Education Quote by Christopher Hitchens
““would sometimes say, that if life were made what it might be, by good government and good education, it would be worth having: but he never spoke with anything like enthusiasm even of that possibility. He never varied in rating intellectual enjoyments above all others, even in value as pleasures, independently of their ulterior benefits. The pleasures of the benevolent affections he placed high in the scale; and used to say, that he had never known a happy old man, except those who were able to live over again in the pleasures of the young. For passionate emotions of all sorts, and for everything which has been said or written in exaltation of them, he professed the greatest contempt. He regarded them as a form of madness. “The intense” was with him a bye-word of scornful disapprobation. He regarded as an aberration of the moral standard of modern times, compared with that of the ancients, the great stress laid upon feeling. Feelings, as such, he considered to be no proper subjects of praise or blame. Right and””
About This Quote
The passage critiques a worldview that undervalues emotional depth, favoring rational governance and education over passionate feeling.
In simple terms: It argues that dismissing emotions as madness limits a full human experience.
Balance reason with emotion for richer life.
Themes
Mood
Type
When to use this quote
- policy making
- education reform
- personal development
- mental health discussions
Key Concepts
Questions to Reflect On
- Can reason exist without feeling?
- What role do emotions play in moral decisions?
Overemphasis on rationality can neglect essential human needs.