--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The past is not something fixed and…" description: "\"“The past is not something fixed and unalterable. Its facts are re-discoverable by every succeeding generation, its values re-assessed, its meaning re-..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b96/aldous-huxley-97_evolution_the-past-is-not-something-fixed-and-unal_2983325.jpg" --- # The past is not something fixed and unalterable. Its facts… ![“The past is not something fixed and unalterable. Its facts are re-discoverable by every succeeding generation, its values re-assessed, its meaning re-defined in the context of present tastes and preoccupations. Out of the same documents and monuments and works of art, every epoch invents its own…” quote by Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b96/aldous-huxley-97_evolution_the-past-is-not-something-fixed-and-unal_2983325.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b96/aldous-huxley-97_evolution_the-past-is-not-something-fixed-and-unal_2983325.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b96/aldous-huxley-97_evolution_the-past-is-not-something-fixed-and-unal_2983325.jpg) > ““The past is not something fixed and unalterable. Its facts are re-discoverable by every succeeding generation, its values re-assessed, its meaning re-defined in the context of present tastes and preoccupations. Out of the same documents and monuments and works of art, every epoch invents its own Middle Ages, its private China, its patented and copyrighted Hellas.”” [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. History is fluid; each generation reinterprets past facts, values, and meanings to fit current perspectives. **In simple terms:** History is constantly re‑interpreted. Key Takeaway Question assumptions about the past. Themes history interpretation culture Mood critical thoughtful Type philosophical academic When to use this quote - education - media analysis - cultural studies Key Concepts historiography relativism Questions to Reflect On - How does your era reshape history? - What biases affect historical reinterpretation? A Different Perspective Past may be misrepresented. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Copyrighted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/copyrighted-943586/) [Copyrighted Hellas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/copyrighted-hellas-4650205/) [Evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Judgement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judgement/) [Middle ages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-ages/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Past Fixed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past-fixed-3061347/) [Patented Copyrighted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patented-copyrighted-4650206/) [Reinvention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reinvention/) [Society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/society/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“The past is something that can not be fixed, but sets an example to fix the present to better the future.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yang-aka-private83/the-past-is-something-that-can-not-be-fixed-but-sets-an-example-to/) [John Yang aka Private83](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yang-aka-private83/) > [The German philosopher Walter Benjamin had the curious notion that we could change the past. For most of us, the past is fixed while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-eagleton/the-german-philosopher-walter-benjamin-had-the-curious-notion-that-we/) [Terry Eagleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-eagleton/) > [“When I get it home and start to read it, the first thing I notice is that Warren has copyrighted the phrase “Purpose-driven.” It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-j-jacobs/when-i-get-it-home-and-start-to-read-it-the-first-thing-i-notice-is/) [A.J. Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-j-jacobs/) > [“This song is Copyrighted in U.S., under Seal of Copyright #154085, for a period of 28 years, and anybody caught singin’ it without our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cory-doctorow/this-song-is-copyrighted-in-u-s-under-seal-of-copyright-154085-for-a/) [Cory Doctorow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cory-doctorow/) > [Stolen's a strong word. It's copyrighted content that the owner wasn't paid for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/stolen-s-a-strong-word-it-s-copyrighted-content-that-the-owner-wasn-t/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [I've copyrighted 3,000 songs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dolly-parton/i-ve-copyrighted-3-000-songs/) [Dolly Parton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dolly-parton/) > [“Most people have embarrassing videos of themselves as children. Few have theirs copyrighted by Twentieth Century Fox.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mara-wilson/most-people-have-embarrassing-videos-of-themselves-as-children-few/) [Mara Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mara-wilson/) > [Facts, even false ones, cannot be copyrighted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/facts-even-false-ones-cannot-be-copyrighted/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Most copyrighted information is not freely available on the internet.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/most-copyrighted-information-is-not-freely-available-on-the-internet/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [The line of 'Make America great again,' the phrase, that was mine, I came up with it about a year ago, and I kept…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/the-line-of-make-america-great-again-the-phrase-that-was-mine-i-came/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [You know that in order to copyright material somebody has to write it down for you. Any piece of recorded material has to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-eno/you-know-that-in-order-to-copyright-material-somebody-has-to-write-it/) [Brian Eno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-eno/) > ['Jeffree Star Approved' is copyrighted in America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffree-star/jeffree-star-approved-is-copyrighted-in-america/) [Jeffree Star](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffree-star/) > [“Every word is Trademarked™, Restricted® or Copyrighted©. The companies and people who own these rights let people use them, but once you turn fifteen,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-scott-katsoulis/every-word-is-trademarked-restricted-or-copyrighted-the-companies-and/) [Gregory Scott Katsoulis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-scott-katsoulis/) > [Slamming the book shut produces a wind on the face, a weather that is copyrighted by the author, and this wind may not be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-marcus/slamming-the-book-shut-produces-a-wind-on-the-face-a-weather-that-is/) [Ben Marcus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-marcus/) > [If the men of the Middle Ages... lived in filth and discomfort, it was not for any lack of ability to change their mode…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/if-the-men-of-the-middle-ages-lived-in-filth-and-discomfort-it-was/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) ## More by Aldous Huxley > [“Unorthodoxy threatens more than the life of a mere individual; it strikes at Society itself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/unorthodoxy-threatens-more-than-the-life-of-a-mere-individual-it/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [Man has an almost infinite capacity for taking things and people for granted and thereby missing out on the pleasure of being grateful that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/man-has-an-almost-infinite-capacity-for-taking-things-and-people-for/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [My fate cannot be mastered; it can only be collaborated with and thereby, to some extent, directed. Nor am I the captain of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/my-fate-cannot-be-mastered-it-can-only-be-collaborated-with-and/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [Impulse arrested spills over, and the flood is feeling, the flood is passion, the flood is even madness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/impulse-arrested-spills-over-and-the-flood-is-feeling-the-flood-is/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [Of course the Dharma-body of the Buddha was the hedge at the bottom of the garden. At the same time, and no less obviously,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/of-course-the-dharma-body-of-the-buddha-was-the-hedge-at-the-bottom/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [“The question for the man of sense is: Do we or do we not want to go to hell? And his answer is: No,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/the-question-for-the-man-of-sense-is-do-we-or-do-we-not-want-to-go-to/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [“I’ll MAKE you be free whether you want to or not.’ -The Savage”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/i-ll-make-you-be-free-whether-you-want-to-or-not-the-savage/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [Thought of the incomprehensible sequence of changes and chances that make up a life, all the beauties and horrors and absurdities whose conjunctions create…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/thought-of-the-incomprehensible-sequence-of-changes-and-chances-that/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [The third petition of the Lord's Prayer is repeated daily by millions who have not the slightest intention of letting anyone's will be done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/the-third-petition-of-the-lord-s-prayer-is-repeated-daily-by-millions/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [“Then what’s time for?” asked Lenina in some astonishment. Apparently, for going on walks in the Lake District; for that was what he now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/then-what-s-time-for-asked-lenina-in-some-astonishment-apparently-for/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [All right then," said the Savage defiantly, "I'm claiming the right to be unhappy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/all-right-then-said-the-savage-defiantly-i-m-claiming-the-right-to-be/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [Speed, it seems to me, provides the one genuinely modern pleasure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/speed-it-seems-to-me-provides-the-one-genuinely-modern-pleasure/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [“What you need is a gramme of soma.” “All the advantages of Christianity and alcohol; none of their defects.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/what-you-need-is-a-gramme-of-soma-all-the-advantages-of-christianity/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [To be enlightened is to be aware, always, of total reality in its immanent otherness - to be aware of it and yet remain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/to-be-enlightened-is-to-be-aware-always-of-total-reality-in-its/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [“Quote of the day:Quote of the day: A democracy which makes or even effectively prepares for modern, scientific war must necessarily cease to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/quote-of-the-day-quote-of-the-day-a-democracy-which-makes-or-even/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) [Explore all 1,291 Aldous Huxley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) ## More Evolution quotes > [I rap when I'm rich. I rap when I'm broke. I rap when I'm bullshit in the street. I rap about only having one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/killer-mike/i-rap-when-i-m-rich-i-rap-when-i-m-broke-i-rap-when-i-m-bullshit-in/) [Killer Mike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/killer-mike/) > [At the deepest level, all living things that have ever been looked at have the same DNA code. And many of the same genes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/at-the-deepest-level-all-living-things-that-have-ever-been-looked-at/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“A question for Christians who accept evolution: When did we gain a "soul"? Did Homo habilis have a soul? Homo ergaster? Did God only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-g-mcafee/a-question-for-christians-who-accept-evolution-when-did-we-gain-a/) [David G. McAfee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-g-mcafee/) > [If the polymer chain assumes a helicoidal conformation in the crystalline state, and if it does not contain asymmetric carbon atoms, it can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giulio-natta/if-the-polymer-chain-assumes-a-helicoidal-conformation-in-the/) [Giulio Natta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giulio-natta/) > [“Genetics is a science full of gods, Mr. Sanchez.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valeria-luiselli/genetics-is-a-science-full-of-gods-mr-sanchez/) [Valeria Luiselli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valeria-luiselli/) > [We became Homo sapiens not that long ago, from the scientific perspective, and we've retained a lot of our beast nature. We've done all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangechi-mutu/we-became-homo-sapiens-not-that-long-ago-from-the-scientific/) [Wangechi Mutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangechi-mutu/) > [Guns have little or nothing to do with juvenile violence. The causes of youth violence are working parents who put their kids into daycare,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-delay/guns-have-little-or-nothing-to-do-with-juvenile-violence-the-causes/) [Tom DeLay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-delay/) > [The fact -- not theory -- that evolution has occurred and the Darwinian theory as to how it occurred have become so confused in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gaylord-simpson/the-fact-not-theory-that-evolution-has-occurred-and-the-darwinian/) [George Gaylord Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gaylord-simpson/) > [Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this \[step by step, from humans to apes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us-with-so-extraordinary-a/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [Evolution happens in jumps, very rapidly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/evolution-happens-in-jumps-very-rapidly/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [The true nature of soul is right knowledge, right faith and right conduct. The soul, so long as it is subject to transmigration, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virchand-gandhi/the-true-nature-of-soul-is-right-knowledge-right-faith-and-right/) [Virchand Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virchand-gandhi/) > [“Toshiaki learned that all living organisms were governed by their DNA. He was impressed by perfection of this system.Why did existence have the ability…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hideaki-sena/toshiaki-learned-that-all-living-organisms-were-governed-by-their-dna/) [Hideaki Sena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hideaki-sena/) > [The shelves of many evangelicals are full of books that point out the flaws in evolution, discuss it only as a theory, and almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-collins/the-shelves-of-many-evangelicals-are-full-of-books-that-point-out-the/) [Francis Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-collins/) > [I'm all about evolution. I'm the first person to judge myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-weeknd/i-m-all-about-evolution-i-m-the-first-person-to-judge-myself/) [The Weeknd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-weeknd/) > [The next evolution of content marketing is not more content; it's better distribution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-penn/the-next-evolution-of-content-marketing-is-not-more-content-it-s/) [Chris Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-penn/) [Browse all 6,185 Evolution quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The past is not something fixed and unalterable. Its facts are re-discoverable by every succeeding generation, its values re-assessed, its meaning re-defined in the context of present tastes and preoccupations. 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