--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: since dispassionate self-knowledge is not…" description: "\"“since dispassionate self-knowledge is not a quality held in much esteem by the majority of the human race,”\" — Donald E. Westlake" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e3d/donald-e-westlake-4285_human-race_since-dispassionate-self-knowledge-is-no_1873304.jpg" --- # since dispassionate self-knowledge is not a quality held… ![“since dispassionate self-knowledge is not a quality held in much esteem by the majority of the human race,” quote by Donald E. Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e3d/donald-e-westlake-4285_human-race_since-dispassionate-self-knowledge-is-no_1873304.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e3d/donald-e-westlake-4285_human-race_since-dispassionate-self-knowledge-is-no_1873304.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e3d/donald-e-westlake-4285_human-race_since-dispassionate-self-knowledge-is-no_1873304.jpg) > ““since dispassionate self-knowledge is not a quality held in much esteem by the majority of the human race,”” [Donald E. Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Self‑knowledge that lacks emotional detachment is undervalued by most people, who prefer feeling‑based judgments. **In simple terms:** People ignore detached self‑awareness. Key Takeaway Cultivate balanced self‑reflection. Themes self‑awareness emotional intelligence culture Mood reflective critical Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - therapy sessions - leadership training - personal journaling - team meetings Key Concepts psychology philosophy literature Questions to Reflect On - What benefits arise from objective self‑assessment? - How to balance feeling and rationality? A Different Perspective May be perceived as cold or unfeeling; can hinder empathy. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dispassionate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dispassionate/) [Dispassionate Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dispassionate-self-2599282/) [Esteem Majority](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/esteem-majority-2599281/) [Human race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-race/) [Majority Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/majority-human-263352/) [Respect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/respect/) [Self knowledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-knowledge/) ## Related quotes > [I think everybody, or the great majority of human beings, have this aspiration to become other: to live a different identity, at least for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/i-think-everybody-or-the-great-majority-of-human-beings-have-this/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [The majority of human conflict comes from people just feeling disrespected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-k-chappell/the-majority-of-human-conflict-comes-from-people-just-feeling/) [Paul K. Chappell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-k-chappell/) > [The majority of human beings do not turn to God because they have not enough happiness but because happiness is not enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-kaye-smith/the-majority-of-human-beings-do-not-turn-to-god-because-they-have-not/) [Sheila Kaye-Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-kaye-smith/) > [God so loved the world that he made up his mind to damn a large majority of the human race.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/god-so-loved-the-world-that-he-made-up-his-mind-to-damn-a-large/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [There cannot be found in the animal kingdom a bat, or any other creature, so blind in its own range of circumstance and connection,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-hunt-jackson/there-cannot-be-found-in-the-animal-kingdom-a-bat-or-any-other/) [Helen Hunt Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-hunt-jackson/) > [“It is interesting to note that the overwhelming majority of all human beings who have ever lived were or currently are Pagans.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-faulkner/it-is-interesting-to-note-that-the-overwhelming-majority-of-all-human/) [Mary Faulkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-faulkner/) > [“Inner rage is a phenomenally dense frequency that lies dormant in the vast majority of the human species.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dines/inner-rage-is-a-phenomenally-dense-frequency-that-lies-dormant-in-the/) [Christopher Dines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dines/) > [The one common undertaking and universal instrument of the great majority of the human race is the United Nations. A patient, constructive long-term use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trygve-lie/the-one-common-undertaking-and-universal-instrument-of-the-great/) [Trygve Lie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trygve-lie/) > [The vast majority of human beings are not interested in reason or satisfied with what it teaches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/the-vast-majority-of-human-beings-are-not-interested-in-reason-or/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [The majority of human beings live their whole lives unaware that they are only seeing a limited cone of vision at any moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-eagleman/the-majority-of-human-beings-live-their-whole-lives-unaware-that-they/) [David Eagleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-eagleman/) > [Perhaps the majority of human beings never think of standing by themselves, and choosing their own employments, till the sentence has been regularly promulgated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/perhaps-the-majority-of-human-beings-never-think-of-standing-by/) [William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) > [Whatever is worthy to be loved for anything is worthy of preservation. A wise and dispassionate legislator, if any such should ever arise among…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-savage-landor/whatever-is-worthy-to-be-loved-for-anything-is-worthy-of-preservation/) [Walter Savage Landor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-savage-landor/) > [A dispassionate white sun shone at the summit of the sky. I wanted to hone myself on it till I grew saintly and thin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/a-dispassionate-white-sun-shone-at-the-summit-of-the-sky-i-wanted-to/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [Fanaticism displays itself in the masses; but the masses were rarely fanaticised; and the crimes ascribed to it were commonly due to the calculations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-acton/fanaticism-displays-itself-in-the-masses-but-the-masses-were-rarely/) [Lord Acton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-acton/) > [“The rich eat life, the poor eat death; so what is the problem they ask?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-liccione/the-rich-eat-life-the-poor-eat-death-so-what-is-the-problem-they-ask/) [Anthony Liccione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-liccione/) ## More by Donald E. Westlake > [Science fiction is a weird category, because it's the only area of fiction I can think of where the story is not of primary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/science-fiction-is-a-weird-category-because-it-s-the-only-area-of/) [Donald E. Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/) > [The other thing that I got back then - the Parker novels have never had much of anything to do with race. There have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/the-other-thing-that-i-got-back-then-the-parker-novels-have-never-had/) [Donald E. Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/) > [I was writing everything. I grew up in Albany, New York, and I was never any farther west than Syracuse, and I wrote Westerns.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/i-was-writing-everything-i-grew-up-in-albany-new-york-and-i-was-never/) [Donald E. Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/) > [New York doesn't exactly have neighborhoods, the way most cities do. What it has is closer to distinct and separate villages, some of them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/new-york-doesn-t-exactly-have-neighborhoods-the-way-most-cities-do/) [Donald E. Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/) > [“In the cab going downtown, Doug believed he now understood the sensations felt by a person slowly sinking into the grasp of an octopus.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/in-the-cab-going-downtown-doug-believed-he-now-understood-the/) [Donald E. Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/) > [What did Jesus Christ say to the Teamsters? 'Do nothing till I get back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/what-did-jesus-christ-say-to-the-teamsters-do-nothing-till-i-get-back/) [Donald E. Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/) > [“Since he’d been born rich into a family that had been a long time rich, he’d never known the need to suppress his feelings,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/since-he-d-been-born-rich-into-a-family-that-had-been-a-long-time/) [Donald E. Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/) > [“Well, you might not think it to look at me,” Dortmunder told him, “but I got a family crest.” “Have you?” “Yeah. And it’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/well-you-might-not-think-it-to-look-at-me-dortmunder-told-him-but-i/) [Donald E. Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/) > [“telling the jokes—was the setups. Why were that priest, that rabbi, and that minister walking down that street? Where were they headed? How had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/telling-the-jokes-was-the-setups-why-were-that-priest-that-rabbi-and/) [Donald E. Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/) > [“Dortmunder followed Kelp as he carried the tray down along the bar past the regulars, where the third was now saying, “The idea of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/dortmunder-followed-kelp-as-he-carried-the-tray-down-along-the-bar/) [Donald E. Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/) > [Nothing about it interested me. Or about anything else, except making up stories. If literacy weren't so nearly universal, God knows what I'd be.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/nothing-about-it-interested-me-or-about-anything-else-except-making/) [Donald E. Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/) > [When Stark isn't off sulking somewhere, or whatever he's doing when he won't return my calls, I alternate between the two. That usually works…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/when-stark-isn-t-off-sulking-somewhere-or-whatever-he-s-doing-when-he/) [Donald E. Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/) > [“There are no Territories to light out for, not in this century. It was no longer easy to become the new you. New or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/there-are-no-territories-to-light-out-for-not-in-this-century-it-was/) [Donald E. Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/) > [“wish you would.” “Right. When I had the emerald again, I was in a cell. I guess they were afraid the rest of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/wish-you-would-right-when-i-had-the-emerald-again-i-was-in-a-cell-i/) [Donald E. Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/) > [Seem to be telling this, but really telling that. Three-dimensional writing, like three-dimensional chess. Nabokov was the other master of that. You could learn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/seem-to-be-telling-this-but-really-telling-that-three-dimensional/) [Donald E. Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/) [Explore all 113 Donald E. Westlake quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/) ## More Dispassionate quotes > [“The rich eat life, the poor eat death; so what is the problem they ask?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-liccione/the-rich-eat-life-the-poor-eat-death-so-what-is-the-problem-they-ask/) [Anthony Liccione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-liccione/) > [Fanaticism displays itself in the masses; but the masses were rarely fanaticised; and the crimes ascribed to it were commonly due to the calculations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-acton/fanaticism-displays-itself-in-the-masses-but-the-masses-were-rarely/) [Lord Acton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-acton/) > [A dispassionate white sun shone at the summit of the sky. I wanted to hone myself on it till I grew saintly and thin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/a-dispassionate-white-sun-shone-at-the-summit-of-the-sky-i-wanted-to/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [Whatever is worthy to be loved for anything is worthy of preservation. A wise and dispassionate legislator, if any such should ever arise among…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-savage-landor/whatever-is-worthy-to-be-loved-for-anything-is-worthy-of-preservation/) [Walter Savage Landor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-savage-landor/) > [The ‘I’ character in journalism is almost pure invention. Unlike the ‘I’ of autobiography, who is meant to be seen as a representation of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-malcolm/the-i-character-in-journalism-is-almost-pure-invention-unlike-the-i/) [Janet Malcolm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-malcolm/) > [The mysteries of a universe made of drops of fire and clods of mud do not concern us in the least. The fate of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-mysteries-of-a-universe-made-of-drops-of-fire-and-clods-of-mud-do/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [Dispassionate objectivity is itself a passion, for the real and for the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-maslow/dispassionate-objectivity-is-itself-a-passion-for-the-real-and-for/) [Abraham Maslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-maslow/) > [The fascinating thing to a dispassionate observer about the structure of life in the Soviet Union is that in their efforts to produce an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dos-passos/the-fascinating-thing-to-a-dispassionate-observer-about-the-structure/) [John Dos Passos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dos-passos/) > [the sun is as dispassionate as the hand of a man who greets you with his mind on other things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/the-sun-is-as-dispassionate-as-the-hand-of-a-man-who-greets-you-with/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [“Some people would regard people who look like they do as ugly if they did not look like them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/some-people-would-regard-people-who-look-like-they-do-as-ugly-if-they/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [The emotional tone or affect of the tale should be hot and engaged, not remote and dispassionate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-di-filippo/the-emotional-tone-or-affect-of-the-tale-should-be-hot-and-engaged/) [Paul Di Filippo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-di-filippo/) > [Writing is self-taught. Consulting other people only teaches you to depend on their reactions, which may or may not be legitimate. Quit looking for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/writing-is-self-taught-consulting-other-people-only-teaches-you-to/) [Sue Grafton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-grafton/) > [The most glorious vision of the intellectual life is still that which is loosely called humanist: the idea of a mind committed yet dispassionate,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irving-howe/the-most-glorious-vision-of-the-intellectual-life-is-still-that-which/) [Irving Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irving-howe/) > [I am as dispassionate as it is possible for a human being to be and not be a machine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-burton/i-am-as-dispassionate-as-it-is-possible-for-a-human-being-to-be-and/) [Richard Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-burton/) > [ The step that a lot of people miss is a dispassionate evaluation of the reasons \[for rejection\]. If you can dispassionately evaluate the reasons… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-koppelman/the-step-that-a-lot-of-people-miss-is-a-dispassionate-evaluation-of/) [Brian Koppelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-koppelman/) [Browse all 63 Dispassionate quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dispassionate/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“since dispassionate self-knowledge is not a quality held in much esteem by the majority of the human race,”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Donald E. Westlake" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/since-dispassionate-self-knowledge-is-not-a-quality-held-in-much/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Dispassionate" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/since-dispassionate-self-knowledge-is-not-a-quality-held-in-much/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e3d/donald-e-westlake-4285_human-race_since-dispassionate-self-knowledge-is-no_1873304.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e3d/donald-e-westlake-4285_human-race_since-dispassionate-self-knowledge-is-no_1873304.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e3d/donald-e-westlake-4285_human-race_since-dispassionate-self-knowledge-is-no_1873304.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“since dispassionate self-knowledge is not a quality held in much esteem by the majority of the human race,” — Donald E. Westlake", "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": "Donald E. Westlake", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“since dispassionate self-knowledge is not a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/since-dispassionate-self-knowledge-is-not-a-quality-held-in-much/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/since-dispassionate-self-knowledge-is-not-a-quality-held-in-much/#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 } } ] } ```