--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I learned that very often the most…" description: "\"I learned that very often the most intolerant and narrow-minded people are the ones who congratulate themselves on their tolerance and open-mindedness...." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/735/christopher-hitchens-117_intolerant_i-learned-that-very-often-the-most-intol_3217066.jpg" --- # I learned that very often the most intolerant and… ![“I learned that very often the most intolerant and narrow-minded people are the ones who congratulate themselves on their tolerance and open-mindedness.” quote by Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/735/christopher-hitchens-117_intolerant_i-learned-that-very-often-the-most-intol_3217066.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/735/christopher-hitchens-117_intolerant_i-learned-that-very-often-the-most-intol_3217066.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/735/christopher-hitchens-117_intolerant_i-learned-that-very-often-the-most-intol_3217066.jpg) > “I learned that very often the most intolerant and narrow-minded people are the ones who congratulate themselves on their tolerance and open-mindedness.” [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People who loudly claim tolerance often hide deep intolerance and self‑congratulation. **In simple terms:** False humility masks real bias. Key Takeaway Beware of self‑praise of open‑mindedness. Themes hypocrisy self‑deception intolerance Mood skeptical reflective Type critical philosophical When to use this quote - political debates - online discussions - workplace diversity training - personal relationships Key Concepts psychology social identity moral licensing Questions to Reflect On - Do you judge others’ openness by their words or actions? - How does self‑praise affect real tolerance? A Different Perspective Such claims can be performative and may silence genuine dialogue. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Congratulate Tolerance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/congratulate-tolerance-6032854/) [Intolerant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intolerant/) [Learned Intolerant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learned-intolerant-6032855/) [Most](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/most/) [Narrow minded](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/narrow-minded/) [Open mindedness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/open-mindedness/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Tolerance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tolerance/) [Who](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/who/) ## Related quotes > [“Being bigheaded can be as irritating and as dangerous as being small-minded.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/being-bigheaded-can-be-as-irritating-and-as-dangerous-as-being-small/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [How do you know if you don't try...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milana-may/how-do-you-know-if-you-don-t-try/) [Milana May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milana-may/) > [The narrow-minded who undertake any work will never be satisfied. They cannot understand the actions of those who are large hearted and broad-minded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sathya-sai-baba/the-narrow-minded-who-undertake-any-work-will-never-be-satisfied-they/) [Sathya Sai Baba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sathya-sai-baba/) > [A politician is not as narrow-minded as he forces himself to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-rogers/a-politician-is-not-as-narrow-minded-as-he-forces-himself-to-be/) [Will Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-rogers/) > [If someone is able to show me that what I think or do is not right, I will happily change, for I seek the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/if-someone-is-able-to-show-me-that-what-i-think-or-do-is-not-right-i-2/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [“Of course, everyone is intolerant of something or someone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/of-course-everyone-is-intolerant-of-something-or-someone/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [“These days, though, tolerance means that you accept the other person's views as being true or legitimate. If you claim that someone is wrong,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-copan/these-days-though-tolerance-means-that-you-accept-the-other-person-s/) [Paul Copan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-copan/) > [We have the right not to tolerate the intolerant. We should tolerate even them whenever we can do so without running a great risk;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/we-have-the-right-not-to-tolerate-the-intolerant-we-should-tolerate/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [“Always hear others out and remain open-minded; the day you think you know everything is the day you have the most yet to learn.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-j-darkholme/always-hear-others-out-and-remain-open-minded-the-day-you-think-you/) [A.J. Darkholme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-j-darkholme/) > [An educated man must have a "curiosity in exploring the unfamiliar and unexpected, an open-mindedness in entertaining opposing points of view, tolerance for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-bok/an-educated-man-must-have-a-curiosity-in-exploring-the-unfamiliar-and/) [Derek Bok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-bok/) > [“The problem with open-mindedness is that it can become empty-mindedness”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/the-problem-with-open-mindedness-is-that-it-can-become-empty/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [I'm for open-mindedness and tolerance. I'm against any form of fanaticism, fundamentalism or zealotry, and this certainty of 'We have the truth.' The truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/i-m-for-open-mindedness-and-tolerance-i-m-against-any-form-of/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [“Our belief is not a belief. Our principles are not a faith. We do not rely solely upon science and reason, because these are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/our-belief-is-not-a-belief-our-principles-are-not-a-faith-we-do-not-2/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Members of the educated elite upheld open-mindedness as the supreme political virtue but refused to debate their own idea of the good life, perhaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-lasch/members-of-the-educated-elite-upheld-open-mindedness-as-the-supreme/) [Christopher Lasch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-lasch/) > [I am by nature the most intolerant and insular Englishman... If you happen to be a person like that and you learn from evidence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-dowding-1st-baron-dowding/i-am-by-nature-the-most-intolerant-and-insular-englishman-if-you/) [Hugh Dowding, 1st Baron Dowding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-dowding-1st-baron-dowding/) ## More by Christopher Hitchens > [“The spirit of our accurate and exact philosophy is outraged by conclusions that contradict each other so glaringly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/the-spirit-of-our-accurate-and-exact-philosophy-is-outraged-by/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Many governments employ torture but this was the first time that the element of Saturnalia and pornography in the process had been made so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/many-governments-employ-torture-but-this-was-the-first-time-that-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ It's \[Los Angeles\] mostly full of nonsense and delusion and egomania. They think they'll be young and beautiful forever, even though most of them… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-los-angeles-mostly-full-of-nonsense-and-delusion-and-egomania/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [To be against rationalization is not the same as to be opposed to reasoning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/to-be-against-rationalization-is-not-the-same-as-to-be-opposed-to/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ \[Religion\] attacks us in our deepest integrity - the core of our self-respect. Religion says that we would not know right from wrong, we… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/religion-attacks-us-in-our-deepest-integrity-the-core-of-our-self/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“In the very recent past, we have seen the Church of Rome befouled by its complicity with the unpardonable sin of child rape, or,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/in-the-very-recent-past-we-have-seen-the-church-of-rome-befouled-by/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's surprising to me how many of my friends send Christmas cards, or holiday cards, including my atheist and secular friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-surprising-to-me-how-many-of-my-friends-send-christmas-cards-or/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Suppose there were groups of secularists at hospitals who went round the terminally ill and urged them to adopt atheism: 'Don't be a mug…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/suppose-there-were-groups-of-secularists-at-hospitals-who-went-round/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [There are, after all, atheists who say they wish the fable were true but are unable to suspend the requisite disbelief, or who have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/there-are-after-all-atheists-who-say-they-wish-the-fable-were-true/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“It isn’t so long since a test of Anglican orthodoxy was applied to anyone seeking to study or teach at Oxford and Cambridge universities.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-isn-t-so-long-since-a-test-of-anglican-orthodoxy-was-applied-to/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Gullibility and credulity are considered undesireable qualities in every department of human life - except religion ... Why are we praised by godly men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/gullibility-and-credulity-are-considered-undesireable-qualities-in/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's much worse to see a woman drunk than a man: I don't know quite why this is true but it just is. Don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-much-worse-to-see-a-woman-drunk-than-a-man-i-don-t-know-quite/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's true that obscenity is a matter of taste and in the eye of the beholder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-true-that-obscenity-is-a-matter-of-taste-and-in-the-eye-of-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [I worked out early on to give up things I couldn't do well at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-worked-out-early-on-to-give-up-things-i-couldn-t-do-well-at-all/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Writing is what's important to me, and anything that helps me do that - or enhances and prolongs and deepens and sometimes intensifies argument…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/writing-is-what-s-important-to-me-and-anything-that-helps-me-do-that/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) [Explore all 1,241 Christopher Hitchens quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## More Intolerant quotes > [I am by nature the most intolerant and insular Englishman... If you happen to be a person like that and you learn from evidence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-dowding-1st-baron-dowding/i-am-by-nature-the-most-intolerant-and-insular-englishman-if-you/) [Hugh Dowding, 1st Baron Dowding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-dowding-1st-baron-dowding/) > [The intolerant man will not rely on persuasion, or on the worth of the idea. He would deny to others the very freedom of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/the-intolerant-man-will-not-rely-on-persuasion-or-on-the-worth-of-the/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [No true believer could be intolerant or a persecutor. If I were a magistrate and the law carried the death penalty against atheists, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/no-true-believer-could-be-intolerant-or-a-persecutor-if-i-were-a/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [But instead, Democrats are so bent on seeing Republicans as a bunch of angry, right wing, intolerant, unreliable extremists that they have a track…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-fleischer/but-instead-democrats-are-so-bent-on-seeing-republicans-as-a-bunch-of/) [Ari Fleischer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-fleischer/) > [The intolerant can be viewed as free-riders, as persons who seek the advantages of just institutions while not doing their share to uphold them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-rawls/the-intolerant-can-be-viewed-as-free-riders-as-persons-who-seek-the/) [John Rawls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-rawls/) > [“Both Richard and I sat silent and watched Jennifer Lee . She came across the room and over to us and swept our chess…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecil-brown/both-richard-and-i-sat-silent-and-watched-jennifer-lee-she-came/) [Cecil Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecil-brown/) > [We have the right not to tolerate the intolerant. We should tolerate even them whenever we can do so without running a great risk;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/we-have-the-right-not-to-tolerate-the-intolerant-we-should-tolerate/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [I can be intolerant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-jason/i-can-be-intolerant/) [David Jason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-jason/) > [“These days, though, tolerance means that you accept the other person's views as being true or legitimate. If you claim that someone is wrong,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-copan/these-days-though-tolerance-means-that-you-accept-the-other-person-s/) [Paul Copan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-copan/) > [I think people are intolerant of artists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-chase/i-think-people-are-intolerant-of-artists/) [David Chase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-chase/) > [Let's stop being afraid ... to seem intolerant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pauline-marois/let-s-stop-being-afraid-to-seem-intolerant/) [Pauline Marois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pauline-marois/) > [“I represent everything that distances Richard Pryor from Peoria, Illinois' ghettos.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-lee/i-represent-everything-that-distances-richard-pryor-from-peoria/) [Jennifer Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-lee/) > [The tolerant liberal suddenly becomes very intolerant when their official religion is challenged.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-coulter/the-tolerant-liberal-suddenly-becomes-very-intolerant-when-their/) [Ann Coulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-coulter/) > [I'm H2O intolerant. -Sheldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/finding-nemo/i-m-h2o-intolerant-sheldon/) [Finding Nemo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/finding-nemo/) > [“Of course, everyone is intolerant of something or someone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/of-course-everyone-is-intolerant-of-something-or-someone/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) [Browse all 96 Intolerant quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intolerant/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I learned that very often the most intolerant and narrow-minded people are the ones who congratulate themselves on their tolerance and open-mindedness.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Christopher Hitchens" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-learned-that-very-often-the-most-intolerant-and-narrow-minded/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Intolerant" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-learned-that-very-often-the-most-intolerant-and-narrow-minded/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/735/christopher-hitchens-117_intolerant_i-learned-that-very-often-the-most-intol_3217066.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/735/christopher-hitchens-117_intolerant_i-learned-that-very-often-the-most-intol_3217066.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/735/christopher-hitchens-117_intolerant_i-learned-that-very-often-the-most-intol_3217066.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I learned that very often the most intolerant and narrow-minded people are the ones who congratulate…” — Christopher Hitchens", "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": "Christopher Hitchens", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I learned that very often the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-learned-that-very-often-the-most-intolerant-and-narrow-minded/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-learned-that-very-often-the-most-intolerant-and-narrow-minded/#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 } } ] } ```