--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Emotion is the foundation of reason." description: "\"Emotion is the foundation of reason.\" — David Brooks" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65b/david-brooks-644_emotion_emotion-is-the-foundation-of-reason-1570_157089.png" --- # Emotion is the foundation of reason. ![“Emotion is the foundation of reason.” quote by David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65b/david-brooks-644_emotion_emotion-is-the-foundation-of-reason-1570_157089.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65b/david-brooks-644_emotion_emotion-is-the-foundation-of-reason-1570_157089.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65b/david-brooks-644_emotion_emotion-is-the-foundation-of-reason-1570_157089.png) > “Emotion is the foundation of reason.” [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Emotion provides the raw material that shapes rational thought and decision‑making. **In simple terms:** Feelings guide logical choices. Key Takeaway Recognize feelings before reasoning. Themes emotion reason decisionmaking Mood reflective analytical Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - personal relationships - leadership - conflict resolution Key Concepts cognitive psychology affect theory Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance feeling and logic? - When might emotion hinder rationality? A Different Perspective Emotions can bias reasoning if unchecked. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Emotion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotion/) [Emotion Foundation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotion-foundation-1731963/) [Foundation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/foundation/) [Foundation Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/foundation-reason-1731964/) [Intelligence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intelligence/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) ## Related quotes > [Definitions are the foundation of reason. You can't reason without them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/definitions-are-the-foundation-of-reason-you-can-t-reason-without-them/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [The brain is not the mind. It is probably impossible to look at a map of brain activity and predict or even understand the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/the-brain-is-not-the-mind-it-is-probably-impossible-to-look-at-a-map/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [The strength of character and emotional intelligence to face your failures and learn from them are at the core of success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kiyosaki/the-strength-of-character-and-emotional-intelligence-to-face-your/) [Robert Kiyosaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kiyosaki/) > [When passions and appetites are stronger than the intellect, men are savages; when the intellect governs the passions, when the passions are servants, men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/when-passions-and-appetites-are-stronger-than-the-intellect-men-are/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [I believe that a newspaper is a great civic asset and that ownership is best in the hands of foundations or wealthy families that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-broad/i-believe-that-a-newspaper-is-a-great-civic-asset-and-that-ownership/) [Eli Broad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-broad/) > [“Emotion as well as reason belongs to the very stuff of history.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-smalley/emotion-as-well-as-reason-belongs-to-the-very-stuff-of-history/) [Beryl Smalley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-smalley/) > [A knowledge of the existence of something we cannot penetrate, of the manifestations of the profoundest reason and the most radiant beauty - it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/a-knowledge-of-the-existence-of-something-we-cannot-penetrate-of-the/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [Let us not dream that reason can ever be popular. 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Something made them stronger than the other kids, the ones who had died in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-higson/there-was-a-reason-these-boys-were-still-alive-though-something-made/) [Charlie Higson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-higson/) > [Nothing happens without a reason.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-monroe/nothing-happens-without-a-reason/) [Marilyn Monroe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-monroe/) > [Always find a reason to SMILE](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eiyhwa/always-find-a-reason-to-smile/) [Eiyhwa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eiyhwa/) > [Unless there was a reason for me to stay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/unless-there-was-a-reason-for-me-to-stay/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [If you can do anything for love there's no reason you can't do everything to someone you love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jayjay-guillermo/if-you-can-do-anything-for-love-there-s-no-reason-you-can-t-do/) [Jayjay Guillermo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jayjay-guillermo/) ## More by David Brooks > [The brain is not the mind. 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I think free trade has been wonderful for America on balance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/trade-has-suddenly-become-massively-unpopular-i-think-that-s/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [Politics is based on social identity, and so, again, there is going to be differences between rural and urban and between left and right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/politics-is-based-on-social-identity-and-so-again-there-is-going-to/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [Pain now is better than pain deferred.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/pain-now-is-better-than-pain-deferred/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [It’s worth noting that you can devote your life to community service and be a total schmuck. You can spend your life on Wall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/it-s-worth-noting-that-you-can-devote-your-life-to-community-service/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [If it feels all right for you, it's probably OK.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/if-it-feels-all-right-for-you-it-s-probably-ok/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [I do think Donald Trump is a fundamentally unstabilizing force and that the people who swore to uphold the Constitution are going to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/i-do-think-donald-trump-is-a-fundamentally-unstabilizing-force-and/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [Tim Kaine has been obviously a governor. He's been a senator. He's one of the smartest rising stars in the Democratic Party. He is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/tim-kaine-has-been-obviously-a-governor-he-s-been-a-senator-he-s-one/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [“Women, in general, are less visually aroused than men, a trait that has nearly cut the market for pornography in half.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/women-in-general-are-less-visually-aroused-than-men-a-trait-that-has/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [I wasn't born with a tie or with Mark Shields stapled to my left hip. I have another life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/i-wasn-t-born-with-a-tie-or-with-mark-shields-stapled-to-my-left-hip/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) [Explore all 431 David Brooks quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) ## More Emotion quotes > [It can sometimes make people fold into themselves and kind of run away, but I think in this case these characters are being forced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-deschanel/it-can-sometimes-make-people-fold-into-themselves-and-kind-of-run/) [Emily Deschanel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-deschanel/) > [Every action that helps us manifest our divine nature more and more is good; every action that retards it is evil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/every-action-that-helps-us-manifest-our-divine-nature-more-and-more/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [Of course I like you. It's because I like you I don't wanna be with you. It's a complicated emotion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlin/of-course-i-like-you-it-s-because-i-like-you-i-don-t-wanna-be-with/) [Marlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlin/) > [In discovering books, you became free to explore the full range of human motives, desires, secrets, and lies. All my life, people have scolded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/in-discovering-books-you-became-free-to-explore-the-full-range-of/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) > [“Emotion as well as reason belongs to the very stuff of history.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-smalley/emotion-as-well-as-reason-belongs-to-the-very-stuff-of-history/) [Beryl Smalley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-smalley/) > [It definitely helps to have the acting experience going into singing, because when you're singing, you have to portray the emotion you were feeling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-newman/it-definitely-helps-to-have-the-acting-experience-going-into-singing/) [Ryan Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-newman/) > [It is not my intention to explain Turkey, its culture and its problems. My literature has a universal concern: I want to bring people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/it-is-not-my-intention-to-explain-turkey-its-culture-and-its-problems/) [Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/) > [For me, the term "psychotherapy" is limiting. It implies that we work with mind and emotions, but excludes the body and pays scant attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jed-diamond/for-me-the-term-psychotherapy-is-limiting-it-implies-that-we-work/) [Jed Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jed-diamond/) > [People are disturbed not by things but by the view they take of them. They may forget what you said, but they will never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/people-are-disturbed-not-by-things-but-by-the-view-they-take-of-them/) [Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/) > [There cannot be any communication except through form. If there is no form, you cannot create emotion in the spectator.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-resnais/there-cannot-be-any-communication-except-through-form-if-there-is-no/) [Alain Resnais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-resnais/) > [A knowledge of the existence of something we cannot penetrate, of the manifestations of the profoundest reason and the most radiant beauty - it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/a-knowledge-of-the-existence-of-something-we-cannot-penetrate-of-the/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [ Music \[is\] the third rail of life. You grabbed it to shock yourself out of the dull drag of hours. To feel something. To… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-hill/music-is-the-third-rail-of-life-you-grabbed-it-to-shock-yourself-out/) [Joe Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-hill/) > [“What if each time you experienced an emotion, you acknowledged it, accepted it, and became curious about its message for you (instead of trying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vironika-tugaleva/what-if-each-time-you-experienced-an-emotion-you-acknowledged-it/) [Vironika Tugaleva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vironika-tugaleva/) > [For war to man, like childbirth to women, is simplifying in its emotions and activities. All the real problems of life can be put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/for-war-to-man-like-childbirth-to-women-is-simplifying-in-its/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [Many humanists have argued that happiness involves a combination of hedonism and creative moral development; that an exuberant life fuses excellence and enjoyment, meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kurtz/many-humanists-have-argued-that-happiness-involves-a-combination-of/) [Paul Kurtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kurtz/) [Browse all 7,204 Emotion quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotion/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Emotion is the foundation of reason.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "David Brooks" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/emotion-is-the-foundation-of-reason/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Emotion" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/emotion-is-the-foundation-of-reason/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65b/david-brooks-644_emotion_emotion-is-the-foundation-of-reason-1570_157089.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65b/david-brooks-644_emotion_emotion-is-the-foundation-of-reason-1570_157089.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65b/david-brooks-644_emotion_emotion-is-the-foundation-of-reason-1570_157089.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Emotion is the foundation of reason.” — David Brooks", "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": "David Brooks", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Emotion is the foundation of reason.", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/emotion-is-the-foundation-of-reason/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/emotion-is-the-foundation-of-reason/#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 } } ] } ```