--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: This willingness continually to revise…" description: "\"This willingness continually to revise one's own location in order to place oneself in the path of beauty is the basic impulse underlying education. On..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b23/elaine-scarry-28115_beauty_this-willingness-continually-to-revise-o_614188.png" --- # This willingness continually to revise one's own location… ![“This willingness continually to revise one's own location in order to place oneself in the path of beauty is the basic impulse underlying education. One submits oneself to other minds (teachers) in order to increase the chance that one will be looking in the right direction when a comet makes its…” quote by Elaine Scarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b23/elaine-scarry-28115_beauty_this-willingness-continually-to-revise-o_614188.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b23/elaine-scarry-28115_beauty_this-willingness-continually-to-revise-o_614188.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b23/elaine-scarry-28115_beauty_this-willingness-continually-to-revise-o_614188.png) > “This willingness continually to revise one's own location in order to place oneself in the path of beauty is the basic impulse underlying education. One submits oneself to other minds (teachers) in order to increase the chance that one will be looking in the right direction when a comet makes its sweep through a certain patch of sky.” [Elaine Scarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-scarry/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Education thrives when we seek beauty and align ourselves with inspiring ideas, guided by teachers. **In simple terms:** Learning seeks beauty, guided by teachers. Key Takeaway Seek beauty, learn from mentors. Themes education beauty growth Mood inspired thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - classroom learning - art appreciation - personal development - career mentorship Key Concepts Aesthetic appreciation epistemic humility Questions to Reflect On - How can we balance beauty and utility? - What role do teachers play in shaping vision? A Different Perspective May overemphasis on beauty limit practical skill acquisition. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) [Certain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certain/) [Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) [Comets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comets/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Impulse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/impulse/) [Increase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/increase/) [Location](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/location/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Oneself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oneself/) [Oneself Minds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oneself-minds-4982423/) [Oneself Path](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oneself-path-1732141/) [Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order/) [Patches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patches/) [Path](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/path/) [Place Oneself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/place-oneself-1732143/) [Right direction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right-direction/) [Sky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sky/) [Submit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/submit/) [Submits Oneself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/submits-oneself-4982422/) [Teacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teacher/) [Willingness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/willingness/) [Willingness Continually](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/willingness-continually-1732140/) ## Related quotes > [“This willingness continually to revise one's own location in order to place oneself in the path of beauty is the basic impulse underlying education.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-scarry/this-willingness-continually-to-revise-one-s-own-location-in-order-to-2/) [Elaine Scarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-scarry/) > [“About the best that can be done is to try to place oneself in a position to get lucky. Nothing is certain, but shrewd,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-l-o-connell/about-the-best-that-can-be-done-is-to-try-to-place-oneself-in-a/) [Robert L. O'Connell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-l-o-connell/) > [Finding oneself and one's path is like waking up on a foggy day. Be patient, and presently the fog will clear and that which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rasheed-ogunlaru/finding-oneself-and-one-s-path-is-like-waking-up-on-a-foggy-day-be/) [Rasheed Ogunlaru](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rasheed-ogunlaru/) > [By being seldom seen, I could not stir But like a comet I was wondered at.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/by-being-seldom-seen-i-could-not-stir-but-like-a-comet-i-was-wondered/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Consider, I pray, whether you are not renouncing all shame and sincerity to advance such principles. Because a comet appears in a group of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-bayle/consider-i-pray-whether-you-are-not-renouncing-all-shame-and/) [Pierre Bayle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-bayle/) > [What is there in places empty of matter? and Whence is it that the sun and planets gravitate toward one another without dense matter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-newton/what-is-there-in-places-empty-of-matter-and-whence-is-it-that-the-sun/) [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) > [“Comets are like cats: they have tails, and they do precisely what they want.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-h-levy/comets-are-like-cats-they-have-tails-and-they-do-precisely-what-they/) [David H. Levy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-h-levy/) > [Bayle, when writing on "Comets," discovered this; for having collected many things applicable to his work, as they stood quoted in some modern writers,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-d-israeli/bayle-when-writing-on-comets-discovered-this-for-having-collected/) [Isaac D'Israeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-d-israeli/) > [That beautiful sister of mine was an overwhelming and volatile mixture. One had the feeling that she'd been shot from a canon and showered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-bennett/that-beautiful-sister-of-mine-was-an-overwhelming-and-volatile/) [Joan Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-bennett/) > [Once I got into space, I was feeling very comfortable in the universe. I felt like I had a right to be anywhere in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-jemison/once-i-got-into-space-i-was-feeling-very-comfortable-in-the-universe/) [Mae Jemison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-jemison/) > [Human society is part of the general order, and the more our knowledge increases the less we are inclined to believe that the birth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-alfred-lynch/human-society-is-part-of-the-general-order-and-the-more-our-knowledge/) [Arthur Alfred Lynch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-alfred-lynch/) > [So that, were it the purpose of God to produce comets as signs of his wrath it would be true to say that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-bayle/so-that-were-it-the-purpose-of-god-to-produce-comets-as-signs-of-his/) [Pierre Bayle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-bayle/) > [Human history, like all great movements, was cyclical, and returned to the point of beginning. The idea of indefinite progress in a right line…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-bellamy/human-history-like-all-great-movements-was-cyclical-and-returned-to/) [Edward Bellamy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-bellamy/) > [It is always wonderful to be a curious comet wandering in the galaxy of a good book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/it-is-always-wonderful-to-be-a-curious-comet-wandering-in-the-galaxy/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“The star we're looking for isn't so very friendly," said Moomintroll. "Quite the contrary, in fact." "What did you say?" said Sniff. Moomintroll went…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tove-jansson/the-star-we-re-looking-for-isn-t-so-very-friendly-said-moomintroll/) [Tove Jansson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tove-jansson/) ## More by Elaine Scarry > [“When one goes on to find "better", or "higher", or "truer", or "more enduring", or "more widely agreed upon" forms of beauty, what happens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-scarry/when-one-goes-on-to-find-better-or-higher-or-truer-or-more-enduring/) [Elaine Scarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-scarry/) > [The generation is unceasing. Beauty, as both Plato’s Symposium and everyday life confirm, prompts the begetting of children: when the eye sees someone beautiful,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-scarry/the-generation-is-unceasing-beauty-as-both-plato-s-symposium-and/) [Elaine Scarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-scarry/) > [“Matisse never hoped to save lives. But he repeatedly said that he wanted to make paintings so serenely beautiful that when one came upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-scarry/matisse-never-hoped-to-save-lives-but-he-repeatedly-said-that-he/) [Elaine Scarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-scarry/) > [Beauty always takes place in the particular, and if there are no particulars, the chances of seeing it go down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-scarry/beauty-always-takes-place-in-the-particular-and-if-there-are-no/) [Elaine Scarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-scarry/) > [“The material world constrain us, often with gret beneficence, to see each person and thing in its time and place, its historical context. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-scarry/the-material-world-constrain-us-often-with-gret-beneficence-to-see/) [Elaine Scarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-scarry/) > [Permitted to inhabit neither the realm of the ideal nor the realm of the real, to be neither aspiration nor companion, beauty comes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-scarry/permitted-to-inhabit-neither-the-realm-of-the-ideal-nor-the-realm-of/) [Elaine Scarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-scarry/) > [Beauty always takes place in the particular.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-scarry/beauty-always-takes-place-in-the-particular/) [Elaine Scarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-scarry/) > [How one walks through the world, the endless small adjustments of balance, is affected by the shifting weights of beautiful things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-scarry/how-one-walks-through-the-world-the-endless-small-adjustments-of/) [Elaine Scarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-scarry/) > [Beauty brings copies of itself into being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-scarry/beauty-brings-copies-of-itself-into-being/) [Elaine Scarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-scarry/) > [“Our desire for beauty is likely to outlast its object because, as Kant once observed, unlike all other pleasures, the pleasure we take in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-scarry/our-desire-for-beauty-is-likely-to-outlast-its-object-because-as-kant/) [Elaine Scarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-scarry/) > [“Beauty as a “greeting”. At the moment one comes into the presence of something beautiful, it greets you. It lifts away from the neutral…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-scarry/beauty-as-a-greeting-at-the-moment-one-comes-into-the-presence-of/) [Elaine Scarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-scarry/) > [“Something beautiful fills the mind yet invites the search for something beyond itself, something larger or something of the same scale with which it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-scarry/something-beautiful-fills-the-mind-yet-invites-the-search-for/) [Elaine Scarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-scarry/) > [Injury is the thing every exhausting piece of strategy and every single weapon is designed to bring into being: it is not something inadvertently…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-scarry/injury-is-the-thing-every-exhausting-piece-of-strategy-and-every/) [Elaine Scarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-scarry/) > [“This willingness continually to revise one's own location in order to place oneself in the path of beauty is the basic impulse underlying education.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-scarry/this-willingness-continually-to-revise-one-s-own-location-in-order-to-2/) [Elaine Scarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-scarry/) > [“Beauty as lifesaving. Beauty quickens. It adrenalizes. It makes the heart beat faster. It makes life more vivid, animated, living worth living.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-scarry/beauty-as-lifesaving-beauty-quickens-it-adrenalizes-it-makes-the/) [Elaine Scarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-scarry/) [Explore all 19 Elaine Scarry quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-scarry/) ## More Beauty quotes > [We do not want nowadays temples of worship and outward rites and ceremonies. What we really want is an Asram. We want a place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/we-do-not-want-nowadays-temples-of-worship-and-outward-rites-and/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [How could anybody confuse truth with beauty, I thought as I looked at him. Truth came with sunken eyes, bony or scarred, decayed. Its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/how-could-anybody-confuse-truth-with-beauty-i-thought-as-i-looked-at/) [Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/) > [A thing of beauty is a joy for ever;It's loveliness increase;it will never pass into nothingness;but still will keep a bower quiet for us,and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/a-thing-of-beauty-is-a-joy-for-ever-it-s-loveliness-increase-it-will/) [John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/) > [To fathom the power, to witness the beauty, to bathe in the fountain, to swing on the spiral of our divinity, and still be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tool/to-fathom-the-power-to-witness-the-beauty-to-bathe-in-the-fountain-to/) [Tool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tool/) > [The term "black metal" has become a lot looser, or can include a larger range of sounds and extra-musical aesthetics, not just Satan and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-marston/the-term-black-metal-has-become-a-lot-looser-or-can-include-a-larger/) [Colin Marston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-marston/) > [“We've all met people who are beautiful on the outside, however, when they open their mouths to speak, they have nothing of substance to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-c-young/we-ve-all-met-people-who-are-beautiful-on-the-outside-however-when/) [Susan C. Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-c-young/) > [There are various orders of beauty, causing men to make fools of themselves in various styles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/there-are-various-orders-of-beauty-causing-men-to-make-fools-of/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [To me, the beauty of a quilt or a dress lies within the stitches and the thought of the person who made them. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie/to-me-the-beauty-of-a-quilt-or-a-dress-lies-within-the-stitches-and/) [Natalie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie/) > [“do not misunderstand person by beauty You really do not know its real or Mask on dirty thoughts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-zaki-ansari/do-not-misunderstand-person-by-beauty-you-really-do-not-know-its-real/) [Mohammed Zaki Ansari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-zaki-ansari/) > [“I already love in you your beauty, but I am only beginning to love in you that which is eternal and ever precious –…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/i-already-love-in-you-your-beauty-but-i-am-only-beginning-to-love-in/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [Call her beautiful a million times and she won't believe you. Call her ugly once, and she will never forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tumblr/call-her-beautiful-a-million-times-and-she-won-t-believe-you-call-her/) [Tumblr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tumblr/) > [Time can but make her beauty over again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-butler-yeats/time-can-but-make-her-beauty-over-again/) [William Butler Yeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-butler-yeats/) > [ The social \[media channel\] isn't about beauty contests and popularity contests. They're a distortion, a caricature of the real thing. It's about trust, connection,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umair-haque/the-social-media-channel-isn-t-about-beauty-contests-and-popularity/) [Umair Haque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umair-haque/) > [“What about you? What do you do?” I needed to ask questions, draw him out. I needed to find out all the information I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-avery-ellison/what-about-you-what-do-you-do-i-needed-to-ask-questions-draw-him-out/) [Kate Avery Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-avery-ellison/) [Browse all 24,662 Beauty quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "This willingness continually to revise one's own location in order to place oneself in the path of beauty is the basic impulse underlying education. 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