--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The true wisdom of the philosopher ought…" description: "\"The true wisdom of the philosopher ought to insist in enjoying everything. Yet we apply ourselves to dissecting and destroying everything that is good ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f32/eugene-delacroix-6604_break_the-true-wisdom-of-the-philosopher-ought_283441.jpg" --- # The true wisdom of the philosopher ought to insist in… ![“The true wisdom of the philosopher ought to insist in enjoying everything. Yet we apply ourselves to dissecting and destroying everything that is good in itself, that has virtue, albeit the virtue there is in mere illusions. Nature gives us this life like a toy to a weak child. We want to see how…” quote by Eugene Delacroix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f32/eugene-delacroix-6604_break_the-true-wisdom-of-the-philosopher-ought_283441.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f32/eugene-delacroix-6604_break_the-true-wisdom-of-the-philosopher-ought_283441.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f32/eugene-delacroix-6604_break_the-true-wisdom-of-the-philosopher-ought_283441.jpg) > “The true wisdom of the philosopher ought to insist in enjoying everything. Yet we apply ourselves to dissecting and destroying everything that is good in itself, that has virtue, albeit the virtue there is in mere illusions. Nature gives us this life like a toy to a weak child. We want to see how it all works; we break everything. There remains in our hands, and before our eyes, stupid and opened too late, the sterile wreckage, fragments that will not again make a whole. The good is so simple.” [Eugene Delacroix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-delacroix/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human curiosity often destroys what is inherently good, leaving only broken remnants. **In simple terms:** We break what we should cherish. Key Takeaway Respect and preserve natural goodness. Themes philosophy human nature destruction preservation Mood reflective critical Type philosophical ethical When to use this quote - environmental conservation - personal relationships - artistic creation - ethical decision making Key Concepts existentialism virtue illusion nature Questions to Reflect On - What simple joys are you neglecting? - How can curiosity be channeled positively? A Different Perspective The quote may overgeneralize human behavior without acknowledging constructive curiosity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Dissecting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dissecting/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Illusion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illusion/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Philosopher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosopher/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [This life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/this-life/) [Too late](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/too-late/) [Toys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/toys/) [True wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/true-wisdom/) [Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virtue/) [Wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wisdom/) ## Related quotes > [The philosopher ought never to try to avoid the duty of making up his mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mortimer-adler/the-philosopher-ought-never-to-try-to-avoid-the-duty-of-making-up-his/) [Mortimer Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mortimer-adler/) > [The US is the wrecking machine that is destroying everything. The world is hoping that China will somehow come to the rescue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-us-is-the-wrecking-machine-that-is-destroying-everything-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [At this time the fashion is to bring something to jazz that I reject. They speak of freedom. But one has no right, under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thelonious-monk/at-this-time-the-fashion-is-to-bring-something-to-jazz-that-i-reject/) [Thelonious Monk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thelonious-monk/) > [Dividing the swing into its parts is like dissecting a cat. You'll have blood and guts and bones all over the place. But you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-jones/dividing-the-swing-into-its-parts-is-like-dissecting-a-cat-you-ll/) [Ernest Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-jones/) > [I sometimes, in my sprightly moments, consider myself, in my great chair at school, as some dictator at the head of a commonwealth. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-adams/i-sometimes-in-my-sprightly-moments-consider-myself-in-my-great-chair/) [John Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-adams/) > [Analysing comedy is like dissecting a frog. Nobody laughs and the frog dies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-cryer/analysing-comedy-is-like-dissecting-a-frog-nobody-laughs-and-the-frog/) [Barry Cryer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-cryer/) > [I'm a writer, so I like dissecting things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hal-sparks/i-m-a-writer-so-i-like-dissecting-things/) [Hal Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hal-sparks/) > [To write poetry, like sincere poetry, it is like performing heart surgery on yourself without anesthesia...in public...You are peeling back layers. You are dissecting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amir-sulaiman/to-write-poetry-like-sincere-poetry-it-is-like-performing-heart/) Amir Sulaiman > [ I didn't get into Tupac \[Shakur\] until a little later, once I started understanding rap and people's stories. Eminem was the first rapper that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyga/i-didn-t-get-into-tupac-shakur-until-a-little-later-once-i-started/) [Tyga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyga/) > [Understanding humor is like dissecting a live frog. It can be done, but the frog tends to die in the process.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/understanding-humor-is-like-dissecting-a-live-frog-it-can-be-done-but/) [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) > [Beyond natural history Other biological sciences take up the study at other levels of organization: dissecting the individual into organs and tissues and seeing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marston-bates/beyond-natural-history-other-biological-sciences-take-up-the-study-at/) [Marston Bates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marston-bates/) > [The process that we go through in recording with Tool is very organic, but at the same time it is very thought out. There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maynard-james-keenan/the-process-that-we-go-through-in-recording-with-tool-is-very-organic/) [Maynard James Keenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maynard-james-keenan/) > [What a magnificent body, how I should like to see it on the dissecting table.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivan-turgenev/what-a-magnificent-body-how-i-should-like-to-see-it-on-the-dissecting/) [Ivan Turgenev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivan-turgenev/) > [I'm all about dissecting everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sal-vulcano/i-m-all-about-dissecting-everything/) [Sal Vulcano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sal-vulcano/) > [I don't like to discuss my work in a lot of detail; I'm afraid of dissecting it in a way that is not good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-kane/i-don-t-like-to-discuss-my-work-in-a-lot-of-detail-i-m-afraid-of/) [Carol Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-kane/) ## More by Eugene Delacroix > [A wife of your own stature is the greatest of all blessings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-delacroix/a-wife-of-your-own-stature-is-the-greatest-of-all-blessings/) [Eugene Delacroix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-delacroix/) > [“Men of genius are made not by new ideas, but by an idea which possesses them, namely, that what has been said has not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-delacroix/men-of-genius-are-made-not-by-new-ideas-but-by-an-idea-which/) [Eugene Delacroix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-delacroix/) > [Every time I await a model, even when I am most pressed to time, I am overjoyed when the time comes and I tremble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-delacroix/every-time-i-await-a-model-even-when-i-am-most-pressed-to-time-i-am/) [Eugene Delacroix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-delacroix/) > [The things one experiences alone with oneself are very much stronger and purer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-delacroix/the-things-one-experiences-alone-with-oneself-are-very-much-stronger/) [Eugene Delacroix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-delacroix/) > [I believe it safe to say that all progress must lead, not to further progress, but finally to the negation of progress, a return…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-delacroix/i-believe-it-safe-to-say-that-all-progress-must-lead-not-to-further/) [Eugene Delacroix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-delacroix/) > [Weaknesses in men of genius are usually an exaggeration of their personal feeling; in the hands of feeble imitators they become the most flagrant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-delacroix/weaknesses-in-men-of-genius-are-usually-an-exaggeration-of-their/) [Eugene Delacroix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-delacroix/) > [To be understood a writer has to explain almost everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-delacroix/to-be-understood-a-writer-has-to-explain-almost-everything/) [Eugene Delacroix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-delacroix/) > [Nature is a dictionary; one draws words from it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-delacroix/nature-is-a-dictionary-one-draws-words-from-it/) [Eugene Delacroix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-delacroix/) > [How can this world, which is so beautiful, include so much horror?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-delacroix/how-can-this-world-which-is-so-beautiful-include-so-much-horror/) [Eugene Delacroix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-delacroix/) > [Glory to that Homer of painting, to that father of warmth and enthusiasm... he really paints men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-delacroix/glory-to-that-homer-of-painting-to-that-father-of-warmth-and/) [Eugene Delacroix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-delacroix/) > [The contour should come last, only a very experienced eye can place it rightly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-delacroix/the-contour-should-come-last-only-a-very-experienced-eye-can-place-it/) [Eugene Delacroix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-delacroix/) > [ \[Photography is\] in some ways false just because it is so exact. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-delacroix/photography-is-in-some-ways-false-just-because-it-is-so-exact/) [Eugene Delacroix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-delacroix/) > [We work not only to produce, but to give value to time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-delacroix/we-work-not-only-to-produce-but-to-give-value-to-time/) [Eugene Delacroix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-delacroix/) > [Can any man say with certainty that he was happy at a particular moment of time which he remembers as being delightful? Remembering it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-delacroix/can-any-man-say-with-certainty-that-he-was-happy-at-a-particular/) [Eugene Delacroix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-delacroix/) > [Always, at the back of your soul, there is something that says to you, 'Mortal, drawn from eternal life for a short time, think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-delacroix/always-at-the-back-of-your-soul-there-is-something-that-says-to-you/) [Eugene Delacroix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-delacroix/) [Explore all 97 Eugene Delacroix quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-delacroix/) ## More Break quotes > [I made, like, five movies while I was in college. I think they just weren't memorable movies. I've taken breaks as the years have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodie-foster/i-made-like-five-movies-while-i-was-in-college-i-think-they-just/) [Jodie Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodie-foster/) > [Things are going well in Germany because the economy is booming and as an export-driven nation, we are profiting from the fact that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-schulz/things-are-going-well-in-germany-because-the-economy-is-booming-and/) [Martin Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-schulz/) > [There were songs that we cut out after we chose the name, because 'Praise Break' turned out to be an underlying concept that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-caesar/there-were-songs-that-we-cut-out-after-we-chose-the-name-because/) [Daniel Caesar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-caesar/) > [“He didn't break my heart. No one can break your heart except you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/he-didn-t-break-my-heart-no-one-can-break-your-heart-except-you/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) > [“She couldn't break the orbit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-schwab/she-couldn-t-break-the-orbit/) [Victoria Schwab](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-schwab/) > [Your pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses your understanding. Even as the stone of the fruit must break, that its heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/your-pain-is-the-breaking-of-the-shell-that-encloses-your/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) > [Must I go bound while you go free Must I love a manwho doesn't love me Must I be born with so little art…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/must-i-go-bound-while-you-go-free-must-i-love-a-manwho-doesn-t-love/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [I hadn't worked for a year when I had my Prison Break audition and it was the easiest audition I've ever had. I got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wentworth-miller/i-hadn-t-worked-for-a-year-when-i-had-my-prison-break-audition-and-it/) [Wentworth Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wentworth-miller/) > [If you strike upon a thought that baffles you, break off from that entanglement and try another, so shall your wits be fresh to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/if-you-strike-upon-a-thought-that-baffles-you-break-off-from-that/) [Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/) > [“A hole ain’t nothing either, but you can still break your neck in it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-donati/a-hole-ain-t-nothing-either-but-you-can-still-break-your-neck-in-it/) [Sara Donati](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-donati/) > [“I break things, a lot of things, but I don’t want one of them to be you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-briggs/i-break-things-a-lot-of-things-but-i-don-t-want-one-of-them-to-be-you/) [Patricia Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-briggs/) > [Motor racing's less of a sport these days than a commercial break doing 150 mph.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-dunne/motor-racing-s-less-of-a-sport-these-days-than-a-commercial-break/) Peter Dunne > [Much like teaching art to young art students age 10 to 15 or so on, you have to break it down into bite-sized pieces,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/much-like-teaching-art-to-young-art-students-age-10-to-15-or-so-on/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [The purpose is to be in gratitude forever. Live with applied consciousness, prosperity will break through the walls, flood you with it. You do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harbhajan-singh-yogi/the-purpose-is-to-be-in-gratitude-forever-live-with-applied/) [Harbhajan Singh Yogi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harbhajan-singh-yogi/) > [Never break another man's rice bowl.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akio-morita/never-break-another-man-s-rice-bowl/) [Akio Morita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akio-morita/) Browse all 8,188 Break quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The true wisdom of the philosopher ought to insist in enjoying everything. Yet we apply ourselves to dissecting and destroying everything that is good in itself, that has virtue, albeit the virtue there is in mere illusions. Nature gives us this life like a toy to a weak child. We want to see how it all works; we break everything. 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