--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is not book learning young men need…" description: "\"It is not book learning young men need, nor instruction about this and that, but a stiffening of the vertebra which will cause them to be loyal to a tr..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f3/elbert-hubbard-510_book_it-is-not-book-learning-young-men-need-n_1961980.jpg" --- # It is not book learning young men need, nor instruction… ![“It is not book learning young men need, nor instruction about this and that, but a stiffening of the vertebra which will cause them to be loyal to a trust, to act promptly, concentrate their energies, do a thing.” quote by Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f3/elbert-hubbard-510_book_it-is-not-book-learning-young-men-need-n_1961980.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f3/elbert-hubbard-510_book_it-is-not-book-learning-young-men-need-n_1961980.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f3/elbert-hubbard-510_book_it-is-not-book-learning-young-men-need-n_1961980.jpg) > “It is not book learning young men need, nor instruction about this and that, but a stiffening of the vertebra which will cause them to be loyal to a trust, to act promptly, concentrate their energies, do a thing.” [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. True education is built on character and loyalty, not just facts, urging decisive, focused action aligned with trust. **In simple terms:** Learning should shape character and loyalty, not just knowledge. Key Takeaway Cultivate character, not just knowledge. Themes character loyalty action focus trust Mood inspirational reflective Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - teamwork - decision making - trust building - personal growth Key Concepts Moral development personal responsibility leadership Questions to Reflect On - What values should guide your actions? - How can loyalty be balanced with independent thought? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on obedience may suppress critical thinking. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Book learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book-learning/) [Causes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/causes/) [Energy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/energy/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Instruction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instruction/) [Loyal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loyal/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Men Need](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-need/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Stiffening](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stiffening-2500857/) [Stiffening Vertebra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stiffening-vertebra-3243783/) [Trust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trust/) [Vertebra Cause](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vertebra-cause-3243784/) [Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young/) [Young man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-man/) [Young men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-men/) ## Related quotes > [Faith, to my mind, is a stiffening process, a sort of mental starch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/faith-to-my-mind-is-a-stiffening-process-a-sort-of-mental-starch/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Stiffening the spine of progressive members of Congress is crucial.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-g-levin/stiffening-the-spine-of-progressive-members-of-congress-is-crucial/) [Ezra G. Levin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-g-levin/) > [Orthodoxy is a relaxation of the mind accompanied by a stiffening of the heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/orthodoxy-is-a-relaxation-of-the-mind-accompanied-by-a-stiffening-of/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [“Our great mistake in education is, as it seems to me, the worship of book-learning–the confusion of instruction and education. We strain the memory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lubbock/our-great-mistake-in-education-is-as-it-seems-to-me-the-worship-of/) [John Lubbock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lubbock/) > [“My mother was an excellent woman. Pious, virtuous. Kind. 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You couldn't afford to let the beauty of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-galloway/quiet-book-learning-in-monasteries-and-ethereal-music-sonnets-and/) [Janice Galloway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-galloway/) > [I feel a reassuring oneness with other people when I find that even my most intimate, anguished, socially inadmissible emotions and desires are known…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yi-fu-tuan/i-feel-a-reassuring-oneness-with-other-people-when-i-find-that-even/) [Yi-Fu Tuan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yi-fu-tuan/) > [I had always insisted that a good education was a synthesis of book learning and involvement in social action, that each enriched the other.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/i-had-always-insisted-that-a-good-education-was-a-synthesis-of-book/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“a good education is a synthesis of book learning and involvement in social action, because each enrich the other. The accumulation of knowledge, while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/a-good-education-is-a-synthesis-of-book-learning-and-involvement-in/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [I've always bought CDs and even when I was young and at primary school I had a massive collection of CDs. I just like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-macdonald/i-ve-always-bought-cds-and-even-when-i-was-young-and-at-primary/) [Amy Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-macdonald/) ## More by Elbert Hubbard > [The teacher is one who makes two ideas grow where only one grew before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/the-teacher-is-one-who-makes-two-ideas-grow-where-only-one-grew-before/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [The highest reward that God gives us for good work is the ability to do better](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/the-highest-reward-that-god-gives-us-for-good-work-is-the-ability-to/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [Art is nothing; it's a way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/art-is-nothing-it-s-a-way/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [Library: A place where the dead lie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/library-a-place-where-the-dead-lie/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [“If we cannot be happy and powerful and prey on others, we invent conscience and prey on ourselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/if-we-cannot-be-happy-and-powerful-and-prey-on-others-we-invent/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [The poor and ignorant will continue to lie and steal as long as the rich and educated show them how.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/the-poor-and-ignorant-will-continue-to-lie-and-steal-as-long-as-the/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [So long as governments set the example of killing their enemies, private individuals will occasionally kill theirs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/so-long-as-governments-set-the-example-of-killing-their-enemies/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [If I supply you with a thought, you may remember it and you may not. But if I can make you think a thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/if-i-supply-you-with-a-thought-you-may-remember-it-and-you-may-not/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 A conservative is a man who is too cowardly to fight and too fat to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/1-2-3-4-5-a-conservative-is-a-man-who-is-too-cowardly-to-fight-and/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [The great man is not so great as folks think, and the dull man is not quite so stupid as he seems. The difference…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/the-great-man-is-not-so-great-as-folks-think-and-the-dull-man-is-not/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [Every knock is a boost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/every-knock-is-a-boost/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [What boy well raised can compare with your street gamin who has the knowledge and the shrewdness of a grown-up broker.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/what-boy-well-raised-can-compare-with-your-street-gamin-who-has-the/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [Don't make excuses, make good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/don-t-make-excuses-make-good/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [What people need and what they want may be very different… Teachers are those who educate the people to appreciate the things they need.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/what-people-need-and-what-they-want-may-be-very-different-teachers/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [Men who sit back and pride themselves on their culture haven't any to speak of.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/men-who-sit-back-and-pride-themselves-on-their-culture-haven-t-any-to/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) [Explore all 506 Elbert Hubbard quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) ## More Book quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! 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There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I don't think I have made as much of my life as I should have. I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There are great books in this world and great worlds in books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bronte/there-are-great-books-in-this-world-and-great-worlds-in-books/) [Anne Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bronte/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [But I think that of all the literature that I studied, the book that did more than any other to fire my enthusiasm was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwame-nkrumah/but-i-think-that-of-all-the-literature-that-i-studied-the-book-that/) [Kwame Nkrumah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwame-nkrumah/) > [It's amazing to see things that are suggested in the book fully developed and so brilliantly realized through the artistry of the designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/it-s-amazing-to-see-things-that-are-suggested-in-the-book-fully/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“But I’ve developed a great reputation for wisdom by ordering more books than I ever had time to read, and reading more books, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/but-i-ve-developed-a-great-reputation-for-wisdom-by-ordering-more/) [Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/) [Browse all 29,378 Book quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It is not book learning young men need, nor instruction about this and that, but a stiffening of the vertebra which will cause them to be loyal to a trust, to act promptly, concentrate their energies, do a thing.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Elbert Hubbard" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/it-is-not-book-learning-young-men-need-nor-instruction-about-this-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/it-is-not-book-learning-young-men-need-nor-instruction-about-this-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f3/elbert-hubbard-510_book_it-is-not-book-learning-young-men-need-n_1961980.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f3/elbert-hubbard-510_book_it-is-not-book-learning-young-men-need-n_1961980.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f3/elbert-hubbard-510_book_it-is-not-book-learning-young-men-need-n_1961980.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It is not book learning young men need, nor instruction about this and that, but a stiffening of the…” — Elbert Hubbard", "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": "Elbert Hubbard", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It is not book learning young...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/it-is-not-book-learning-young-men-need-nor-instruction-about-this-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/it-is-not-book-learning-young-men-need-nor-instruction-about-this-and/#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 } } ] } ```