--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Once they knew that some changes were for…" description: "\"“Once they knew that some changes were for the better, and others for the worse, and others again indifferent. We have largely removed this knowledge. ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/854/c-s-lewis-121_change_once-they-knew-that-some-changes-were-fo_1249491.jpg" --- # Once they knew that some changes were for the better, and… ![“Once they knew that some changes were for the better, and others for the worse, and others again indifferent. We have largely removed this knowledge. For the descriptive adjective ‘unchanged’ we have substituted the emotional adjective ‘stagnant’. We have trained them to think of the Future as a…” quote by C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/854/c-s-lewis-121_change_once-they-knew-that-some-changes-were-fo_1249491.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/854/c-s-lewis-121_change_once-they-knew-that-some-changes-were-fo_1249491.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/854/c-s-lewis-121_change_once-they-knew-that-some-changes-were-fo_1249491.jpg) > ““Once they knew that some changes were for the better, and others for the worse, and others again indifferent. We have largely removed this knowledge. For the descriptive adjective ‘unchanged’ we have substituted the emotional adjective ‘stagnant’. We have trained them to think of the Future as a promised land which favoured heroes attain—not as something which everyone reaches at the rate of sixty minutes an hour, whatever he does, whoever he is, Your”” [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People have lost the ability to distinguish beneficial, harmful, and neutral changes, replacing neutral language with negative judgments and idealizing the future as exclusive to heroes. **In simple terms:** We forget neutral changes, label them bad, and see the future as only for the heroic. Key Takeaway Recognize neutral change and value progress for everyone. Themes perception change future language heroism Mood reflective critical thoughtful Type analytical philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal growth - policy making - education reform - media analysis Key Concepts philosophy psychology semantics Questions to Reflect On - How do you judge whether a change is truly beneficial? - Can neutral change be as valuable as heroic progress? A Different Perspective Not all change is good or bad; some are simply neutral and necessary. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) [Promised land](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/promised-land/) ## Related quotes > [“Since then she had changed so much in her thoughts, in her ways, even in her looks, that she might wonder she knew herself--except…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/since-then-she-had-changed-so-much-in-her-thoughts-in-her-ways-even/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“We have trained them to think of the Future as a promised land which favored heroes attain-not as something which everyone reaches at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/we-have-trained-them-to-think-of-the-future-as-a-promised-land-which/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“Prayer changes me, and it changes me for the better.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guideposts/prayer-changes-me-and-it-changes-me-for-the-better/) Guideposts > [You don't need to become a better person first before you make changes in your life.You make changes so you can become a better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/london-mond/you-don-t-need-to-become-a-better-person-first-before-you-make/) [London Mond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/london-mond/) > [For every positive change you make in your life, something else also changes for the better - it creates a chain reaction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-brown/for-every-positive-change-you-make-in-your-life-something-else-also/) [Leon Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-brown/) > [Making changes to better appeal to customer is INNOVATION.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/making-changes-to-better-appeal-to-customer-is-innovation/) [Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/) > [Life changes for the better when we realize that we don't have to know everything and we don't have to pretend we do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-sinek/life-changes-for-the-better-when-we-realize-that-we-don-t-have-to/) [Simon Sinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-sinek/) > [Making changes to better me and who I want to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/making-changes-to-better-me-and-who-i-want-to-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'll continue to try to make changes to better improve the team.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-ll-continue-to-try-to-make-changes-to-better-improve-the-team/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Failure changes for the better, success for the worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-elder/failure-changes-for-the-better-success-for-the-worse/) [Seneca the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-elder/) > [I wish I could say time changes everyone for the better, but it doesn't. Sometimes, people show their true colors when you're in too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley/i-wish-i-could-say-time-changes-everyone-for-the-better-but-it-doesn/) [Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashley/) > [Everything changes for the better when you take ownership of your own problems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ringer/everything-changes-for-the-better-when-you-take-ownership-of-your-own/) [Robert Ringer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ringer/) > [“We are accustomed to take progress for granted: to assume without hesitation that the changes which have happened during the last hundred years were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/we-are-accustomed-to-take-progress-for-granted-to-assume-without/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [This country is undergoing great changes for the better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-john-wills/this-country-is-undergoing-great-changes-for-the-better/) [William John Wills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-john-wills/) > [Changing someone else's life positively changes yours for the better as well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cameron-boyce/changing-someone-else-s-life-positively-changes-yours-for-the-better/) [Cameron Boyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cameron-boyce/) ## More by C.S. Lewis > [“At the moment, then, of Man’s victory over Nature, we find the whole human race subjected to some individual men, and those individuals subjected…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/at-the-moment-then-of-man-s-victory-over-nature-we-find-the-whole/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“Isn’t it absolutely essential to keep a fierce Left and a fierce Right, both on their toes and each terrified of the other?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/isn-t-it-absolutely-essential-to-keep-a-fierce-left-and-a-fierce/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“All Hell is smaller than one pebble of your earthly world: but it is smaller than one atom of this world, the Real World.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/all-hell-is-smaller-than-one-pebble-of-your-earthly-world-but-it-is/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“the greatest service we can do to education today is to teach fewer subjects. No one has time to do more than a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/the-greatest-service-we-can-do-to-education-today-is-to-teach-fewer/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“If the Divine call does not make us better, it will make us very much worse. Of all bad men religious bad men are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/if-the-divine-call-does-not-make-us-better-it-will-make-us-very-much/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“The husband is the head of the wife just in so far as he is to her what Christ is to the Church -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/the-husband-is-the-head-of-the-wife-just-in-so-far-as-he-is-to-her/) [C.S. 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Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“Because free will, though it makes evil possible, is also the only thing that makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/because-free-will-though-it-makes-evil-possible-is-also-the-only/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“Laugh and fear not, creatures. Now that you are no longer dumb and witless, you need not always be grave. For jokes as well…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/laugh-and-fear-not-creatures-now-that-you-are-no-longer-dumb-and/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“When two humans have lived together for many years it usually happens that each has tones of voice and expressions of face which are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/when-two-humans-have-lived-together-for-many-years-it-usually-happens/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“He sees as well as you do that courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/he-sees-as-well-as-you-do-that-courage-is-not-simply-one-of-the/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“If you do not take the distinction between good and bad very seriously, then it is easy to say that anything you find in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/if-you-do-not-take-the-distinction-between-good-and-bad-very/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“Now the whole offer which Christianity makes is this: that we can, if we let God have His way, come to share in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/now-the-whole-offer-which-christianity-makes-is-this-that-we-can-if/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) [Explore all 1,165 C.S. Lewis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) ## More Change quotes > [Only within yourself exists the other reality for which you long. I can give you nothing that has not already its being within yourself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/only-within-yourself-exists-the-other-reality-for-which-you-long-i/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I can't believe that I'm sitting in meetings with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Annette Bening. I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [“…progress isn't necessarily about change but about things turning out as we want them to”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-hogan/progress-isn-t-necessarily-about-change-but-about-things-turning-out/) Phil Hogan > [Nobody can tell me that no changes are necessary in Washington.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-weld/nobody-can-tell-me-that-no-changes-are-necessary-in-washington/) [William Weld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-weld/) > [If my campaign is not in the debate, we will not be talking about how we really fix this problem of endless and expanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/if-my-campaign-is-not-in-the-debate-we-will-not-be-talking-about-how/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [When you walk down the street of Kabul your values for life changes, they do change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-pierre-white/when-you-walk-down-the-street-of-kabul-your-values-for-life-changes/) [Marco Pierre White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-pierre-white/) > [Your world will change whether or not you choose to change, but you have the power to choose it's direction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-hill/your-world-will-change-whether-or-not-you-choose-to-change-but-you/) [Napoleon Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-hill/) > [I hope I continue to evolve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-flair/i-hope-i-continue-to-evolve/) [Charlotte Flair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-flair/) > [“Stay focused on bringing people together and more on positive messaging so that you can be the change you wish to see in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/germany-kent/stay-focused-on-bringing-people-together-and-more-on-positive/) [Germany Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/germany-kent/) > [The biggest change for me as a mom was realizing I needed to put someone else before me. Now the hardest part about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-alexis/the-biggest-change-for-me-as-a-mom-was-realizing-i-needed-to-put/) [Kim Alexis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-alexis/) > [“After the funeral, my life changed. I felt as if time were suddenly precious, water going down an open drain, and I could not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/after-the-funeral-my-life-changed-i-felt-as-if-time-were-suddenly/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [You practice mindfulness, on the one hand, to be calm and peaceful. 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