---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: One might almost reckon mathematically…"
description: "\"One might almost reckon mathematically that, having undergone the double composition of public opinion and of the author, their history reaches us at t..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a1/alfred-de-vigny-12602_books_one-might-almost-reckon-mathematically-t_1153026.jpg"
---

#  One might almost reckon mathematically that, having…

![“One might almost reckon mathematically that, having undergone the double composition of public opinion and of the author, their history reaches us at third hand and is thus separated by two stages from the original fact.” quote by Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a1/alfred-de-vigny-12602_books_one-might-almost-reckon-mathematically-t_1153026.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a1/alfred-de-vigny-12602_books_one-might-almost-reckon-mathematically-t_1153026.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a1/alfred-de-vigny-12602_books_one-might-almost-reckon-mathematically-t_1153026.jpg)

> “One might almost reckon mathematically that, having undergone the double composition of public opinion and of the author, their history reaches us at third hand and is thus separated by two stages from the original fact.”

[Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/)

## 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 filtered through multiple layers, distancing us from original facts.

**In simple terms:** History becomes distorted through repeated retellings.

Key Takeaway

Seek primary sources.

Themes

history interpretation truth knowledge

Mood

analytical skeptical

Type

academic critical

When to use this quote

- research
- education
- journalism
- archival work
- critical analysis

Key Concepts

philosophy epistemology literature

Questions to Reflect On

- How can we verify original events?
- What is the value of secondary accounts?

A Different Perspective

Each layer adds bias.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Opinion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opinion/) [Public opinion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/public-opinion/)

## Related quotes

> [As a historian, I have learned that, in fact, not everyone who reaches back into history can survive it. And it is not only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kostova/as-a-historian-i-have-learned-that-in-fact-not-everyone-who-reaches/)

[Elizabeth Kostova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kostova/)

> [Oil companies are radical because they're willing to alter the chemical composition of the atmosphere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/oil-companies-are-radical-because-they-re-willing-to-alter-the/)

[Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/)

> [If you really want to be a good archaeologist, you have to understand ancient DNA; you have to understand chemical analysis to figure out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-parcak/if-you-really-want-to-be-a-good-archaeologist-you-have-to-understand/)

[Sarah Parcak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-parcak/)

> [If measure and symmetry are absent from any composition in any degree, ruin awaits both the ingredients and the composition... Measure and symmetry are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/if-measure-and-symmetry-are-absent-from-any-composition-in-any-degree/)

[Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/)

> [Science does not enter a chaotic society to put order into it anymore, to simplify its composition, and to put an end to controversies.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-latour/science-does-not-enter-a-chaotic-society-to-put-order-into-it-anymore/)

[Bruno Latour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-latour/)

> [Musical compositions, it should be remembered, do not inhabit certain countries, certain museums, like paintings and statues. The Mozart Quintet is not shut up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-rabaud/musical-compositions-it-should-be-remembered-do-not-inhabit-certain/)

Henri Rabaud

> [The unary Photograph has every reason to be banal, 'unity' of composition being the first rule of vulgar (and notably, of academic) rhetoric: 'The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/the-unary-photograph-has-every-reason-to-be-banal-unity-of/)

[Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/)

> [I always look at money not as a motivating factor but as an element in the composition. You can't ignore it, but you've got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damien-hirst/i-always-look-at-money-not-as-a-motivating-factor-but-as-an-element/)

[Damien Hirst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damien-hirst/)

> [Though I cannot claim to be a Christian in the sectarian sense, the example of Jesus suffering is a factor in the composition of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/though-i-cannot-claim-to-be-a-christian-in-the-sectarian-sense-the/)

[Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/)

> [When I start writing a new imaginary future, I have no idea what it is. The characters arrive first. They help me figure out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/when-i-start-writing-a-new-imaginary-future-i-have-no-idea-what-it-is/)

[William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

> [A composition is always more than the sum of its parts. In other words, a really good piece of music is more than itself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yo-yo-ma/a-composition-is-always-more-than-the-sum-of-its-parts-in-other-words/)

[Yo-Yo Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yo-yo-ma/)

> [Writers and musicians know well the importance of extensive reading for successful writing or extensive listening for musical composition. Likewise, visual artists... understand that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-laseau/writers-and-musicians-know-well-the-importance-of-extensive-reading/)

[Paul Laseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-laseau/)

> [At the risk of some oversimplification, if the skill composition of our work force meshed fully with the needs of our increasingly complex capital-stock,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-greenspan/at-the-risk-of-some-oversimplification-if-the-skill-composition-of/)

[Alan Greenspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-greenspan/)

> [“The composition of Shakespeare is a forest, in which oaks extend in the air, interspersed sometimes with weeds and brambles, and sometimes giving shelting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-composition-of-shakespeare-is-a-forest-in-which-oaks-extend-in/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/)

Ted Martinez

## More by Alfred de Vigny

> [I have a private theory, Sir, that there are no heroes and no monsters in this world. Only children should be allowed to use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/i-have-a-private-theory-sir-that-there-are-no-heroes-and-no-monsters/)

[Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/)

> [A calm despair, without angry convulsions or reproaches directed at heaven, is the essence of wisdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/a-calm-despair-without-angry-convulsions-or-reproaches-directed-at/)

[Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/)

> [The study of social progress is to-day not less needed in literature than is the analysis of the human heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/the-study-of-social-progress-is-to-day-not-less-needed-in-literature/)

[Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/)

> [From this, without doubt, sprang the fable. Man created it thus, because it was not given him to see more than himself and nature,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/from-this-without-doubt-sprang-the-fable-man-created-it-thus-because/)

[Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/)

> [The existence of the soldier, next to capital punishment, is the most grievous vestige of barbarism which survives among men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/the-existence-of-the-soldier-next-to-capital-punishment-is-the-most/)

[Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/)

> [I think, then, that man, after having satisfied his first longing for facts, wanted something fuller - some grouping, some adaptation to his capacity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/i-think-then-that-man-after-having-satisfied-his-first-longing-for/)

[Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/)

> [What it values most of all is the sum total of events and the advance of civilization, which carries individuals along with it; but,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/what-it-values-most-of-all-is-the-sum-total-of-events-and-the-advance/)

[Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/)

> [“We have also set up for them an edifying project for a continuous mitigation of their own tyranny, ascribing to them an unshakeable faith…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/we-have-also-set-up-for-them-an-edifying-project-for-a-continuous/)

[Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/)

> [On the day when man told the story of his life to man, history was born.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/on-the-day-when-man-told-the-story-of-his-life-to-man-history-was-born/)

[Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/)

> [“One is always a good master when one isn’t the master”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/one-is-always-a-good-master-when-one-isn-t-the-master/)

[Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/)

> [Doubt is the freedom of thought. Any claim to truth can be doubted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/doubt-is-the-freedom-of-thought-any-claim-to-truth-can-be-doubted/)

[Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/)

> [History is a novel for which the people is the author.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/history-is-a-novel-for-which-the-people-is-the-author/)

[Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/)

> [France, for example, loves at the same time history and the drama, because the one explores the vast destinies of humanity, and the other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/france-for-example-loves-at-the-same-time-history-and-the-drama/)

[Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/)

> [Art ought never to be considered except in its relations with its ideal beauty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/art-ought-never-to-be-considered-except-in-its-relations-with-its/)

[Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/)

> [Hope is the greatest madness. What can we expect of a world that we enter with the assurance of seeing our fathers and mothers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/hope-is-the-greatest-madness-what-can-we-expect-of-a-world-that-we/)

[Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/)

[Explore all 54 Alfred de Vigny quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/)

## More Books quotes

> [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/)

[Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/)

> [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/)

[Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/)

> [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/)

[Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/)

> [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/)

[Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/)

> [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/)

[Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/)

> [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/)

[Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/)

> [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/)

[Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/)

> [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/)

Christopher K. Krebs

> [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/)

[Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/)

> [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/)

[Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/)

> [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/)

[Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/)

> [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/)

[Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/)

> [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/)

Markus Herz

> [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/)

[Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/)

[Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "One might almost reckon mathematically that, having undergone the double composition of public opinion and of the author, their history reaches us at third hand and is thus separated by two stages from the original fact.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Alfred de Vigny"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/one-might-almost-reckon-mathematically-that-having-undergone-the/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Books"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/one-might-almost-reckon-mathematically-that-having-undergone-the/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a1/alfred-de-vigny-12602_books_one-might-almost-reckon-mathematically-t_1153026.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a1/alfred-de-vigny-12602_books_one-might-almost-reckon-mathematically-t_1153026.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a1/alfred-de-vigny-12602_books_one-might-almost-reckon-mathematically-t_1153026.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“One might almost reckon mathematically that, having undergone the double composition of public opinion and…” — Alfred de Vigny",
                "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": "Alfred de Vigny",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "One might almost reckon mathematically that,...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/one-might-almost-reckon-mathematically-that-having-undergone-the/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/one-might-almost-reckon-mathematically-that-having-undergone-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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```