deprives it.
Certain brief sentences are peerless in their ability to give one the feeling that nothing remains to be said.
My pessimism extends to the point of even suspecting the sincerity of other pessimists.
We spend our time envying people whom we wouldn't wish to be.
When a scientist is ahead of his times, it is often through misunderstanding of current, rather than intuition of future truth. In science there is never any error so gross that it won't one day, from some perspective, appear prophetic.
A few great minds are enough to endow humanity with monstrous power, but a few great hearts are not enough to make us worthy of using it.
Fresh from a costume fitting, where I had been posing in front of the mirror assuming what I thought was a strong position - arms folded, butch-looking...you know - I met with the woman in charge of Holloway police station. She gave me the most invaluable advice: never let them see you cry, and never cross your arms. When I asked why, she said 'because it is a defensive action and therefore weak.
You can serve or you can sing, and wreck your heart in prayer, working the world's hard work.
I want to think quietly, calmly, spaciously, never to be interrupted, never to have to rise from my chair, to slip easily from one thing to another, without any sense of hostility, or obstacle. I want to sink deeper and deeper, away from the surface, with its hard separate facts.
Engage people with what they expect; it is what they are able to discern and confirms their projections. It settles them into predictable patterns of response, occupying their minds while you wait for the extraordinary moment - that which they cannot anticipate.
Defer no time, delays have dangerous ends.
You are responsible for the energy that you create for yourself, and you're responsible for the energy that you bring to others.
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