--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Scholars make things very easy for…" description: "\"“Scholars make things very easy for themselves. They stick a couple of old potsherds together, search for one or two adjacent cultures, stick a label o..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/371/erich-von-daniken-41400_culture_scholars-make-things-very-easy-for-thems_2405419.png" --- # Scholars make things very easy for themselves. They stick… ![“Scholars make things very easy for themselves. They stick a couple of old potsherds together, search for one or two adjacent cultures, stick a label on the restored find and—hey, presto!—once again everything fits splendidly into the approved pattern of thought.” quote by Erich von Däniken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/371/erich-von-daniken-41400_culture_scholars-make-things-very-easy-for-thems_2405419.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/371/erich-von-daniken-41400_culture_scholars-make-things-very-easy-for-thems_2405419.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/371/erich-von-daniken-41400_culture_scholars-make-things-very-easy-for-thems_2405419.png) > ““Scholars make things very easy for themselves. They stick a couple of old potsherds together, search for one or two adjacent cultures, stick a label on the restored find and—hey, presto!—once again everything fits splendidly into the approved pattern of thought.”” [Erich von Däniken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-von-daniken/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Scholars simplify complex artifacts, forcing them into familiar narratives, limiting true understanding. **In simple terms:** Simplification hides complexity. Key Takeaway Question assumptions, seek nuance. Themes archaeology interpretation bias Mood critical inquisitive Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - museum displays - academic curricula - media reporting Key Concepts cognitive bias historical reductionism Questions to Reflect On - What assumptions shape your view? - How can you explore deeper meanings? A Different Perspective Over‑simplification can mislead. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture/) [Cultures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cultures/) [Scholar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scholar/) [Scholars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scholars/) ## Related quotes > [“Many are the scholars who make it their professional occupation to occupy themselves in this towering edifice of culture, exploring its nook and crannies,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-wolterstorff/many-are-the-scholars-who-make-it-their-professional-occupation-to/) [Nicholas Wolterstorff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-wolterstorff/) > [Could I get mansions covering ten thousand miles, I'd house all the poor scholars and make them beam with smiles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fu-du/could-i-get-mansions-covering-ten-thousand-miles-i-d-house-all-the/) Fu Du > [The sheer diversity of literature in the Bible is one of the secrets of its continuing popularity through the centuries. There is something for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-drane/the-sheer-diversity-of-literature-in-the-bible-is-one-of-the-secrets/) John Drane > [Early Islam was a time of great creativity. Scholars excelled in sciences and literature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/basmah-bint-saud/early-islam-was-a-time-of-great-creativity-scholars-excelled-in/) [Basmah bint Saud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/basmah-bint-saud/) > [Now, scholars can be very useful and necessary, in their own dull and unamusing way. They provide a lot of information. It's just that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-hoff/now-scholars-can-be-very-useful-and-necessary-in-their-own-dull-and-2/) [Benjamin Hoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-hoff/) > [Remember that our nation's first great leaders were also our first great scholars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/remember-that-our-nation-s-first-great-leaders-were-also-our-first/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [“Scholars sometimes use technical terms (i.e., Hypostases) for no good reason, other than the fact that they are the technical terms scholars use.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bart-d-ehrman/scholars-sometimes-use-technical-terms-i-e-hypostases-for-no-good/) [Bart D. Ehrman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bart-d-ehrman/) > [This is a landmark work in the history of African American studies and American intellectual history. Writing with verve, Jackson brings to life a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-sollors/this-is-a-landmark-work-in-the-history-of-african-american-studies/) Werner Sollors > [“I am a great scholar, my mind is full of wonders.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/i-am-a-great-scholar-my-mind-is-full-of-wonders/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [“Now, scholars can be very useful and necessary, in their own dull and up amusing way. They provide a lot of information. It's just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-hoff/now-scholars-can-be-very-useful-and-necessary-in-their-own-dull-and/) [Benjamin Hoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-hoff/) > [I do think that I have been fortunate to make friendships with other scholars, and form reading groups where ideas are exchanged and papers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-d-crisp/i-do-think-that-i-have-been-fortunate-to-make-friendships-with-other/) [Oliver D. Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-d-crisp/) > [Film is not the art of scholars, but of illiterates.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-herzog/film-is-not-the-art-of-scholars-but-of-illiterates/) [Werner Herzog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-herzog/) > [Scholars are wont to sell their birthright for a mess of learning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/scholars-are-wont-to-sell-their-birthright-for-a-mess-of-learning/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [My school is attended by near three hundred scholars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-lancaster/my-school-is-attended-by-near-three-hundred-scholars/) [Joseph Lancaster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-lancaster/) > [“To be knowledgeable, sit before scholars; to be wise, sit before life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/to-be-knowledgeable-sit-before-scholars-to-be-wise-sit-before-life/) [Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/) ## More by Erich von Däniken > [“Erão os Deuses Astronautas?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-von-daniken/er-o-os-deuses-astronautas/) [Erich von Daniken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-von-daniken/) > [“Space travelers in the gray mists of time? An inadmissible question to academic scientists. Anyone who asks questions like that ought to see a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-von-daniken/space-travelers-in-the-gray-mists-of-time-an-inadmissible-question-to/) [Erich von Däniken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-von-daniken/) > [If we want to set out on the aruous search for the truth, we must all summon up the courage to leave the lines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-von-daniken/if-we-want-to-set-out-on-the-aruous-search-for-the-truth-we-must-all/) [Erich von Däniken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-von-daniken/) > [I am old, but the Gods still love me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-von-daniken/i-am-old-but-the-gods-still-love-me/) [Erich von Däniken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-von-daniken/) > [Could it be that God was an extra-terrestrial? What do we mean when we say that heaven is in the clouds? From Jesus Christ…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-von-daniken/could-it-be-that-god-was-an-extra-terrestrial-what-do-we-mean-when-we/) [Erich von Däniken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-von-daniken/) > [Not until we have taken a look into the future shall we be strong and bold enough to investigate our paste honestly and impartially](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-von-daniken/not-until-we-have-taken-a-look-into-the-future-shall-we-be-strong-and/) [Erich von Däniken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-von-daniken/) > [I don't expect that the scientific community now embraces and kisses me 'Oh wonderful, great you did!' we have to live with critics, this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-von-daniken/i-don-t-expect-that-the-scientific-community-now-embraces-and-kisses/) [Erich von Däniken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-von-daniken/) > [“The time has come for us to admit our insignificance by making discoveries in the infinite unexplored cosmos. Only then shall we realize that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-von-daniken/the-time-has-come-for-us-to-admit-our-insignificance-by-making/) [Erich von Däniken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-von-daniken/) [Explore all 9 Erich von Däniken quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-von-daniken/) ## More Culture quotes > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [A lot of indigenous cultures are deeply involved in working with ancestor spirits, elemental spirits, and demons. Many of these cultures feel that, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/a-lot-of-indigenous-cultures-are-deeply-involved-in-working-with/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [In the hearing world, I'm constantly having to lip-read and trying to understand what's going on. Sign language is so beautiful. It gives you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-ayling-ellis/in-the-hearing-world-i-m-constantly-having-to-lip-read-and-trying-to/) [Rose Ayling-Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-ayling-ellis/) > [I was born and raised in Orlando, where the economy and culture has been powerfully shaped by tourism, and so I've long been interested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/i-was-born-and-raised-in-orlando-where-the-economy-and-culture-has/) [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) > [Our times demand the declaration of the world's resources as the common heritage of all people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacque-fresco/our-times-demand-the-declaration-of-the-world-s-resources-as-the/) [Jacque Fresco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacque-fresco/) > [The U.S.-Mexican border es un herida abierta where the Third World grates against the first and bleeds. And before a scab forms it hemorrhages…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-e-anzald-a/the-u-s-mexican-border-es-un-herida-abierta-where-the-third-world/) [Gloria E. Anzaldúa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-e-anzald-a/) > [What it comes down to for me is this: Will the technologies of communication in our culture, serve to enlighten us and help us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-waters/what-it-comes-down-to-for-me-is-this-will-the-technologies-of/) [Roger Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-waters/) > [I think it's useful to experience other types of dance and other cultures, and the life of a classical dancer these days is certainly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-bull/i-think-it-s-useful-to-experience-other-types-of-dance-and-other/) [Deborah Bull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-bull/) > [In the movie, the stars above the ship bear no correspondence to any constellations in a real sky. Worse yet, while the heroine bobs...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/in-the-movie-the-stars-above-the-ship-bear-no-correspondence-to-any/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [It is not my intention to explain Turkey, its culture and its problems. My literature has a universal concern: I want to bring people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/it-is-not-my-intention-to-explain-turkey-its-culture-and-its-problems/) [Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/) > [I don't think the distinction between high and low culture exists anymore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-scott/i-don-t-think-the-distinction-between-high-and-low-culture-exists/) [Jeremy Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-scott/) > [You get below the Mason-Dixon line and you have some of the best music, culture, the two races, the literature, and it's so rich.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-duvall/you-get-below-the-mason-dixon-line-and-you-have-some-of-the-best/) [Robert Duvall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-duvall/) > [It is proposed that a form of free dialogue may well be one of the most effective ways of investigating the crisis which faces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bohm/it-is-proposed-that-a-form-of-free-dialogue-may-well-be-one-of-the/) [David Bohm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bohm/) > [“Being grounded in your lifelong culture and your personal perspective, you are comfortable with the way you see things and may believe it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-c-young/being-grounded-in-your-lifelong-culture-and-your-personal-perspective/) [Susan C. Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-c-young/) [Browse all 15,940 Culture quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Scholars make things very easy for themselves. They stick a couple of old potsherds together, search for one or two adjacent cultures, stick a label on the restored find and—hey, presto!—once again everything fits splendidly into the approved pattern of thought.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Erich von Däniken" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-von-daniken/scholars-make-things-very-easy-for-themselves-they-stick-a-couple-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Culture" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-von-daniken/scholars-make-things-very-easy-for-themselves-they-stick-a-couple-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/371/erich-von-daniken-41400_culture_scholars-make-things-very-easy-for-thems_2405419.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/371/erich-von-daniken-41400_culture_scholars-make-things-very-easy-for-thems_2405419.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/371/erich-von-daniken-41400_culture_scholars-make-things-very-easy-for-thems_2405419.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Scholars make things very easy for themselves. They stick a couple of old potsherds together, search for one…” — Erich von Däniken", "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": "Erich von Däniken", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-von-daniken/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Scholars make things very easy for...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-von-daniken/scholars-make-things-very-easy-for-themselves-they-stick-a-couple-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-von-daniken/scholars-make-things-very-easy-for-themselves-they-stick-a-couple-of/#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 } } ] } ```