--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Were I disposed to consider the…" description: "\"Were I disposed to consider the comparative merit of each of them [facts or theories in medical practice], I should derive most of the evils of medicin..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da7/benjamin-rush-9439_doctor_were-i-disposed-to-consider-the-comparat_2482487.jpg" --- # Were I disposed to consider the comparative merit of each… ![“Were I disposed to consider the comparative merit of each of them [facts or theories in medical practice], I should derive most of the evils of medicine from supposed facts, and ascribe all the remedies which have been uniformly and extensively useful, to such theories as are true. Facts are…” quote by Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da7/benjamin-rush-9439_doctor_were-i-disposed-to-consider-the-comparat_2482487.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da7/benjamin-rush-9439_doctor_were-i-disposed-to-consider-the-comparat_2482487.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da7/benjamin-rush-9439_doctor_were-i-disposed-to-consider-the-comparat_2482487.jpg) > “Were I disposed to consider the comparative merit of each of them \[facts or theories in medical practice\], I should derive most of the evils of medicine from supposed facts, and ascribe all the remedies which have been uniformly and extensively useful, to such theories as are true. Facts are combined and rendered useful only by means of theories, and the more disposed men are to reason, the more minute and extensive they become in their observations” [Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Medicine’s progress depends on theories that organize facts; without theory, facts are useless, and reasoning deepens observation. **In simple terms:** Theories turn facts into useful knowledge. Key Takeaway Use theory to guide practice. Themes medicine theory observation Mood analytical inquisitive Type philosophical educational When to use this quote - clinical diagnosis - research design - education - policy making Key Concepts epistemology scientific method Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance theory and empirical evidence? - When might theory hinder discovery? A Different Perspective Theories can bias interpretation of facts. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Doctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctor/) [Evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil/) [Evils Medicine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evils-medicine-879329/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Has beens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/has-beens/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Medical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medical/) [Medicine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medicine/) [Medicine Supposed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medicine-supposed-879331/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Merit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/merit/) [Minutes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/minutes/) [Observation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/observation/) [Practice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/practice/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Remedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remedy/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Theories Disposed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theories-disposed-879327/) [Theories Medical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theories-medical-879328/) [Theory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theory/) [True fact](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/true-fact/) [Useful Theories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/useful-theories-879330/) ## Related quotes > [“They question me everyday. There’s always bright lights and they give me medicine that’s supposed to make me tell the truth, but it doesn’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-bode/they-question-me-everyday-there-s-always-bright-lights-and-they-give/) [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) > [I have no useful theories about love and marriage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-cunningham/i-have-no-useful-theories-about-love-and-marriage/) [Michael Cunningham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-cunningham/) > [“I’m not even tone deaf, that’s the arse-mothering, fuck-nosed, bugger-sucking wank of the thing. I’M NOT EVEN TONE FUCKING DEAF. I’m tone DUMB.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/i-m-not-even-tone-deaf-that-s-the-arse-mothering-fuck-nosed-bugger/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [It is essential to grasp the incontestable truth that a Marxist must take cognisance of real life, of the true facts of reality, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/it-is-essential-to-grasp-the-incontestable-truth-that-a-marxist-must/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [You can't just say there is a God because well, the world is beautiful. You have to account for bone cancer in children. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/you-can-t-just-say-there-is-a-god-because-well-the-world-is-beautiful/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [Appreciate what you have right now because you don't always get a second chance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tinku-razoria/appreciate-what-you-have-right-now-because-you-don-t-always-get-a/) [Tinku Razoria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tinku-razoria/) > [“There is a reason why we laugh TF Out Loud, either shit is funny as hello. Are people just acting stupid”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dianerste-ross/there-is-a-reason-why-we-laugh-tf-out-loud-either-shit-is-funny-as/) [Dianerste Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dianerste-ross/) > [Angels are totally real. Tinkerbell has a hot ass. Wendigos exist. It's all true. Satan is blonde. True fact.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/misha-collins/angels-are-totally-real-tinkerbell-has-a-hot-ass-wendigos-exist-it-s/) [Misha Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/misha-collins/) > [It's an odd thing but when you tell someone the true facts of a mythical tale they are indignant not with the teller but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josephine-tey/it-s-an-odd-thing-but-when-you-tell-someone-the-true-facts-of-a/) [Josephine Tey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josephine-tey/) > [Amber London is a political rapper, a preaching rapper who speaks true facts and not just nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spaceghostpurrp/amber-london-is-a-political-rapper-a-preaching-rapper-who-speaks-true/) [SpaceGhostPurrp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spaceghostpurrp/) > [Human beings of all societies in all periods of history believe that their ideas on the nature of the real world are the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-robert-harrison/human-beings-of-all-societies-in-all-periods-of-history-believe-that/) [Edward Robert Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-robert-harrison/) > [Small quote but very meaningful:when my absence doesn't alter u r life, then my presence has no meaning in u r life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tinku-razoria/small-quote-but-very-meaningful-when-my-absence-doesn-t-alter-u-r/) [Tinku Razoria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tinku-razoria/) > [The whole of life itself expresses the blues. That's why I always say the blues are the true facts of life expressed in words…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willie-dixon/the-whole-of-life-itself-expresses-the-blues-that-s-why-i-always-say/) [Willie Dixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willie-dixon/) > [“There should be one line at every store for people who have their shit together. —TRUE FACT”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darynda-jones/there-should-be-one-line-at-every-store-for-people-who-have-their/) [Darynda Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darynda-jones/) > [“No real reason for the lack of sleep, it’s a disadvantage of rotating shifts that every so often your body clock just throws up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-reynolds/no-real-reason-for-the-lack-of-sleep-it-s-a-disadvantage-of-rotating/) [Tom Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-reynolds/) ## More by Benjamin Rush > [While the business of education in Europe consists in lectures upon the ruins of Palmyra and the antiquities of Herculaneum , or in disputes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/while-the-business-of-education-in-europe-consists-in-lectures-upon/) [Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) > [Freedom can exist only in the society of knowledge. Without learning, men are incapable of knowing their rights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/freedom-can-exist-only-in-the-society-of-knowledge-without-learning/) [Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) > [...This large and expensive stock of drugs will be unnecessary. By...doses of...medicines...multiplying...combining them properly, 20 to 30 articles, aided by the common resources of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/this-large-and-expensive-stock-of-drugs-will-be-unnecessary-by-doses/) [Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) > [Without religion, I believe that learning does real mischief to the morals and principles of mankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/without-religion-i-believe-that-learning-does-real-mischief-to-the/) [Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) > [ \[W\]here there is no law, there is no liberty; and nothing deserves the name of law but that which is certain and universal in… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/w-here-there-is-no-law-there-is-no-liberty-and-nothing-deserves-the/) [Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) > [I have alternately been called an Aristocrat and a Democrat. I am neither. I am a Christocrat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/i-have-alternately-been-called-an-aristocrat-and-a-democrat-i-am/) [Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) > [ The business of education has lay\[ed\] the foundations for nurseries of wise and good men, to adapt our modes of teaching to the peculiar… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/the-business-of-education-has-lay-ed-the-foundations-for-nurseries-of/) [Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) > [Let us show the world that a difference of opinion upon medical subjects is not incompatible with medical friendships; and in so doing, let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/let-us-show-the-world-that-a-difference-of-opinion-upon-medical/) [Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) > [The Gates of Hell shall not prevail against it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/the-gates-of-hell-shall-not-prevail-against-it/) [Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) > [It would seem from this fact, that man is naturally a wild animal, and that when taken from the woods, he is never happy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/it-would-seem-from-this-fact-that-man-is-naturally-a-wild-animal-and/) [Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) > [The only foundation for . . . a republic is to be laid in Religion. Without this there can be no virtue, and without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/the-only-foundation-for-a-republic-is-to-be-laid-in-religion-without/) [Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) > [If we were to remove the Bible from public schools we would be wasting so much time punishing crimes and taking so little pains…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/if-we-were-to-remove-the-bible-from-public-schools-we-would-be/) [Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) > [Let the children...be carefully instructed in the principles and obligations of the Christian religion. This is the most essential part of education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/let-the-children-be-carefully-instructed-in-the-principles-and/) [Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) > [I have always considered Christianity as the strong ground of republicanism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/i-have-always-considered-christianity-as-the-strong-ground-of/) [Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) > [A belief in God's universal love to all his creatures, and that he will finally restore all of them that are miserable to happiness,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/a-belief-in-god-s-universal-love-to-all-his-creatures-and-that-he/) [Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) [Explore all 72 Benjamin Rush quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) ## More Doctor quotes > [Many patients imagine that they have tried everything. True, they have used many remedies, but they have never had the cause of their infirmity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-d-palmer/many-patients-imagine-that-they-have-tried-everything-true-they-have/) [Daniel D. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-d-palmer/) > [I think people need to be comfortable questioning the authority of a doctor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susannah-cahalan/i-think-people-need-to-be-comfortable-questioning-the-authority-of-a/) [Susannah Cahalan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susannah-cahalan/) > [The doctor who diagnosed me with ALS, or motor neuron disease, told me that it would kill me in two or three years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-doctor-who-diagnosed-me-with-als-or-motor-neuron-disease-told-me/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [Every patient carries her or his own doctor inside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/every-patient-carries-her-or-his-own-doctor-inside/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) > [“As a special branch of general philosophy, pathogenesis had never been explored. In my opinion it had never been approached in a strictly scientific…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-cendrars/as-a-special-branch-of-general-philosophy-pathogenesis-had-never-been/) [Blaise Cendrars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-cendrars/) > [A creative space is an important thing. There are so many studios that feel like doctor's offices in Nashville. I couldn't write there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-paisley/a-creative-space-is-an-important-thing-there-are-so-many-studios-that/) [Brad Paisley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-paisley/) > [We ought to observe that practice which is the hardest of all-especially for young physicians-we ought to throw in no medicine at all-to abstain-to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-randolph-of-roanoke/we-ought-to-observe-that-practice-which-is-the-hardest-of-all/) [John Randolph of Roanoke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-randolph-of-roanoke/) > [The miracle drugs (neuroleptics) cause the worst plague of brain damage in medical history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-breggin/the-miracle-drugs-neuroleptics-cause-the-worst-plague-of-brain-damage/) [Peter Breggin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-breggin/) > [“old-fashioned, gentle Scottish physician, unmoved by the considerations of profit and personal gain that could so disfigure medicine. That doctors should consider themselves businessmen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/old-fashioned-gentle-scottish-physician-unmoved-by-the-considerations/) [Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/) > [I've never bought this idea of taking a therapeutic distance. If I see a student or house staff cry, I take great faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/i-ve-never-bought-this-idea-of-taking-a-therapeutic-distance-if-i-see/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [Heart surgeons do not have the world's smallest egos: when you ask them to name the world's three leading practitioners, they never can remember…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-paretsky/heart-surgeons-do-not-have-the-world-s-smallest-egos-when-you-ask/) [Sara Paretsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-paretsky/) > [Thankfully, I found a doctor at Presbyterian Hospital in New York, Scott Hammer, who diagnosed my chronic fatigue as the Epstein-Barr virus, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tucker-halpern/thankfully-i-found-a-doctor-at-presbyterian-hospital-in-new-york/) [Tucker Halpern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tucker-halpern/) > [My parents are so supportive of whatever we want to do and completely nurtured that, and they're so proud of that as well. My…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-john-kamen/my-parents-are-so-supportive-of-whatever-we-want-to-do-and-completely/) [Hannah John-Kamen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-john-kamen/) > [Before we can wave the handkerchief, we have to have a cold.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-d-dangoor/before-we-can-wave-the-handkerchief-we-have-to-have-a-cold/) [Robert D Dangoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-d-dangoor/) > [Tuberculosis, starvation, fatigue, and there are many who have no desire to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-r-murrow/tuberculosis-starvation-fatigue-and-there-are-many-who-have-no-desire/) [Edward R. Murrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-r-murrow/) [Browse all 3,922 Doctor quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctor/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Were I disposed to consider the comparative merit of each of them [facts or theories in medical practice], I should derive most of the evils of medicine from supposed facts, and ascribe all the remedies which have been uniformly and extensively useful, to such theories as are true. Facts are combined and rendered useful only by means of theories, and the more disposed men are to reason, the more minute and extensive they become in their observations", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Benjamin Rush" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/were-i-disposed-to-consider-the-comparative-merit-of-each-of-them/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Doctor" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/were-i-disposed-to-consider-the-comparative-merit-of-each-of-them/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da7/benjamin-rush-9439_doctor_were-i-disposed-to-consider-the-comparat_2482487.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da7/benjamin-rush-9439_doctor_were-i-disposed-to-consider-the-comparat_2482487.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da7/benjamin-rush-9439_doctor_were-i-disposed-to-consider-the-comparat_2482487.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Were I disposed to consider the comparative merit of each of them [facts or theories in medical practice], I…” — Benjamin Rush", "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": "Benjamin Rush", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Were I disposed to consider the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/were-i-disposed-to-consider-the-comparative-merit-of-each-of-them/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/were-i-disposed-to-consider-the-comparative-merit-of-each-of-them/#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 } } ] } ```