--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If we can't think for ourselves, if we're…" description: "\"If we can't think for ourselves, if we're unwilling to question authority, then we're just putty in the hands of those in power.\" — Carl Sagan" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/779/carl-sagan-160_authority_if-we-can-t-think-for-ourselves-if-we-re_189532.jpg" --- # If we can't think for ourselves, if we're unwilling to… ![“If we can't think for ourselves, if we're unwilling to question authority, then we're just putty in the hands of those in power.” quote by Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/779/carl-sagan-160_authority_if-we-can-t-think-for-ourselves-if-we-re_189532.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/779/carl-sagan-160_authority_if-we-can-t-think-for-ourselves-if-we-re_189532.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/779/carl-sagan-160_authority_if-we-can-t-think-for-ourselves-if-we-re_189532.jpg) > “If we can't think for ourselves, if we're unwilling to question authority, then we're just putty in the hands of those in power.” [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Critical thinking requires questioning authority; otherwise we become manipulable. **In simple terms:** Think for yourself or be controlled. Key Takeaway Cultivate independent thought. Themes critical thinking autonomy authority Mood reflective curious Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - education - politics - media consumption - workplace decisions Key Concepts philosophy psychology Questions to Reflect On - What beliefs have you accepted without question? - How do you balance respect and skepticism? A Different Perspective Questioning can be socially risky; not all authority is bad. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Authority](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authority/) [Demon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demon/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/) [Question Authority](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/question-authority/) [Scientific method](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scientific-method/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [If we can't think for ourselves, if we're unwilling to question authority, then we're just putty in the hands of those in power. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/if-we-can-t-think-for-ourselves-if-we-re-unwilling-to-question-2/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [Some will say that I have an issue with authority, but I just like to question things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-moffatt/some-will-say-that-i-have-an-issue-with-authority-but-i-just-like-to/) [Scarlett Moffatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-moffatt/) > [I'm not a person who likes authority. 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I just can't wear a suit - it would kill me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gold-panda/i-ve-always-had-a-problem-with-authority-i-just-can-t-wear-a-suit-it/) [Gold Panda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gold-panda/) > [For a war to be just three conditions are necessary - public authority, just cause, right motive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/for-a-war-to-be-just-three-conditions-are-necessary-public-authority/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [We should be teaching our children the scientific method and the reasons for a Bill of Rights. 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Maybe there is one hiding, maddeningly unwilling to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/the-evidence-so-far-at-least-and-laws-of-nature-aside-does-not-2/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) ## More by Carl Sagan > [It is sometimes said that scientists are unromantic, that their passion to figure out robs the world of beauty and mystery. But is it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/it-is-sometimes-said-that-scientists-are-unromantic-that-their/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [The prediction of nuclear winter is drawn not, of course, from any direct experience with the consequences of global nuclear war, but rather from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/the-prediction-of-nuclear-winter-is-drawn-not-of-course-from-any/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [The suppression of uncomfortable ideas may be common in religion or in politics, but it is not the path to knowledge; it has no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/the-suppression-of-uncomfortable-ideas-may-be-common-in-religion-or/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [“Telepathy’ literally means to feel at a distance, just as ‘telephone’ is to hear at a distance and ‘television’ is to see at a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/telepathy-literally-means-to-feel-at-a-distance-just-as-telephone-is/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [“On the scale of worlds—to say nothing of stars or galaxies—humans are inconsequential, a thin film of life on an obscure and solitary lump…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/on-the-scale-of-worlds-to-say-nothing-of-stars-or-galaxies-humans-are/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [Every one of us is, in the cosmic perspective, precious. 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