It is very unhappy, but too late to be helped, the…
““It is very unhappy, but too late to be helped, the discovery we have made, that we exist. That discovery is called the Fall of Man. Ever afterwards, we suspect our instruments. We have learned that we do not see directly, but mediately, and that we have no means of correcting these colored and distorting lenses which we are, or of computing the amount of their errors. Perhaps these subject-lenses have a creative power; perhaps there are no objects. Once we lived in what we saw; now, the rapaciousness of this new power, which threatens to absorb all things, engages us. Nature, art, persons, letters, religions—objects, successively tumble in, and God is but one of its ideas.””
About This Quote
This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.
Human perception is flawed; we cannot trust our senses or instruments, and our understanding is colored by bias.
In simple terms: Our senses are unreliable.
Key Takeaway
Question assumptions.
Themes
perception
knowledge
epistemology
Mood
reflective
inquisitive
Type
philosophical
inspirational
When to use this quote
- science
- art criticism
- personal growth
- spiritual practice
Key Concepts
philosophy
psychology
cognitive bias
Questions to Reflect On
- What biases shape your view?
- Can we ever see truth?
A Different Perspective
Our lenses may also enable creativity, not just distortion.