--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Familiar things happen, and mankind does…" description: "\"Familiar things happen, and mankind does not bother about them. It requires a very unusual mind to undertake the analysis of the obvious.\" — Alfred Nor..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d46/alfred-north-whitehead-836_familiar-things_familiar-things-happen-and-mankind-does_2441137.png" --- # Familiar things happen, and mankind does not bother about… ![“Familiar things happen, and mankind does not bother about them. It requires a very unusual mind to undertake the analysis of the obvious.” quote by Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d46/alfred-north-whitehead-836_familiar-things_familiar-things-happen-and-mankind-does_2441137.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d46/alfred-north-whitehead-836_familiar-things_familiar-things-happen-and-mankind-does_2441137.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d46/alfred-north-whitehead-836_familiar-things_familiar-things-happen-and-mankind-does_2441137.png) > “Familiar things happen, and mankind does not bother about them. It requires a very unusual mind to undertake the analysis of the obvious.” [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Seeing the obvious requires a rare, analytical mind that questions what is taken for granted. **In simple terms:** Analyzing the obvious needs an unusual mind. Key Takeaway Cultivate curiosity about everyday assumptions. Themes critical thinking philosophy perception Mood reflective inquisitive Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - education - research - innovation - problem solving - policy making Key Concepts epistemology ordinary vs extraordinary Questions to Reflect On - What everyday assumption have you never questioned? - How can you train yourself to see the obvious differently? A Different Perspective Over‑analysis can lead to paralysis by analysis. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Analysis Obvious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/analysis-obvious-489034/) [Familiar things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/familiar-things/) [Mankind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mankind/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Nature of man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-man/) [Obvious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obvious/) [Requires Unusual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/requires-unusual-489035/) [Things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things/) [Things happen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-happen/) [Unusual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unusual/) [Unusual Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unusual-mind-489033/) ## Related quotes > [It requires a very unusual mind to undertake the analysis of the obvious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/it-requires-a-very-unusual-mind-to-undertake-the-analysis-of-the/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Simple solutions seldom are. It takes a very unusual mind to undertake analysis of the obvious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/simple-solutions-seldom-are-it-takes-a-very-unusual-mind-to-undertake/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [There’s beauty all around our paths, If but our watchful eyes Can trace it ’midst familiar things, And through their lowly guise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felicia-hemans/there-s-beauty-all-around-our-paths-if-but-our-watchful-eyes-can/) [Felicia Hemans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felicia-hemans/) > [I'm very into familiar things, popular things. I'm into things that no one seems to know about or be into. I'm trying to draw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelela/i-m-very-into-familiar-things-popular-things-i-m-into-things-that-no/) [Kelela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelela/) > [There's something I have about being Canadian - there's a distance it gives you when you live in the States and operate in American…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-fox/there-s-something-i-have-about-being-canadian-there-s-a-distance-it/) [Michael J. Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-fox/) > [“All the familiar things were getting different meanings.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/all-the-familiar-things-were-getting-different-meanings/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [I don't think a novel's main donation, main gift, is the document. The document is there, but a novel goes beyond documentation. It goes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amos-oz/i-don-t-think-a-novel-s-main-donation-main-gift-is-the-document-the/) [Amos Oz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amos-oz/) > [With a little persuasion, any familiar thing can turn abnormal in the mind. Here's a thought experiment. Consider this brutal bit of magic. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/with-a-little-persuasion-any-familiar-thing-can-turn-abnormal-in-the/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [“It is the first changes among familiar things that make such a mystery of time to the young, afterwards we lose the sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/it-is-the-first-changes-among-familiar-things-that-make-such-a/) [Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/) > [Most of us lead far more meaningful lives than we know. Often finding meaning is not about doing things differently; it is about seeing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-naomi-remen/most-of-us-lead-far-more-meaningful-lives-than-we-know-often-finding/) [Rachel Naomi Remen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-naomi-remen/) > [“The two most engaging powers of an author are to make new things familiar and familiar things new.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/the-two-most-engaging-powers-of-an-author-are-to-make-new-things/) [William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/) > [A fine artist is one who makes familiar things new and new things familiar.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-nizer/a-fine-artist-is-one-who-makes-familiar-things-new-and-new-things/) [Louis Nizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-nizer/) > [We take a natural interest in novelties, but it is against nature to take an interest in familiar things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/we-take-a-natural-interest-in-novelties-but-it-is-against-nature-to/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [All, all are gone, the old familiar faces.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/all-all-are-gone-the-old-familiar-faces/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [Original minds are not distinguished by being the first to see a new thing, but instead by seeing the old, familiar thing that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/original-minds-are-not-distinguished-by-being-the-first-to-see-a-new/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) ## More by Alfred North Whitehead > [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. It must be either new in itself or invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/for-successful-education-there-must-always-be-a-certain-freshness-in/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Philosophy begins in wonder. And, at the end, when philosophic thought has done its best, the wonder remains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/philosophy-begins-in-wonder-and-at-the-end-when-philosophic-thought/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [The pursuit of mathematics is a divine madness of the human spirit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/the-pursuit-of-mathematics-is-a-divine-madness-of-the-human-spirit/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Without adventure all civilization is full of decay. Adventure rarely reaches its predetermined end. Columbus never reached China.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/without-adventure-all-civilization-is-full-of-decay-adventure-rarely/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Aristotle discovered all the half-truths which were necessary to the creation of science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/aristotle-discovered-all-the-half-truths-which-were-necessary-to-the/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [On the ostensible exactitude of certain branches of human knowledge, including mathematics. The exactness is a fake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/on-the-ostensible-exactitude-of-certain-branches-of-human-knowledge/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [It is this union of passionate interest in the detailed facts with equal devotion to abstract generalisation which forms the novelty in our present…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/it-is-this-union-of-passionate-interest-in-the-detailed-facts-with/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Our minds are finite, and yet even in these circumstances of infinitude we are surrounded by possibilities that are infinite, and the purpose of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/our-minds-are-finite-and-yet-even-in-these-circumstances-of/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [The many become one and are increased by one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/the-many-become-one-and-are-increased-by-one/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Art is the imposing of a pattern on experience, and our aesthetic enjoyment is recognition of the pattern.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/art-is-the-imposing-of-a-pattern-on-experience-and-our-aesthetic/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [The future belongs to those who can rise above the confines of the earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/the-future-belongs-to-those-who-can-rise-above-the-confines-of-the/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Common sense is genius in homespun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/common-sense-is-genius-in-homespun/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Everyone is a philosopher. Not everyone is good at it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/everyone-is-a-philosopher-not-everyone-is-good-at-it/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Do not teach too many subjects and what you teach, teach thoroughly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/do-not-teach-too-many-subjects-and-what-you-teach-teach-thoroughly/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Civilization advances by extending the number of important operations which we can perform without thinking about them. Operations of thought are cavalry charges in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/civilization-advances-by-extending-the-number-of-important-operations/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) [Explore all 356 Alfred North Whitehead quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) ## More Familiar things quotes > [Original minds are not distinguished by being the first to see a new thing, but instead by seeing the old, familiar thing that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/original-minds-are-not-distinguished-by-being-the-first-to-see-a-new/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [All, all are gone, the old familiar faces.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/all-all-are-gone-the-old-familiar-faces/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [We take a natural interest in novelties, but it is against nature to take an interest in familiar things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/we-take-a-natural-interest-in-novelties-but-it-is-against-nature-to/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [A fine artist is one who makes familiar things new and new things familiar.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-nizer/a-fine-artist-is-one-who-makes-familiar-things-new-and-new-things/) [Louis Nizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-nizer/) > [“The two most engaging powers of an author are to make new things familiar and familiar things new.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/the-two-most-engaging-powers-of-an-author-are-to-make-new-things/) [William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/) > [Most of us lead far more meaningful lives than we know. Often finding meaning is not about doing things differently; it is about seeing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-naomi-remen/most-of-us-lead-far-more-meaningful-lives-than-we-know-often-finding/) [Rachel Naomi Remen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-naomi-remen/) > [“It is the first changes among familiar things that make such a mystery of time to the young, afterwards we lose the sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/it-is-the-first-changes-among-familiar-things-that-make-such-a/) [Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/) > [With a little persuasion, any familiar thing can turn abnormal in the mind. Here's a thought experiment. Consider this brutal bit of magic. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/with-a-little-persuasion-any-familiar-thing-can-turn-abnormal-in-the/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [I don't think a novel's main donation, main gift, is the document. The document is there, but a novel goes beyond documentation. It goes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amos-oz/i-don-t-think-a-novel-s-main-donation-main-gift-is-the-document-the/) [Amos Oz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amos-oz/) > [“All the familiar things were getting different meanings.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/all-the-familiar-things-were-getting-different-meanings/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [There's something I have about being Canadian - there's a distance it gives you when you live in the States and operate in American…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-fox/there-s-something-i-have-about-being-canadian-there-s-a-distance-it/) [Michael J. Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-fox/) > [I'm very into familiar things, popular things. I'm into things that no one seems to know about or be into. I'm trying to draw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelela/i-m-very-into-familiar-things-popular-things-i-m-into-things-that-no/) [Kelela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelela/) > [There’s beauty all around our paths, If but our watchful eyes Can trace it ’midst familiar things, And through their lowly guise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felicia-hemans/there-s-beauty-all-around-our-paths-if-but-our-watchful-eyes-can/) [Felicia Hemans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felicia-hemans/) > [It is the first changes among familiar things that make such a mystery of time to the young; afterwards we lose the sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/it-is-the-first-changes-among-familiar-things-that-make-such-a-2/) [Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/) > [“The two most engaging powers of a good author are to make new things familiar and familiar things new.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-two-most-engaging-powers-of-a-good-author-are-to-make-new-things/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 25 Familiar things quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/familiar-things/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Familiar things happen, and mankind does not bother about them. It requires a very unusual mind to undertake the analysis of the obvious.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alfred North Whitehead" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/familiar-things-happen-and-mankind-does-not-bother-about-them-it/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Familiar things" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/familiar-things-happen-and-mankind-does-not-bother-about-them-it/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d46/alfred-north-whitehead-836_familiar-things_familiar-things-happen-and-mankind-does_2441137.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d46/alfred-north-whitehead-836_familiar-things_familiar-things-happen-and-mankind-does_2441137.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d46/alfred-north-whitehead-836_familiar-things_familiar-things-happen-and-mankind-does_2441137.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Familiar things happen, and mankind does not bother about them. It requires a very unusual mind to undertake…” — Alfred North Whitehead", "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 North Whitehead", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Familiar things happen, and mankind does...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/familiar-things-happen-and-mankind-does-not-bother-about-them-it/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/familiar-things-happen-and-mankind-does-not-bother-about-them-it/#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 } } ] } ```