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To swallow and follow, whether old doctrine or new propaganda, is a weakness still dominating the human mind.
Charlotte Perkins Gilman
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Blindly accepting ideas without questioning them reflects a weakness in human thought.

In this quote, Charlotte Perkins Gilman critiques the tendency of humans to accept and conform to beliefs, whether they stem from established traditions or contemporary narratives, without critical examination. This behavior indicates a lack of intellectual independence and understanding, suggesting that the human mind often succumbs to societal pressures and ideologies without considering their validity or relevance.

Themes

WeaknessBeliefIndoctrinationCritical ThinkingDoctrine

In practice

Example use cases

In a discussion about social media influence, one could use this quote to highlight the dangers of uncritical acceptance of information.

More from Charlotte Perkins Gilman

The home is the centre and circumference, the start and the finish, of most of our lives.
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Woman" in the abstract is young, and, we assume, charming. As they get older they pass off the stage, somehow, into private ownership mostly, or out of it altogether.
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We all need one another; much and often. Just as every human creature needs a place to be alone in, a sacred, private "home" of his own, so all human creatures need a place to be together in, from the two who can show each other their souls uninterruptedly, to the largest throng that can throb and stir in unison.
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Death is the essential condition of life, not an evil.
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When the mother of the race is free, we shall have a better world, by the easy right of birth and by the calm, slow, friendly forces of evolution.
Charlotte Perkins GilmanRead
The children in this country are the one center and focus of all our thoughts. Every step of our advance is always considered in its effect on them-on the race. You see, we are MOTHERS, she repeated, as if in that she had said it all.
Charlotte Perkins GilmanRead

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