The work an unknown good man has done is like a vein of water flowing hidden underground, secretly making the ground green.
Thomas CarlyleRead
A thinking man is the worst enemy the Prince of Darkness can have; every time such an one announces himself, I doubt not there runs a shudder through the nether empire; and new emissaries are trained with new tactics, to, if possible, entrap and hoodwink and handcuff him.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Critical thinking empowers individuals to resist manipulation and oppression.
In this quote, Thomas Carlyle emphasizes the power of critical thought and rationality as the ultimate weapon against darkness and deceit. The 'Prince of Darkness' symbolizes malevolence or ignorance, and the quote suggests that when people engage in thoughtful reflection, they become a threat to such forces, prompting them to devise new schemes to maintain control over the unsuspecting populace.
Themes
ThinkingDarknessCritical ThoughtEmpowermentManipulation
In practice
Example use cases
During a lecture on the importance of critical thinking in education.
More from Thomas Carlyle
All quotes →Thirty millions, mostly fools.
Thomas CarlyleRead
There is a great discovery still to be made in literature, that of paying literary men by the quantity they do not write.
Thomas CarlyleRead
For the superior morality, of which we hear so much, we too would desire to be thankful: at the same time, it were but blindness to deny that this superior morality is properly rather an inferior criminality, produced not by greater love of Virtue, but by greater perfection of Police; and of that far subtler and stronger Police, called Public Opinion.
Thomas CarlyleRead
Enjoying things which are pleasant; that is not the evil; it is the reducing of our moral self to slavery by them that is.
Thomas CarlyleRead
Clean undeniable right, clear undeniable might: either of these once ascertained puts an end to battle. All battle is a confused experiment to ascertain one and both of these.
Thomas CarlyleRead
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