--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The brilliant Schiller was wrong in his…" description: "\"The brilliant Schiller was wrong in his Joan of Arc when he said against stupidity the gods themselves contend in vain. It is actually by means of the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2df/christopher-hitchens-117_arcs_the-brilliant-schiller-was-wrong-in-his_967461.jpg" --- # The brilliant Schiller was wrong in his Joan of Arc when… ![“The brilliant Schiller was wrong in his Joan of Arc when he said against stupidity the gods themselves contend in vain. It is actually by means of the gods that we make our stupidity and gullibility into something ineffable.” quote by Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2df/christopher-hitchens-117_arcs_the-brilliant-schiller-was-wrong-in-his_967461.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2df/christopher-hitchens-117_arcs_the-brilliant-schiller-was-wrong-in-his_967461.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2df/christopher-hitchens-117_arcs_the-brilliant-schiller-was-wrong-in-his_967461.jpg) > “The brilliant Schiller was wrong in his Joan of Arc when he said against stupidity the gods themselves contend in vain. It is actually by means of the gods that we make our stupidity and gullibility into something ineffable.” [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. He argues that divine beings are blamed for stupidity, yet humans create their own folly through belief. **In simple terms:** Human folly is self‑generated, not divine. Key Takeaway Question the role of gods in rational thought. Themes religion human folly philosophy Mood skeptical analytical Type philosophical critical When to use this quote - Debate - academic discourse - personal belief - ethical decision‑making Key Concepts Theology critical reasoning Questions to Reflect On - Do you see divine influence as a cause or excuse for error? - How does belief shape your understanding of stupidity? A Different Perspective Faith can provide comfort despite logical critiques. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Brilliant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brilliant/) [Gullibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gullibility/) [Stupidity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stupidity/) [Vain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vain/) ## Related quotes > [“Who?” “Schiller. 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It is a sort of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/there-is-more-to-be-said-for-stupidity-than-people-imagine-personally/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“In the controversy that followed the prince's remarks, his most staunch defender was professor John Taylor, a scholar whose work I had last noticed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/in-the-controversy-that-followed-the-prince-s-remarks-his-most/) [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/) > [“The meeting with Hapgood came about because I had told Uncle Alex that I might try to get a job with a labor union…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut-jr/the-meeting-with-hapgood-came-about-because-i-had-told-uncle-alex/) [Kurt Vonnegut Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut-jr/) > [Against stupidity the very gods themselves contend in vain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-schiller/against-stupidity-the-very-gods-themselves-contend-in-vain/) [Friedrich Schiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-schiller/) > [Folly, thou conquerest, and I must yield! Against stupidity the very gods Themselves contend in vain. Exalted reason, Resplendent daughter of the head divine,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-schiller/folly-thou-conquerest-and-i-must-yield-against-stupidity-the-very/) [Friedrich Schiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-schiller/) > [Against stupidity the very Gods themselves toil in vain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-von-schiller/against-stupidity-the-very-gods-themselves-toil-in-vain/) [Friedrich Von Schiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-von-schiller/) > [“And from there, he wandered off into an argument with Friedrich Schiller's grandiose statement that human stupidity was what the gods fought in vain.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/and-from-there-he-wandered-off-into-an-argument-with-friedrich/) [John le Carré](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) > [With stupidity the gods themselves struggle in vain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-schiller/with-stupidity-the-gods-themselves-struggle-in-vain/) [Friedrich Schiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-schiller/) > [It is occasionally possible to charge Hell with a bucket of water, but against stupidity the gods themselves struggle in vain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-fleeson/it-is-occasionally-possible-to-charge-hell-with-a-bucket-of-water-but/) Doris Fleeson > [“Gegen die Dummheit kämpfen selbst die Götter vergebens ("Against stupidity the gods themselves contend in vain")”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-von-schiller/gegen-die-dummheit-k-mpfen-selbst-die-g-tter-vergebens-against/) [Friedrich Von Schiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-von-schiller/) > [Against stupidity the gods themselves contend in vain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/against-stupidity-the-gods-themselves-contend-in-vain/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Nothing surprises me now," I tell him. I am stoic. I am Joan of Arc, with liver damage and an unused penis.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/nothing-surprises-me-now-i-tell-him-i-am-stoic-i-am-joan-of-arc-with/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) ## 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. 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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 Arcs quotes > [It's a challenge to work a character's arc into a format in which you only have a very limited amount of time to grow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ginnifer-goodwin/it-s-a-challenge-to-work-a-character-s-arc-into-a-format-in-which-you/) [Ginnifer Goodwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ginnifer-goodwin/) > [Through the music I hope to give it an arc that gives it a greater sense of a journey through the set rather than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gotye/through-the-music-i-hope-to-give-it-an-arc-that-gives-it-a-greater/) [Gotye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gotye/) > [Because we grew up surrounded by big dramatic story arcs in books and movies, we think our lives are supposed to be filled with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/because-we-grew-up-surrounded-by-big-dramatic-story-arcs-in-books-and/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [Joan of Arc should be played as a "pain in the ass" and how do I know she was a "pain in the ass"?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-clurman/joan-of-arc-should-be-played-as-a-pain-in-the-ass-and-how-do-i-know/) [Harold Clurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-clurman/) > [When in doubt, the rule of threes is a rule that plays well with all of storytelling. 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