--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The human mind is not a dignified organ…" description: "\"“The human mind is not a dignified organ, and I do not see how we can exercise it sincerely except through eclecticism. And the only advice I would off..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b96/e-m-forster-2-1148_eclectic_the-human-mind-is-not-a-dignified-organ_1189233.jpg" --- # The human mind is not a dignified organ, and I do not see… ![“The human mind is not a dignified organ, and I do not see how we can exercise it sincerely except through eclecticism. And the only advice I would offer my fellow eclectics is: "Do not be proud of your inconsistency. It is a pity, it is a pity that we should be equipped like this. It is a pity…” quote by E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b96/e-m-forster-2-1148_eclectic_the-human-mind-is-not-a-dignified-organ_1189233.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b96/e-m-forster-2-1148_eclectic_the-human-mind-is-not-a-dignified-organ_1189233.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b96/e-m-forster-2-1148_eclectic_the-human-mind-is-not-a-dignified-organ_1189233.jpg) > ““The human mind is not a dignified organ, and I do not see how we can exercise it sincerely except through eclecticism. And the only advice I would offer my fellow eclectics is: "Do not be proud of your inconsistency. It is a pity, it is a pity that we should be equipped like this. It is a pity that Man cannot be at the same time impressive and truthful.”” [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The mind thrives on diverse ideas; inconsistency is natural, not a flaw. **In simple terms:** Embrace eclectic thinking. Key Takeaway Accept varied perspectives. Themes philosophy creativity self‑acceptance Mood introspective philosophical Type literary reflective When to use this quote - writing - research - personal growth Key Concepts eclecticism intellectual humility Questions to Reflect On - How do you reconcile contradictions? - What value does eclecticism bring to your life? A Different Perspective May lead to indecision. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Human mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-mind/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Do not be proud of your inconsistency. It is a pity, it is a pity that we should be equipped like this. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/do-not-be-proud-of-your-inconsistency-it-is-a-pity-it-is-a-pity-that/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Eclecticism is the degree zero of contemporary general culture: one listens to reggae, watches a western, eats McDonald's food for lunch and local cuisine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-francois-lyotard/eclecticism-is-the-degree-zero-of-contemporary-general-culture-one/) [Jean-Francois Lyotard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-francois-lyotard/) > [“Snow floated down every once in a while, but it was frail snow, like a memory fading into the distance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/snow-floated-down-every-once-in-a-while-but-it-was-frail-snow-like-a/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Mi čitamo knjige zato da bismo čitanjem proširili granice svog ličnog iskustva. Ako nam knjiga u tom pogledu ne daje apsolutno ništa, nijednog novog…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-i-pisarev/mi-itamo-knjige-zato-da-bismo-itanjem-pro-irili-granice-svog-li-nog/) D. I. Pisarev > [“English is the language through which I reach hearts from various corners of the world. English is the language through which I flirt with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/english-is-the-language-through-which-i-reach-hearts-from-various/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [“If Bengali is my mother, then English is my father and friend.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/if-bengali-is-my-mother-then-english-is-my-father-and-friend/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [“No doubts our generation is producing another form of grub street literature.. Welcome to the world of hack writers..”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/himmilicious/no-doubts-our-generation-is-producing-another-form-of-grub-street/) Himmilicious > [The life of your body may be sustained by daily bread and rice, but the life of your soul may only be sustained by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-life-of-your-body-may-be-sustained-by-daily-bread-and-rice-but/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I think literature totally fails when it has an agenda. - From an interview on the podcast Starship Sofa, December 2010.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/connie-willis/i-think-literature-totally-fails-when-it-has-an-agenda-from-an/) [Connie Willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/connie-willis/) > [Eclecticism - every truth is so true that any truth must be false.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-h-bradley/eclecticism-every-truth-is-so-true-that-any-truth-must-be-false/) [F. H. Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-h-bradley/) > [“Picasso’s eclecticism signifies the deliberate destruction of the unity of the personality; his imitations are protests against the cult of originality; his deformation of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-hauser/picasso-s-eclecticism-signifies-the-deliberate-destruction-of-the/) Arnold Hauser > [“To give you an idea of my state of mind I can not do better than compare it to one of those rooms we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-musset/to-give-you-an-idea-of-my-state-of-mind-i-can-not-do-better-than/) [Alfred De Musset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-musset/) > [How can we prevent this telescoping of cultures and styles from ending up in kitsch eclecticism, a cool hellenism excluding all critical judgment?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-bourriaud/how-can-we-prevent-this-telescoping-of-cultures-and-styles-from/) Nicolas Bourriaud > [“...history is inherently an eclectic discipline and the skills it requires are correspondingly diverse. And therein lie its strengths. Eclecticism is sometimes treated as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludmilla-jordanova/history-is-inherently-an-eclectic-discipline-and-the-skills-it/) Ludmilla Jordanova > [Rampant eclecticism is my middle name.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-ronstadt/rampant-eclecticism-is-my-middle-name/) [Linda Ronstadt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-ronstadt/) ## More by E.M. Forster > [“She gave up trying to understand herself, and the vast armies of the benighted, who follow neither the heart nor the brain, and march…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/she-gave-up-trying-to-understand-herself-and-the-vast-armies-of-the/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [“They had tried to reproduce their own attitude to life upon the stage, and to dress up as the middle-class English people they actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/they-had-tried-to-reproduce-their-own-attitude-to-life-upon-the-stage/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [“I believe in aristocracy, though -- if that is the right word, and if a democrat may use it. Not an aristocracy of power,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/i-believe-in-aristocracy-though-if-that-is-the-right-word-and-if-a/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [“Oh, what's the use of your fairmindedness if you never decide for yourself? Anyone gets hold of you and makes you do what they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/oh-what-s-the-use-of-your-fairmindedness-if-you-never-decide-for/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [“You mean that a Frenchman could share with a friend and yet not go to prison?’ ‘Share? Do you mean unite? If both are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/you-mean-that-a-frenchman-could-share-with-a-friend-and-yet-not-go-to/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [“Margaret realized the chaotic nature of our daily life, and its difference from the orderly sequence that has been fabricated by historians. Actual life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/margaret-realized-the-chaotic-nature-of-our-daily-life-and-its/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [“Everything seems just alike in these days.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/everything-seems-just-alike-in-these-days/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [“He had said it bravely, and that is why one can trust Beethoven when he says other things.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/he-had-said-it-bravely-and-that-is-why-one-can-trust-beethoven-when/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [“He whispered: ‘Is it this? Is this possible? I’ll put a marvel to you. That your cousin has always hoped. That from the very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/he-whispered-is-it-this-is-this-possible-i-ll-put-a-marvel-to-you/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [“Perhaps anything that he did would have pleased Lucy, but his awkwardness went straight to her heart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/perhaps-anything-that-he-did-would-have-pleased-lucy-but-his/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [“Because a thing is going strong now, it need not go strong for ever,' she said. 'This craze for motion has only set in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/because-a-thing-is-going-strong-now-it-need-not-go-strong-for-ever/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [“England was alive, throbbing through all her estuaries, crying for joy through the mouths of all her gulls, and the north wind, with contrary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/england-was-alive-throbbing-through-all-her-estuaries-crying-for-joy/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [“But the poetry of that kiss, the wonder of it, the magic that there was in life for hours after it--who can describe that?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/but-the-poetry-of-that-kiss-the-wonder-of-it-the-magic-that-there-was/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [“But that some sonatas of Beethoven are written tragic no one can gainsay; yet they can triumph or despair as the player decides, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/but-that-some-sonatas-of-beethoven-are-written-tragic-no-one-can/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [“He chanced to be in a lucid critical mood, and would not sympathize with exaltation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/he-chanced-to-be-in-a-lucid-critical-mood-and-would-not-sympathize/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) [Explore all 274 E.M. Forster quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) ## More Eclectic quotes > [A real education is not just eclectic, it defines it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rock-cowles/a-real-education-is-not-just-eclectic-it-defines-it/) [Rock Cowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rock-cowles/) > [I'm a really eclectic reader.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/i-m-a-really-eclectic-reader/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [I got a reputation for being 'eclectic' or some damn thing like that, but to me, the different kinds of music I play are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ry-cooder/i-got-a-reputation-for-being-eclectic-or-some-damn-thing-like-that/) [Ry Cooder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ry-cooder/) > [I'm just experimenting with every different type of music you can imagine and seeing where my voice lies and what sounds best. I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-church/i-m-just-experimenting-with-every-different-type-of-music-you-can/) [Charlotte Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-church/) > [I have never before, in my long and eclectic career, been gifted with such an abundance of natural beauty as I experienced filming 'War…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-spielberg/i-have-never-before-in-my-long-and-eclectic-career-been-gifted-with/) [Steven Spielberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-spielberg/) > [My mother, a very eclectic listener, had the first Doors album and gave it to me when I expressed interest in the band. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/my-mother-a-very-eclectic-listener-had-the-first-doors-album-and-gave/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [Eclectic yet classic with a playful bohemian twist is how Id describe my style.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-temperley/eclectic-yet-classic-with-a-playful-bohemian-twist-is-how-id-describe/) [Alice Temperley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-temperley/) > [Music's totally eclectic now. I saw a DJ the other day, he was on Virgin radio over here, and he said he played "Going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-weller/music-s-totally-eclectic-now-i-saw-a-dj-the-other-day-he-was-on/) [Paul Weller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-weller/) > [In other words, I have no truck for anyone who goes out and does an eclectic building.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minoru-yamasaki/in-other-words-i-have-no-truck-for-anyone-who-goes-out-and-does-an/) [Minoru Yamasaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minoru-yamasaki/) > [On nights that I'm feeling a need to stretch personally and artistically, I tend to put together outfits that are very quirky, mismatched and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esperanza-spalding/on-nights-that-i-m-feeling-a-need-to-stretch-personally-and/) [Esperanza Spalding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esperanza-spalding/) > [It's very much to do with how I'm feeling ... I love to be experimental and use eclectic mismatched things and put them together…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bat-for-lashes/it-s-very-much-to-do-with-how-i-m-feeling-i-love-to-be-experimental/) [Bat for Lashes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bat-for-lashes/) > [“One day The Universe Will be pleased by The fruit of man's works Excerpt from: 'Jacob's Ascent, New Collected poems by Mekael' © Mekael Shane 2019”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mekael-shane/one-day-the-universe-will-be-pleased-by-the-fruit-of-man-s-works/) [Mekael Shane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mekael-shane/) > [It's great that there are so many different kinds of books for kids and adults to choose from. I think an eclectic reader is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-m-martin/it-s-great-that-there-are-so-many-different-kinds-of-books-for-kids/) [Ann M. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-m-martin/) > [The only sort of descriptive adjective or catch phrase for my music would be 'eclectic.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moby/the-only-sort-of-descriptive-adjective-or-catch-phrase-for-my-music/) [Moby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moby/) > [I listen to a lot of podcasts, which are split down the middle between comedy and board game podcasts, and a couple of eclectic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-sommer/i-listen-to-a-lot-of-podcasts-which-are-split-down-the-middle-between/) [Rich Sommer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-sommer/) Browse all 248 Eclectic quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The human mind is not a dignified organ, and I do not see how we can exercise it sincerely except through eclecticism. And the only advice I would offer my fellow eclectics is: \"Do not be proud of your inconsistency. 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