--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The knowledge that we have about what it…" description: "\"The knowledge that we have about what it is to be human that we have as a child is something we necessarily must lose.\" — Dennis Potter" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1a/dennis-potter-13787_child_the-knowledge-that-we-have-about-what-it_2657971.png" --- # The knowledge that we have about what it is to be human… ![“The knowledge that we have about what it is to be human that we have as a child is something we necessarily must lose.” quote by Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1a/dennis-potter-13787_child_the-knowledge-that-we-have-about-what-it_2657971.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1a/dennis-potter-13787_child_the-knowledge-that-we-have-about-what-it_2657971.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1a/dennis-potter-13787_child_the-knowledge-that-we-have-about-what-it_2657971.png) > “The knowledge that we have about what it is to be human that we have as a child is something we necessarily must lose.” [Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Childhood perception of humanity is a pure, unfiltered lens that often fades with adult conditioning. **In simple terms:** Childhood view of humanity is pure and often lost. Key Takeaway Preserve childlike wonder about humanity. Themes identity human nature memory loss growth Mood nostalgic reflective thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - parenting - education - therapy - personal reflection Key Concepts existentialism psychology developmental theory Questions to Reflect On - How can we retain childlike insight into humanity? - What aspects of adult life cause this loss? A Different Perspective Adults may rationalize loss of innocence as progress, overlooking its value. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/child/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Knowledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowledge/) ## Related quotes > [Whoever plays deep must necessarily lose his money or his character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-chesterfield/whoever-plays-deep-must-necessarily-lose-his-money-or-his-character/) [Lord Chesterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-chesterfield/) > [The winners shouldn't necessarily win, and the losers shouldn't necessarily lose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-landau/the-winners-shouldn-t-necessarily-win-and-the-losers-shouldn-t/) [Martin Landau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-landau/) > [“To be a human being is to be a child of God”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-bartolo-abela/to-be-a-human-being-is-to-be-a-child-of-god/) M. Bartolo-Abela > [How ignorant we are! How ignorant everyone is! We can cut across only a small area of the appallingly expanding fields of knowledge. No…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-barnett-gilson/how-ignorant-we-are-how-ignorant-everyone-is-we-can-cut-across-only-a/) [Mary Barnett Gilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-barnett-gilson/) > [I used to pass by a large computer system with the feeling that it represented the summed-up knowledge of human beings. It reassured me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-ullman/i-used-to-pass-by-a-large-computer-system-with-the-feeling-that-it/) [Ellen Ullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-ullman/) > [The library connects us with the insight and knowledge, painfully extracted from Nature, of the greatest minds that ever were, with the best teachers,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/the-library-connects-us-with-the-insight-and-knowledge-painfully/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [Those who have a tolerable knowledge of human nature will not stand in need of such lights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/those-who-have-a-tolerable-knowledge-of-human-nature-will-not-stand/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [“He who has not even a knowledge of common things is a brute among men. He who has an accurate knowledge of human concerns…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plotinus/he-who-has-not-even-a-knowledge-of-common-things-is-a-brute-among-men/) [Plotinus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plotinus/) > [“Until human being is not ready to receive knowledge, until then it is impossible for God to give knowledge to human being.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/avinash-rai/until-human-being-is-not-ready-to-receive-knowledge-until-then-it-is/) Avinash Rai > [Knowledge and human power are synonymous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/knowledge-and-human-power-are-synonymous/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [“What we should do, I suggest, is to give up the idea of ultimate sources of knowledge, and admit that all knowledge is human;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-r-popper/what-we-should-do-i-suggest-is-to-give-up-the-idea-of-ultimate/) [Karl R. Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-r-popper/) > [Knowledge of human nature is the beginning and end of political education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-adams/knowledge-of-human-nature-is-the-beginning-and-end-of-political/) [Henry Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-adams/) > [“The habit of knowledge is not human but devine.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heraclitus/the-habit-of-knowledge-is-not-human-but-devine/) [Heraclitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heraclitus/) > [“I said you. Take you, my daughter. Because I saw the tall man see you as a human child, not pieces of eight.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/i-said-you-take-you-my-daughter-because-i-saw-the-tall-man-see-you-as/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [There's nothing more toxic or deadly than a human child. A single touch could kill you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-coburn/there-s-nothing-more-toxic-or-deadly-than-a-human-child-a-single/) [James Coburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-coburn/) ## More by Dennis Potter > [Television's Mr. Filth: that's me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/television-s-mr-filth-that-s-me/) [Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/) > [We should always look back on our own past with a sort of contempt, as long as the tenderness is there - but please…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/we-should-always-look-back-on-our-own-past-with-a-sort-of-contempt-as/) [Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/) > [“My only regret is to die four pages too soon.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/my-only-regret-is-to-die-four-pages-too-soon/) [Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/) > [As a piece of literacy criticism, Freud's best writing is about Dostoyevsky. It's a kind of displaced literacy criticism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/as-a-piece-of-literacy-criticism-freud-s-best-writing-is-about/) [Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/) > [Words themselves - the very material of our discourse increasingly take on masks or disguises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/words-themselves-the-very-material-of-our-discourse-increasingly-take/) [Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/) > [The loss of Eden is personally experienced by every one of us as we leave the wonder and magic and also the pains and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/the-loss-of-eden-is-personally-experienced-by-every-one-of-us-as-we/) [Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/) > [Therapy, as opposed to analysis, is a whole construct of myth, beautiful and creative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/therapy-as-opposed-to-analysis-is-a-whole-construct-of-myth-beautiful/) [Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/) > [Metaphor is embodied in language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/metaphor-is-embodied-in-language/) [Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/) > [I have been aware, from the age of 6, that I had talent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/i-have-been-aware-from-the-age-of-6-that-i-had-talent/) [Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/) > [I was given talent, and if you are given it, it is your obligation to use it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/i-was-given-talent-and-if-you-are-given-it-it-is-your-obligation-to/) [Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/) > [The strangest thing that human speech and human writing can do is create a metaphor. That is an amazing leap, is it not?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/the-strangest-thing-that-human-speech-and-human-writing-can-do-is/) [Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/) > [People endure what they endure and they deal with it. It may corrupt them. It may lead them into all sorts of compensatory excesses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/people-endure-what-they-endure-and-they-deal-with-it-it-may-corrupt/) [Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/) > [You just don't know writers. They'll use anything, anybody. They'll eat their young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/you-just-don-t-know-writers-they-ll-use-anything-anybody-they-ll-eat/) [Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/) > [The thing about imagination is that by the very act of putting it down, there must be some truth in one's own imagination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/the-thing-about-imagination-is-that-by-the-very-act-of-putting-it/) [Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/) > [Ideals jump across the hierarchies of the printed word.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/ideals-jump-across-the-hierarchies-of-the-printed-word/) [Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/) [Explore all 46 Dennis Potter quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/) ## More Child quotes > [The thing about hitting kids is, think about if you were doing the same thing to another adult. Hitting your kid is really the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/the-thing-about-hitting-kids-is-think-about-if-you-were-doing-the/) [Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/) > [“Children's lives are always beginning and adults' lives are always ending. Or is it the opposite? Your childhood is always ending and your adult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-espach/children-s-lives-are-always-beginning-and-adults-lives-are-always/) [Alison Espach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-espach/) > [“As parents who make every effort we can to raise our children in loving security, we do not need to feel more guilt than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/as-parents-who-make-every-effort-we-can-to-raise-our-children-in/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [I want to make my music and be a happy woman, a good wife, a good mom and one day hopefully have a child…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leann-rimes/i-want-to-make-my-music-and-be-a-happy-woman-a-good-wife-a-good-mom/) [LeAnn Rimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leann-rimes/) > [I would have done well as a gypsy child, I think. A circus baby. I coulda played a great street urchin or ragamuffin. 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Parents who have little support--from friends, relatives, neighbors, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-kamerman/parents-who-are-stressed-or-disturbed-will-have-more-difficulty-in/) Sheila Kamerman > [My first three manuscripts were epic fantasy - like high fantasy - and then the fourth one was a historical fantasy about Mozart as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-lu/my-first-three-manuscripts-were-epic-fantasy-like-high-fantasy-and/) [Marie Lu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-lu/) [Browse all 10,700 Child quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/child/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The knowledge that we have about what it is to be human that we have as a child is something we necessarily must lose.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Dennis Potter" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/the-knowledge-that-we-have-about-what-it-is-to-be-human-that-we-have/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Child" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/the-knowledge-that-we-have-about-what-it-is-to-be-human-that-we-have/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1a/dennis-potter-13787_child_the-knowledge-that-we-have-about-what-it_2657971.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1a/dennis-potter-13787_child_the-knowledge-that-we-have-about-what-it_2657971.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1a/dennis-potter-13787_child_the-knowledge-that-we-have-about-what-it_2657971.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The knowledge that we have about what it is to be human that we have as a child is something we necessarily…” — Dennis Potter", "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": "Dennis Potter", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The knowledge that we have about...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/the-knowledge-that-we-have-about-what-it-is-to-be-human-that-we-have/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/the-knowledge-that-we-have-about-what-it-is-to-be-human-that-we-have/#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 } } ] } ```