--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: and he is forbidden the knowledge of…" description: "\"“and he is forbidden the knowledge of foreign languages. If he were allowed contact with foreigners he would discover that they are creatures similar t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8e/george-orwell-57_quote_and-he-is-forbidden-the-knowledge-of-for_1406417.jpg" --- # and he is forbidden the knowledge of foreign languages. If… ![“and he is forbidden the knowledge of foreign languages. If he were allowed contact with foreigners he would discover that they are creatures similar to himself and that most of what he has been told about them is lies. The sealed world in which he lives would be broken, and the fear, hatred and…” quote by George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8e/george-orwell-57_quote_and-he-is-forbidden-the-knowledge-of-for_1406417.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8e/george-orwell-57_quote_and-he-is-forbidden-the-knowledge-of-for_1406417.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8e/george-orwell-57_quote_and-he-is-forbidden-the-knowledge-of-for_1406417.jpg) > ““and he is forbidden the knowledge of foreign languages. If he were allowed contact with foreigners he would discover that they are creatures similar to himself and that most of what he has been told about them is lies. The sealed world in which he lives would be broken, and the fear, hatred and self-righteousness on which his morale depends might evaporate.”” [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Isolation and propaganda create fear; exposing shared humanity can dissolve prejudice. **In simple terms:** Seeing others as similar reduces hatred. Key Takeaway Seek genuine cross‑cultural contact. Themes fear prejudice isolation Mood critical thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - international diplomacy - education - media literacy - community integration Key Concepts human commonality propaganda cognitive bias Questions to Reflect On - What assumptions about "the other" do you hold? - How can you foster authentic dialogue? A Different Perspective Changing deep‑seated beliefs is slow and may meet resistance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Foreigners](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/foreigners/) ## Related quotes > [Translation is a two-edged instrument: it has the special purpose of demonstrating the learner's knowledge of the foreign language, either as a form of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-newmark/translation-is-a-two-edged-instrument-it-has-the-special-purpose-of/) Peter Newmark > [I do not have any firsthand knowledge of foreign interference in the 2016 election.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-parscale/i-do-not-have-any-firsthand-knowledge-of-foreign-interference-in-the/) [Brad Parscale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-parscale/) > [When I was in college, I became interested in various aspects of foreign policy and international relations. Even as a kid, I was interested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-eisler/when-i-was-in-college-i-became-interested-in-various-aspects-of/) [Barry Eisler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-eisler/) > [I have a long-standing interest in what I like to think of as 'forbidden knowledge:' methods of unarmed killing, lock picking, breaking and entry,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-eisler/i-have-a-long-standing-interest-in-what-i-like-to-think-of-as/) [Barry Eisler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-eisler/) > [an intoxication with forbidden knowledge in which the natural things become unimportant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/an-intoxication-with-forbidden-knowledge-in-which-the-natural-things/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) > [If he were allowed contact with foreigners he would discover that they are creatures similar to himself and that most of what he has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/if-he-were-allowed-contact-with-foreigners-he-would-discover-that-2/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“War prisoners apart, the average citizen of Oceania never sets eyes on a citizen of either Eurasia or Eastasia, and he is forbidden the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/war-prisoners-apart-the-average-citizen-of-oceania-never-sets-eyes-on/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [I would sooner be a foreigner in Spain than in most countries. How easy it is to make friends in Spain!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/i-would-sooner-be-a-foreigner-in-spain-than-in-most-countries-how/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Football, a game in which everyone gets hurt and every nation has its own style of play which seems unfair to foreigners.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/football-a-game-in-which-everyone-gets-hurt-and-every-nation-has-its/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“The Spaniards are good at many things, but not at making war. All foreigners are alike appalled by their inefficiency, above all their maddening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/the-spaniards-are-good-at-many-things-but-not-at-making-war-all/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [All people who have reached the point of becoming nations tend to despise foreigners, but there is not much doubt that the English-speaking races…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/all-people-who-have-reached-the-point-of-becoming-nations-tend-to/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“If he were allowed to contact with foreigners he would discover that they are creatures similar to himself and that most of what he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/if-he-were-allowed-to-contact-with-foreigners-he-would-discover-that/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [If he were allowed contact with foreigners he would discover that they are creatures similar to himself and that most of what he has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/if-he-were-allowed-contact-with-foreigners-he-would-discover-that/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [The knowledge of languages was very useful. I have a university degree in foreign languages and literature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-bonino/the-knowledge-of-languages-was-very-useful-i-have-a-university-degree/) [Emma Bonino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-bonino/) > [Wer fremde Sprachen nicht kennt, weiss nichts von seiner eigenen.He who is ignorant of foreign languages, knows not his own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/wer-fremde-sprachen-nicht-kennt-weiss-nichts-von-seiner-eigenen-he/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) ## More by George Orwell > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [It was given out that the animals there practised cannibalism, tortured one another with red-hot horseshoes, and had their females in common. This was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/it-was-given-out-that-the-animals-there-practised-cannibalism/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“The actual writing would be easy. All he had to do was to transfer to paper the interminable restless monologue that had been running…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/the-actual-writing-would-be-easy-all-he-had-to-do-was-to-transfer-to/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [He felt as though he were wandering in the forests of the sea bottom, lost in a monstrous world where he himself was the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/he-felt-as-though-he-were-wandering-in-the-forests-of-the-sea-bottom/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“if you took 1 Corinthians, chapter thirteen, and in every verse wrote 'money' instead of 'charity', the chapter had ten times as much meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/if-you-took-1-corinthians-chapter-thirteen-and-in-every-verse-wrote/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Happiness can exist only in acceptance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/happiness-can-exist-only-in-acceptance/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [And if all others accepted the lie which the Party imposed—if all records told the same tale—then the lie passed into history and became…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/and-if-all-others-accepted-the-lie-which-the-party-imposed-if-all/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“Whitman himself "accepted" a great deal that his contemporaries found unmentionable. For he is not only writing of the prairie, he also wanders through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/whitman-himself-accepted-a-great-deal-that-his-contemporaries-found/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“But I tell you, Winston, that reality is not external. Reality exists in the human mind, and nowhere else. Whatever the Party holds to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/but-i-tell-you-winston-that-reality-is-not-external-reality-exists-in/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“And the people under the sky were also very much the same...everywhere, all over the world, hundreds or thousands of millions of people just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/and-the-people-under-the-sky-were-also-very-much-the-same-everywhere/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Don’t you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought? In the end we shall make thoughtcrime literally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/don-t-you-see-that-the-whole-aim-of-newspeak-is-to-narrow-the-range/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Windmill or no windmill, he said, life would go on as it had always gone on--that is, badly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/windmill-or-no-windmill-he-said-life-would-go-on-as-it-had-always/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“Man is the only creature that consumes without producing. He does not give milk, he does not lay eggs, he is too weak to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/man-is-the-only-creature-that-consumes-without-producing-he-does-not/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [And the bigger the fall, the bigger the joke. It would be better fun to throw a custard pie at a bishop than at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/and-the-bigger-the-fall-the-bigger-the-joke-it-would-be-better-fun-to/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“Any writer or journalist who wants to retain his integrity finds himself thwarted by the general drift of society rather than by active persecution.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/any-writer-or-journalist-who-wants-to-retain-his-integrity-finds/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) [Explore all 1,657 George Orwell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) ## More Foreigners quotes > [Americans are very friendly and very suspicious, that is what Americans are and that is what always upsets the foreigner, who deals with them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-stein/americans-are-very-friendly-and-very-suspicious-that-is-what/) [Gertrude Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-stein/) > [Do you realize that in the past sixty years, the only foreigners the French have been able to drive out are American tourists?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-orben/do-you-realize-that-in-the-past-sixty-years-the-only-foreigners-the/) [Robert Orben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-orben/) > [“I don't want foreigners involved in my business. Jinn are one thing but I draw the line at Americans.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-willow-wilson/i-don-t-want-foreigners-involved-in-my-business-jinn-are-one-thing/) [G. Willow Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-willow-wilson/) > [Nearly all the Gauls are of a lofty stature, white, and of ruddy complexion; terrible from the sternness of their eyes, very quarrelsome, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ammianus-marcellinus/nearly-all-the-gauls-are-of-a-lofty-stature-white-and-of-ruddy/) [Ammianus Marcellinus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ammianus-marcellinus/) > [I'm getting less good at faking it. People in my family are noticing and asking what's wrong. My friends give me invitations to talk,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-manning/i-m-getting-less-good-at-faking-it-people-in-my-family-are-noticing/) [Martha Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-manning/) > [Faith, faith, faith in ourselves, faith, faith in God, this is the secret of greatness.If you have faith in all the three hundred and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/faith-faith-faith-in-ourselves-faith-faith-in-god-this-is-the-secret/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [Half of the time I don't know what they're talking about; their jokes seem to relate to a past that everyone but me has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-webster/half-of-the-time-i-don-t-know-what-they-re-talking-about-their-jokes/) [Jean Webster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-webster/) > [If he were allowed contact with foreigners he would discover that they are creatures similar to himself and that most of what he has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/if-he-were-allowed-contact-with-foreigners-he-would-discover-that/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [People love to hear the brag of the local boy, because they want him to be great, but the foreigner must deny that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/people-love-to-hear-the-brag-of-the-local-boy-because-they-want-him/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [“Tapi yang menyenangkan dalam sebuah perjalanan adalah menemukan diri kita sendiri; sebuah rumah yang sesungguhnya. Yang membuat kita tak akan merasa asing meski berada…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/windy-ariestanty/tapi-yang-menyenangkan-dalam-sebuah-perjalanan-adalah-menemukan-diri/) [Windy Ariestanty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/windy-ariestanty/) > [I first went to Barcelona in 1975 after university, and I stayed for three years. I learnt Catalan because that's what everyone speaks in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colm-toibin/i-first-went-to-barcelona-in-1975-after-university-and-i-stayed-for/) [Colm Toibin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colm-toibin/) > [We of alien looks or words must stick together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-j-sansom/we-of-alien-looks-or-words-must-stick-together/) [C.J. Sansom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-j-sansom/) > [A foreigner is an individual who is considered either comic or sinister. When the victim of a disaster - preferably natural but sometimes political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ralston-saul/a-foreigner-is-an-individual-who-is-considered-either-comic-or/) [John Ralston Saul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ralston-saul/) > [I agree with you, Mr. Chairman, that the working men are the basis of all governments, for the plain reason that they are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/i-agree-with-you-mr-chairman-that-the-working-men-are-the-basis-of/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [Modern man is educated to understand foreign languages and misunderstand foreigners.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/modern-man-is-educated-to-understand-foreign-languages-and/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) [Browse all 430 Foreigners quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/foreigners/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“and he is forbidden the knowledge of foreign languages. If he were allowed contact with foreigners he would discover that they are creatures similar to himself and that most of what he has been told about them is lies. The sealed world in which he lives would be broken, and the fear, hatred and self-righteousness on which his morale depends might evaporate.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "George Orwell" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/and-he-is-forbidden-the-knowledge-of-foreign-languages-if-he-were/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Foreigners" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/and-he-is-forbidden-the-knowledge-of-foreign-languages-if-he-were/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8e/george-orwell-57_quote_and-he-is-forbidden-the-knowledge-of-for_1406417.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8e/george-orwell-57_quote_and-he-is-forbidden-the-knowledge-of-for_1406417.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8e/george-orwell-57_quote_and-he-is-forbidden-the-knowledge-of-for_1406417.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“and he is forbidden the knowledge of foreign languages. If he were allowed contact with foreigners he would…” — George Orwell", "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": "George Orwell", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“and he is forbidden the knowledge...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/and-he-is-forbidden-the-knowledge-of-foreign-languages-if-he-were/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/and-he-is-forbidden-the-knowledge-of-foreign-languages-if-he-were/#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 } } ] } ```