--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I always thought that in modern history…" description: "\"I always thought that in modern history Chinese people are like a dish of sand, never really close together. But I think a dish of sand is a good metap..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac3/ai-weiwei-824_certain_i-always-thought-that-in-modern-history_1480303.jpg" --- # I always thought that in modern history Chinese people are… ![“I always thought that in modern history Chinese people are like a dish of sand, never really close together. But I think a dish of sand is a good metaphor because we have the Internet. We don't have to be physically united. You can be an individual and have your own set of values but join others…” quote by Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac3/ai-weiwei-824_certain_i-always-thought-that-in-modern-history_1480303.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac3/ai-weiwei-824_certain_i-always-thought-that-in-modern-history_1480303.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac3/ai-weiwei-824_certain_i-always-thought-that-in-modern-history_1480303.jpg) > “I always thought that in modern history Chinese people are like a dish of sand, never really close together. But I think a dish of sand is a good metaphor because we have the Internet. We don't have to be physically united. You can be an individual and have your own set of values but join others in certain struggles. There is nothing more powerful than that.” [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Digital connectivity lets individuals unite without physical proximity, forming collective strength despite cultural dispersion. **In simple terms:** Internet enables shared values and joint action across distances. Key Takeaway Leverage online platforms for collaborative causes. Themes community technology identity solidarity Mood optimistic reflective Type inspirational philosophical When to use this quote - social movements - cultural exchange - political organizing - online education Key Concepts network theory digital activism Questions to Reflect On - How can online communities foster real-world impact? - What challenges arise when identity is fragmented? A Different Perspective Digital divides can limit participation; virtual bonds may lack depth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [China](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/china/) [Chinese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chinese/) [Chinese people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chinese-people/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Internet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/internet/) [Metaphor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/metaphor/) [Modern history](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modern-history/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Struggle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/struggle/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Values](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/values/) ## Related quotes > [For many years, when people described how the Internet worked - whether they were talking about shopping, communicating, or starting a business there -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-levy/for-many-years-when-people-described-how-the-internet-worked-whether/) [Steven Levy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-levy/) > [We must wait for the official history of the Chinese Revolution to record in greater detail the invaluable work of our Japanese friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-yat-sen/we-must-wait-for-the-official-history-of-the-chinese-revolution-to/) [Sun Yat-sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-yat-sen/) > [In the century-long history of Chinese science fiction, apocalyptic themes were mostly absent. 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Lichtenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-c-lichtenberg/) ## More by Ai Weiwei > [I'm totally independent. I don't bear any responsibility to any system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/i-m-totally-independent-i-don-t-bear-any-responsibility-to-any-system/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) > [If my art has nothing to do with people's pain and sorrow, what is 'art' for?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/if-my-art-has-nothing-to-do-with-people-s-pain-and-sorrow-what-is-art/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) > [Police in China can do whatever they want; after 81 days in arbitrary detention you clearly realise that they don't have to obey their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/police-in-china-can-do-whatever-they-want-after-81-days-in-arbitrary/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) > [China has a rich history that has spanned millennia. It consists of the histories of many nations and regions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/china-has-a-rich-history-that-has-spanned-millennia-it-consists-of/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) > [This world should be much more open and should be much more free, so the young people would have the chance to exercise the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/this-world-should-be-much-more-open-and-should-be-much-more-free-so/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) > [By participating in the society we live in, we understand our conditions and the way we relate to the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/by-participating-in-the-society-we-live-in-we-understand-our/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) > [I see the Beijing National Stadium as an architectural project. I accepted Herzog and De Meuron's invitation to collaborate on the design, and our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/i-see-the-beijing-national-stadium-as-an-architectural-project-i/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) > [ I curated this show \[Shanghai Biennale \], I was by no means trying to shock people or be controversial. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/i-curated-this-show-shanghai-biennale-i-was-by-no-means-trying-to/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) > [I think we cannot have a double standard. We cannot see our art as different from the reality. We cannot use two different sets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/i-think-we-cannot-have-a-double-standard-we-cannot-see-our-art-as/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) > [It doesn't matter where I am - China will stay in me. I don't know how far I can still walk on this road…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/it-doesn-t-matter-where-i-am-china-will-stay-in-me-i-don-t-know-how/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) > [Chinese citizens have never had the right to really express their opinions; in the constitution it says you can, but in the real world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/chinese-citizens-have-never-had-the-right-to-really-express-their/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) > [Your own acts tell the world who you are and what kind of society you think it should be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/your-own-acts-tell-the-world-who-you-are-and-what-kind-of-society-you/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) > [Our lives are bound by physical limits, familial ties, political conditions, and geographical restrictions. Individual freedom takes us beyond them all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/our-lives-are-bound-by-physical-limits-familial-ties-political/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) > [Now I've come to such a mixed culture: America, Europe, South America, Africa. And the politics are changing everywhere all the time and becoming…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/now-i-ve-come-to-such-a-mixed-culture-america-europe-south-america/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) > [I don't think it's worth discussing new directions in the context of Chinese art - there were no old directions, either. Chinese art has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/i-don-t-think-it-s-worth-discussing-new-directions-in-the-context-of/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) [Explore all 359 Ai Weiwei quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) ## More Certain quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [One can put some trust in the gratitude of a sovereign, and also in that of his family; under certain conditions, one can even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-von-bismarck/one-can-put-some-trust-in-the-gratitude-of-a-sovereign-and-also-in/) [Otto von Bismarck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-von-bismarck/) > [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. 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I transitioned into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-hough/i-started-out-dancing-on-a-reality-tv-show-but-always-with-the/) [Julianne Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-hough/) > [One of the deepest and strangest of all human moods is the mood which will suddenly strike us perhaps in a garden at night,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-of-the-deepest-and-strangest-of-all-human-moods-is-the-mood-which/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A dialogue is very important. 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