---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm not an academic philosopher, and…"
description: "\"I'm not an academic philosopher, and don't agree with the way the universities approach the subject. I'm a philosopher only in the very loose sense of ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef4/alain-de-botton-221_art_i-m-not-an-academic-philosopher-and-don_1912406.jpg"
---

#  I'm not an academic philosopher, and don't agree with the…

![“I'm not an academic philosopher, and don't agree with the way the universities approach the subject. I'm a philosopher only in the very loose sense of someone interested in wisdom and well-being attained through reason. But I'm as interested in psychoanalysis and art as I am in philosophy.” quote by Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef4/alain-de-botton-221_art_i-m-not-an-academic-philosopher-and-don_1912406.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef4/alain-de-botton-221_art_i-m-not-an-academic-philosopher-and-don_1912406.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef4/alain-de-botton-221_art_i-m-not-an-academic-philosopher-and-don_1912406.jpg)

> “I'm not an academic philosopher, and don't agree with the way the universities approach the subject. I'm a philosopher only in the very loose sense of someone interested in wisdom and well-being attained through reason. But I'm as interested in psychoanalysis and art as I am in philosophy.”

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The speaker distinguishes personal, practical philosophy from formal academic study, emphasizing wisdom, well‑being, and interdisciplinary curiosity.

**In simple terms:** Personal philosophy focuses on everyday wisdom, not academic rigor.

Key Takeaway

Seek practical wisdom across disciplines.

Themes

wisdom well‑being interdisciplinarity

Mood

thoughtful inquisitive

Type

reflective inspirational

When to use this quote

- personal growth
- mental health
- creative practice
- self‑reflection

Key Concepts

philosophy psychoanalysis art

Questions to Reflect On

- How can you apply philosophical ideas to improve daily well‑being?
- What value does interdisciplinary study bring to personal growth?

A Different Perspective

Academic philosophy may lack relevance to daily life.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Philosopher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosopher/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wisdom/)

## Related quotes

> [A rock or stone is not a subject that, of itself, may interest a philosopher to study; but, when he comes to see the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hutton/a-rock-or-stone-is-not-a-subject-that-of-itself-may-interest-a/)

[James Hutton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hutton/)

> [“What we encounter in works of art and philosophy are objective versions of our own pains and struggles, evoked and defined in sound, language…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/what-we-encounter-in-works-of-art-and-philosophy-are-objective/)

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

> [In their different ways, art and philosophy help us, in Schopenhauer's words, to turn pain into knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/in-their-different-ways-art-and-philosophy-help-us-in-schopenhauer-s/)

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

> [The bourgeois thinkers of the eighteenth century thus turned Aristotle's formula on its head: satisfactions which the Greek philosopher had identified with leisure were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/the-bourgeois-thinkers-of-the-eighteenth-century-thus-turned/)

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

> [I love to learn, and at some level, there's something to learn from my books. And I love art and philosophy, so there's something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-brown/i-love-to-learn-and-at-some-level-there-s-something-to-learn-from-my/)

[Dan Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-brown/)

> [“And trade is art, and art's philosophy, In Paris.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-barrett-browning/and-trade-is-art-and-art-s-philosophy-in-paris/)

[Elizabeth Barrett Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-barrett-browning/)

> [“Lyotard remarked that post-Modern artists often function as philosophers. They may deal with issues of metaphysics, epistemology, and ethics, as many influential critics today…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-mcevilley/lyotard-remarked-that-post-modern-artists-often-function-as/)

[Thomas McEvilley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mcevilley/)

> [Everything we do is art, philosophy, mysticism, cultural commentary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/genesis-p-orridge/everything-we-do-is-art-philosophy-mysticism-cultural-commentary/)

[Genesis P-Orridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/genesis-p-orridge/)

> [The greatest art is philosophy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kedar-joshi/the-greatest-art-is-philosophy/)

[Kedar Joshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kedar-joshi/)

> [It is a thoughtless and immodest presumption to learn anything about art from philosophy. Some do begin as if they hoped to learnsomething new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-wilhelm-friedrich-schlegel/it-is-a-thoughtless-and-immodest-presumption-to-learn-anything-about/)

[Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-wilhelm-friedrich-schlegel/)

> [One of two things is usually lacking in the so-called Philosophy of Art: either philosophy or art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-wilhelm-friedrich-schlegel/one-of-two-things-is-usually-lacking-in-the-so-called-philosophy-of/)

[Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-wilhelm-friedrich-schlegel/)

> [I made art a philosophy, and philosophy an art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/i-made-art-a-philosophy-and-philosophy-an-art/)

[Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/)

> [In mathematics and science we solve our problems as well as create them. But in art and philosophy things are not so simple.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/in-mathematics-and-science-we-solve-our-problems-as-well-as-create/)

[Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/)

> [I made art a philosophy, and philosophy an art: I altered the minds of men, and the colour of things: I awoke the imagination…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/i-made-art-a-philosophy-and-philosophy-an-art-i-altered-the-minds-of/)

[Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/)

> [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/)

[Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/)

## More by Alain de Botton

> [“To be mature is, we're told, to move beyond possessiveness. Jealousy is for babies. The mature person knows that no one owns anyone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/to-be-mature-is-we-re-told-to-move-beyond-possessiveness-jealousy-is/)

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

> [“He feared that by leaving her he would ruin her life - so he stayed, and did just that.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/he-feared-that-by-leaving-her-he-would-ruin-her-life-so-he-stayed-and/)

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

> [You have to be quite heavily invested in someone to do them the honour of telling them you're annoyed with them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/you-have-to-be-quite-heavily-invested-in-someone-to-do-them-the/)

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

> [“The Anxiety of Sunday afternoon: your unlived lives and infinite possibility pressing upon the constraints of reality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/the-anxiety-of-sunday-afternoon-your-unlived-lives-and-infinite/)

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

> [Those who divorce aren't necessarily the most unhappy, just those neatly able to believe their misery is caused by one other person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/those-who-divorce-aren-t-necessarily-the-most-unhappy-just-those/)

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

> [“We could not be fulfilled if we weren't inauthentic some of the time—inauthentic, that is, in relation to such things as our passing desires…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/we-could-not-be-fulfilled-if-we-weren-t-inauthentic-some-of-the-time/)

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

> [“Insofar as we appreciate order, it is when we perceive it as being accompanied by complexity, when we feel that a variety of elements…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/insofar-as-we-appreciate-order-it-is-when-we-perceive-it-as-being/)

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

> [I like the values associated with a medical family - common sense, being practical but also thoughtful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/i-like-the-values-associated-with-a-medical-family-common-sense-being/)

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

> [“Anyone who urgently needs us deserves, in the true book of love, to be our friend.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/anyone-who-urgently-needs-us-deserves-in-the-true-book-of-love-to-be/)

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

> [“We can then recognize that we invented religions to serve two central needs which continue to this day and which secular society has not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/we-can-then-recognize-that-we-invented-religions-to-serve-two-central/)

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

> [“Half the ingratitude and complacency in the world down to how slowly and imperceptibly most good and bad things unfold.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/half-the-ingratitude-and-complacency-in-the-world-down-to-how-slowly/)

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

> [It is perhaps when our lives are at their most problematic that we are likely to be most receptive to beautiful things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/it-is-perhaps-when-our-lives-are-at-their-most-problematic-that-we/)

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

> [“Does what is praised becomes better? Does an emerald become worse if it isn't praised? And what a gold, ivory, a flower or a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/does-what-is-praised-becomes-better-does-an-emerald-become-worse-if/)

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

> [The bourgeois thinkers of the eighteenth century thus turned Aristotle's formula on its head: satisfactions which the Greek philosopher had identified with leisure were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/the-bourgeois-thinkers-of-the-eighteenth-century-thus-turned/)

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

> [Reputation matters so much only because people so seldom think for themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/reputation-matters-so-much-only-because-people-so-seldom-think-for/)

[Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

[Explore all 850 Alain de Botton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/)

## More Art quotes

> [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/)

[Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/)

> [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/)

[Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/)

> [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/)

[Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/)

> [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/)

[Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/)

> [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/)

[Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/)

> [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/)

[Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/)

> [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/)

[Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/)

> [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/)

Taf Teh

> [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/)

[Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/)

> [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/)

[Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/)

> [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/)

[Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/)

> [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/)

[G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/)

> [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/)

[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/)

> [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/)

[Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/)

> [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/)

[Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/)

[Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I'm not an academic philosopher, and don't agree with the way the universities approach the subject. I'm a philosopher only in the very loose sense of someone interested in wisdom and well-being attained through reason. But I'm as interested in psychoanalysis and art as I am in philosophy.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Alain de Botton"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/i-m-not-an-academic-philosopher-and-don-t-agree-with-the-way-the/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Art"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/i-m-not-an-academic-philosopher-and-don-t-agree-with-the-way-the/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef4/alain-de-botton-221_art_i-m-not-an-academic-philosopher-and-don_1912406.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef4/alain-de-botton-221_art_i-m-not-an-academic-philosopher-and-don_1912406.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef4/alain-de-botton-221_art_i-m-not-an-academic-philosopher-and-don_1912406.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I'm not an academic philosopher, and don't agree with the way the universities approach the subject. I'm a…” — Alain de Botton",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Alain de Botton",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I'm not an academic philosopher, and...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/i-m-not-an-academic-philosopher-and-don-t-agree-with-the-way-the/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/i-m-not-an-academic-philosopher-and-don-t-agree-with-the-way-the/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```