--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: From a drop of water,” said the writer…" description: "\"“From a drop of water,” said the writer, “a logical man could understand oceans and waterfalls without having ever seen or heard of them.”\" — Arthur Co..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be9/arthur-conan-doyle-273_ocean_from-a-drop-of-water-said-the-writer-a-l_882230.jpg" --- # From a drop of water,” said the writer, “a logical man… ![“From a drop of water,” said the writer, “a logical man could understand oceans and waterfalls without having ever seen or heard of them.” quote by Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be9/arthur-conan-doyle-273_ocean_from-a-drop-of-water-said-the-writer-a-l_882230.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be9/arthur-conan-doyle-273_ocean_from-a-drop-of-water-said-the-writer-a-l_882230.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be9/arthur-conan-doyle-273_ocean_from-a-drop-of-water-said-the-writer-a-l_882230.jpg) > ““From a drop of water,” said the writer, “a logical man could understand oceans and waterfalls without having ever seen or heard of them.”” [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A logical mind can grasp vast concepts from tiny clues, even without direct experience. **In simple terms:** Understanding big ideas from small hints. Key Takeaway Learn to infer from limited data. Themes logic knowledge inference Mood curious analytical Type educational inspirational When to use this quote - research - education - problem solving - creative thinking Key Concepts philosophy epistemology Questions to Reflect On - How can you verify inferred conclusions? - What are the limits of inference? A Different Perspective May overlook nuances without concrete evidence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Logical Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/logical-man-1064454/) [Ocean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ocean/) [Oceans Waterfalls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oceans-waterfalls-1064453/) [River](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/river/) [Said Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said-writer-714414/) [Understand Oceans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understand-oceans-1064452/) [Waterfalls Having](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waterfalls-having-1064455/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [The logical man must either deny all miracles or none, and our American Indian myths and hero stories are perhaps, in themselves, quite as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-logical-man-must-either-deny-all-miracles-or-none-and-our/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The logical man must either deny all miracles or none.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-logical-man-must-either-deny-all-miracles-or-none/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The intellectual or logical man, rather than the understanding or observant man, set himself to imagine designs — to dictate purposes to God.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-allan-poe/the-intellectual-or-logical-man-rather-than-the-understanding-or/) [Edgar Allan Poe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-allan-poe/) > [“a logical man must behave in a crisis as if his calculated risk were indeed a certainty …”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-patterson-jr/a-logical-man-must-behave-in-a-crisis-as-if-his-calculated-risk-were/) [William H. Patterson Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-patterson-jr/) > [“He finished his drink. 'I don’t like mornings either,' he said. “That’s why I’m a writer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-b-hughes/he-finished-his-drink-i-don-t-like-mornings-either-he-said-that-s-why/) [Dorothy B. Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-b-hughes/) > [Every now and then, someone will tell me that one of my books has made them laugh out loud. I never believe them because:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-roach/every-now-and-then-someone-will-tell-me-that-one-of-my-books-has-made/) [Mary Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-roach/) > [Most writers, I'm afraid, live very boring lives sitting in front of a screen. However, having said that: every writer puts a bit of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scott/most-writers-i-m-afraid-live-very-boring-lives-sitting-in-front-of-a/) [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) > [The story knows itself better than the writer does at some point, knows what's being said before the writer figures out how to say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-williams/the-story-knows-itself-better-than-the-writer-does-at-some-point/) [Joy Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-williams/) > [“Gertrude Stein, when asked why she wrote, replied "For praise." Lorca said he wrote to be loved. Faulkner said a writer wrote for glory.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/gertrude-stein-when-asked-why-she-wrote-replied-for-praise-lorca-said/) [James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) > [“He often said he had to be a writer because he wasn't good at anything else. He was not good at being an employee.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut-jr/he-often-said-he-had-to-be-a-writer-because-he-wasn-t-good-at/) [Kurt Vonnegut Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut-jr/) > [If there is good to be said, the writer should say it. If there is bad to be said, he should say it in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gardner/if-there-is-good-to-be-said-the-writer-should-say-it-if-there-is-bad/) [John Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gardner/) > [No form of art repeats or imitates successfully all that can be said by another; the writer conveys his experience of life along a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/storm-jameson/no-form-of-art-repeats-or-imitates-successfully-all-that-can-be-said/) [Storm Jameson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/storm-jameson/) > [ To write with taste, in the highest sense, is to write \[...\] so that no one commits suicide, no one despairs; to write \[...\]… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-write-with-taste-in-the-highest-sense-is-to-write-so-that-no-one/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“You forget," I said, "I'm a writer and the Muses are the daughters of Memory.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/you-forget-i-said-i-m-a-writer-and-the-muses-are-the-daughters-of/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [My first interaction with Gene was that after I auditioned I walked out of the room and then this big guy walks out with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-de-lancie/my-first-interaction-with-gene-was-that-after-i-auditioned-i-walked/) [John de Lancie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-de-lancie/) ## More by Arthur Conan Doyle > [“shattered the bone and grazed the subclavian artery. I”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/shattered-the-bone-and-grazed-the-subclavian-artery-i/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [My mind rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, give me the most abstruse cryptogram, or the most intricate analysis, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/my-mind-rebels-at-stagnation-give-me-problems-give-me-work-give-me/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [...it was a huge creature, luminous, ghastly, and spectral. I have cross-examined these men, one of them a hard-headed countryman, one a farrier, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/it-was-a-huge-creature-luminous-ghastly-and-spectral-i-have-cross/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [“A study in scarlet, eh? Why shouldn't we use a little art jargon. There's the scarlet thread of murder running through the colourless skein…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/a-study-in-scarlet-eh-why-shouldn-t-we-use-a-little-art-jargon-there/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself, but talent instantly recognizes genius.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/mediocrity-knows-nothing-higher-than-itself-but-talent-instantly/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [“Holy men? Holy cabbages! Holy bean-pods! What do they do but live and suck in sustenance and grow fat? If that be holiness, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/holy-men-holy-cabbages-holy-bean-pods-what-do-they-do-but-live-and/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [“Wonderful!" I ejaculated.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/wonderful-i-ejaculated/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [Amberley excelled at chess - a mark, Watson, of a scheming mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/amberley-excelled-at-chess-a-mark-watson-of-a-scheming-mind/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [Ex-Professor Moriarty of mathematical celebrity... is the Napoleon of crime, Watson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/ex-professor-moriarty-of-mathematical-celebrity-is-the-napoleon-of/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [“When a doctor does go wrong, he is the first of criminals. He has the nerve and he has the knowledge.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/when-a-doctor-does-go-wrong-he-is-the-first-of-criminals-he-has-the/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [“How small we feel with our petty ambitions and strivings in the presence of the great elemental forces of Nature!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/how-small-we-feel-with-our-petty-ambitions-and-strivings-in-the/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [You wish to put me in the dark. I tell you that I will never be put in the dark. You wish to beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/you-wish-to-put-me-in-the-dark-i-tell-you-that-i-will-never-be-put-in/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [“My mind," he said, "rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, give me the most abstruse cryptogram or the most intricate analysis,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/my-mind-he-said-rebels-at-stagnation-give-me-problems-give-me-work/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [“It is hard luck on a young fellow to have expensive tastes, great expectations, aristocratic connections but no actual money in his pocket, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/it-is-hard-luck-on-a-young-fellow-to-have-expensive-tastes-great/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [“In the year 1878 I took my degree of Doctor of Medicine of the University of London, and proceeded to Netley to go through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/in-the-year-1878-i-took-my-degree-of-doctor-of-medicine-of-the/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) [Explore all 740 Arthur Conan Doyle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) ## More Ocean quotes > [I have inside me the winds, the deserts, the oceans, the stars, and everything created in the universe. We were all made by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/i-have-inside-me-the-winds-the-deserts-the-oceans-the-stars-and/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [Clear moments are so short. There is much more darkness. More ocean than terra firma. More shadow than form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-zagajewski/clear-moments-are-so-short-there-is-much-more-darkness-more-ocean/) [Adam Zagajewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-zagajewski/) > [With the realization of God comes all power. If the little wave knew that behind it is the great ocean, it could say, "I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/with-the-realization-of-god-comes-all-power-if-the-little-wave-knew/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [Throughout human history, as our species has faced the frightening, terrorizing fact that we do not know who we are, or where we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-leary/throughout-human-history-as-our-species-has-faced-the-frightening/) [Timothy Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-leary/) > [When we went into the ocean, I watched his body as he dove into the waves, and it gave me a feeling in my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-krauss/when-we-went-into-the-ocean-i-watched-his-body-as-he-dove-into-the/) [Nicole Krauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-krauss/) > [Our world is drowning in a sea of self-centeredness. You can make yourself quite unique right away by leaving this ocean of selfishness and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bytheway/our-world-is-drowning-in-a-sea-of-self-centeredness-you-can-make/) [John Bytheway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bytheway/) > [The improved American highway system isolated the American-in-transit. On his speedway he had no contact with the towns which he by-passed. If he stopped…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-j-boorstin/the-improved-american-highway-system-isolated-the-american-in-transit/) [Daniel J. Boorstin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-j-boorstin/) > [“It’s a big ocean crossed by busy ships. I went slowly, observing much.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yann-martel/it-s-a-big-ocean-crossed-by-busy-ships-i-went-slowly-observing-much/) [Yann Martel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yann-martel/) > [Your head's like mine, like all our heads; big enough to contain every god and devil there ever was. Big enough to hold the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grant-morrison/your-head-s-like-mine-like-all-our-heads-big-enough-to-contain-every/) [Grant Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grant-morrison/) > [With no other choices open to us, we'd turned our gaze seaward. The oceans were our America: they reached farther than any prairie, untamed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carsten-jensen/with-no-other-choices-open-to-us-we-d-turned-our-gaze-seaward-the/) [Carsten Jensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carsten-jensen/) > [Life is like the ocean. It can be calm and still or rough and rigid but in the end, it is always beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-like-the-ocean-it-can-be-calm-and-still-or-rough-and-rigid/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is like an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-must-not-lose-faith-in-humanity-humanity-is-like-an-ocean-if-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A language possesses utility only insofar as it can construct conventional boundaries. A language of no boundaries is no language at all, and thus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-wilber/a-language-possesses-utility-only-insofar-as-it-can-construct/) [Ken Wilber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-wilber/) > [“I’ve always seen this in you, ever since you were a little girl — this hunger to love other people into their highest selves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-elisabeth/i-ve-always-seen-this-in-you-ever-since-you-were-a-little-girl-this/) [Jennifer Elisabeth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-elisabeth/) > [“Mungu akikubariki kipaji chako watu watasema ni laana. Maisha yako ni sawa na mto. Unakoelekea ni baharini. Lakini sasa umefika kwenye mlango wa bahari.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enock-maregesi/mungu-akikubariki-kipaji-chako-watu-watasema-ni-laana-maisha-yako-ni/) [Enock Maregesi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enock-maregesi/) [Browse all 4,263 Ocean quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ocean/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“From a drop of water,” said the writer, “a logical man could understand oceans and waterfalls without having ever seen or heard of them.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Arthur Conan Doyle" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/from-a-drop-of-water-said-the-writer-a-logical-man-could-understand/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ocean" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/from-a-drop-of-water-said-the-writer-a-logical-man-could-understand/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be9/arthur-conan-doyle-273_ocean_from-a-drop-of-water-said-the-writer-a-l_882230.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be9/arthur-conan-doyle-273_ocean_from-a-drop-of-water-said-the-writer-a-l_882230.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be9/arthur-conan-doyle-273_ocean_from-a-drop-of-water-said-the-writer-a-l_882230.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“From a drop of water,” said the writer, “a logical man could understand oceans and waterfalls without having…” — Arthur Conan Doyle", "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": "Arthur Conan Doyle", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“From a drop of water,” said...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/from-a-drop-of-water-said-the-writer-a-logical-man-could-understand/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/from-a-drop-of-water-said-the-writer-a-logical-man-could-understand/#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 } } ] } ```