Most people can swim a narrow river. Water is an alien…
““Most people can swim a narrow river. Water is an alien element, but with labor we can force ourselves through it. A good swimmer can cross a wide river, a lake, even the English Channel; no one, as far as we know, has ever swum the Atlantic Ocean, or is likely to do so. Even a champion swimmer, if he had business which required to spend alternate weeks in Paris and London, would not make the trip regularly by swimming the English Channel. Although we can force ourselves through water by skill and main strength, for all practical purposes our ability to traverse water is only as good as our ships or our airplanes. And so with the activities of our brains. Thinking is probably as foreign to human nature as is water; it is an unnatural element into which we throw ourselves with hesitation, and in which we flounder once we are there. We have learned, during the millenniums, to do rather well with thinking, but only if we buoy ourselves up with words. Some thinking of a simple sort we can do without words, but difficult and sustained thinking, presumably, is completely impossible without their aid, as traversing the Atlantic Ocean is presumably impossible without instruments or submarine transportation.””
About This Quote
This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.
Human cognition is like swimming; we rely on tools (words, concepts) to navigate complex ideas, otherwise we flounder.
In simple terms: We need language and symbols to think deeply.
Key Takeaway
Develop and use conceptual tools.
Themes
cognition
language
learning
metaphor
human limits
Mood
reflective
inquisitive
Type
philosophical
educational
When to use this quote
- education
- problem solving
- creative work
- philosophical inquiry
Key Concepts
symbolic thought
mental models
communication
Questions to Reflect On
- What tools enhance our thinking?
- How do we overcome cognitive barriers?
A Different Perspective
Our mental tools can be insufficient for novel challenges.