--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We do not know what we see, but we see…" description: "\"We do not know what we see, but we see what we know.\" — Hans Rookmaaker" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af9/hans-rookmaaker-38063_funny_we-do-not-know-what-we-see-but-we-see-wh_2214853.jpg" --- # We do not know what we see, but we see what we know. ![“We do not know what we see, but we see what we know.” quote by Hans Rookmaaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af9/hans-rookmaaker-38063_funny_we-do-not-know-what-we-see-but-we-see-wh_2214853.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af9/hans-rookmaaker-38063_funny_we-do-not-know-what-we-see-but-we-see-wh_2214853.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af9/hans-rookmaaker-38063_funny_we-do-not-know-what-we-see-but-we-see-wh_2214853.jpg) > “We do not know what we see, but we see what we know.” [Hans Rookmaaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-rookmaaker/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Perception is shaped by prior knowledge, so what we see is filtered through what we already understand. **In simple terms:** We see through the lens of what we know. Key Takeaway Question your assumptions before interpreting. Themes perception knowledge cognitive bias interpretation philosophy Mood thoughtful critical inquisitive Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - education - media analysis - art criticism - decision making Key Concepts Epistemology constructivism visual cognition Questions to Reflect On - How do your beliefs shape what you notice? - Can you notice something new without prior expectations? A Different Perspective May overlook novel information that contradicts existing beliefs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) ## Related quotes > [By means of the iconic, artists express their view of reality and show their understanding of the structure of reality. They see what they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-rookmaaker/by-means-of-the-iconic-artists-express-their-view-of-reality-and-show/) [Hans Rookmaaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-rookmaaker/) > [When we pray, we must begin by conceiving God in full and vigorous images, but we must go on to acknowledge the inadequacy of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-farrer/when-we-pray-we-must-begin-by-conceiving-god-in-full-and-vigorous/) [Austin Farrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-farrer/) > [The rare moment is not the moment when there is something worth looking at, but the moment when we are capable of seeing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-wood-krutch/the-rare-moment-is-not-the-moment-when-there-is-something-worth/) [Joseph Wood Krutch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-wood-krutch/) > [He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-the-apostle/he-is-the-image-of-the-invisible-god-the-firstborn-over-all-creation/) [Paul the Apostle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-the-apostle/) > [I am no disbeliever in spiritual purpose and no vague believer. I see from the standpoint of Christian orthodoxy. This means that for me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/i-am-no-disbeliever-in-spiritual-purpose-and-no-vague-believer-i-see/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [Our eyes see very little and very badly – so people dreamed up the microscope to let them see invisible phenomena; they invented the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dziga-vertov/our-eyes-see-very-little-and-very-badly-so-people-dreamed-up-the/) [Dziga Vertov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dziga-vertov/) > [There is in all visible things an invisible fecundity, a dimmed light, a meek namelessness, a hidden wholeness. This mysterious unity and integrity is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/there-is-in-all-visible-things-an-invisible-fecundity-a-dimmed-light/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [The living cell almost always contains, locked in its interior, the visible or invisible products of its physiological activity or its nourishment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albrecht-kossel/the-living-cell-almost-always-contains-locked-in-its-interior-the/) Albrecht Kossel > [My work involves the physical manifestation of emotional reality. Thus, the invisible becomes visible; the normal, abnormal; and the familiar, unfamiliar. Ordinary life is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandy-skoglund/my-work-involves-the-physical-manifestation-of-emotional-reality-thus/) [Sandy Skoglund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandy-skoglund/) > [What I want to show in my work is the idea which hides itself behind so-called reality. I am seeking for the bridge which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-beckmann/what-i-want-to-show-in-my-work-is-the-idea-which-hides-itself-behind/) [Max Beckmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-beckmann/) > [How shall we define occultism? The word is derived from the Latin occultus, hidden; so that it is the study of the hidden laws…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-leadbeater/how-shall-we-define-occultism-the-word-is-derived-from-the-latin/) [Charles Webster Leadbeater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-leadbeater/) > [The moment of truth, the sudden emergence of a new insight, is an act of intuition. Such intuitions give the appearance of miraculous flushes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-moment-of-truth-the-sudden-emergence-of-a-new-insight-is-an-act/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [The door to the invisible must be visible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-daumal/the-door-to-the-invisible-must-be-visible/) [Rene Daumal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-daumal/) > [Faith is the capacity of the soul to perceive the abiding, the invisible in the visible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-baeck/faith-is-the-capacity-of-the-soul-to-perceive-the-abiding-the/) [Leo Baeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-baeck/) > [How do you turn the invisible into the visible? The first step is to define your dream precisely; the only limit to what you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robbins/how-do-you-turn-the-invisible-into-the-visible-the-first-step-is-to/) [Tony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robbins/) ## More by Hans Rookmaaker > [Jesus didn't come to make us Christian. Jesus came to make us fully human.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-rookmaaker/jesus-didn-t-come-to-make-us-christian-jesus-came-to-make-us-fully/) [Hans Rookmaaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-rookmaaker/) > [Art is a form of play rejoicing before the face of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-rookmaaker/art-is-a-form-of-play-rejoicing-before-the-face-of-god/) [Hans Rookmaaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-rookmaaker/) > [By means of the iconic, artists express their view of reality and show their understanding of the structure of reality. They see what they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-rookmaaker/by-means-of-the-iconic-artists-express-their-view-of-reality-and-show/) [Hans Rookmaaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-rookmaaker/) > [Art tries, literally, to picture the things which philosophy tries to put into carefully thought-out words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-rookmaaker/art-tries-literally-to-picture-the-things-which-philosophy-tries-to/) [Hans Rookmaaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-rookmaaker/) > [Art cannot be used to show the validity of Christianity; it should rather be the reverse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-rookmaaker/art-cannot-be-used-to-show-the-validity-of-christianity-it-should/) [Hans Rookmaaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-rookmaaker/) > [Modern art did not just happen. It came as a result of a deep reversal of spiritual values in the Age of Reason, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-rookmaaker/modern-art-did-not-just-happen-it-came-as-a-result-of-a-deep-reversal/) [Hans Rookmaaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-rookmaaker/) > [Our world has changed for better or for worse. It is for us to find truth and beauty for today, constantly re-applying the truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-rookmaaker/our-world-has-changed-for-better-or-for-worse-it-is-for-us-to-find/) [Hans Rookmaaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-rookmaaker/) > [How can you say that modern art is ugly,when you worship the Lord in a building painted like this?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-rookmaaker/how-can-you-say-that-modern-art-is-ugly-when-you-worship-the-lord-in/) [Hans Rookmaaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-rookmaaker/) > [We are at home here. Alienation is unnecessary. Contact with reality at a deep level is part of the Christian's life. He enters into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-rookmaaker/we-are-at-home-here-alienation-is-unnecessary-contact-with-reality-at/) [Hans Rookmaaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-rookmaaker/) > [We may appreciate the efforts, and even the greatness of the men who have tried to find the universal, the general 'behind' appearances; yet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-rookmaaker/we-may-appreciate-the-efforts-and-even-the-greatness-of-the-men-who/) [Hans Rookmaaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-rookmaaker/) > [What is Christian in art does not lie in the theme but in the spirit of it, in its wisdom and the understanding of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-rookmaaker/what-is-christian-in-art-does-not-lie-in-the-theme-but-in-the-spirit/) [Hans Rookmaaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-rookmaaker/) [Explore all 12 Hans Rookmaaker quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-rookmaaker/) ## More Funny quotes > [You cant be controlling in improv.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-walsh/you-cant-be-controlling-in-improv/) [Matt Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-walsh/) > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [Joking about violence is not funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perez-hilton/joking-about-violence-is-not-funny/) [Perez Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perez-hilton/) > [It's a hard thing to describe. It's just this sense that you got something to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/it-s-a-hard-thing-to-describe-it-s-just-this-sense-that-you-got/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [God reveals Himself through surprises.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/god-reveals-himself-through-surprises/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [Sometimes I look at my awesome twitter followers & think to myself, What the hell would I do without them :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/sometimes-i-look-at-my-awesome-twitter-followers-think-to-myself-what/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [The happy have whole days,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colley-cibber/the-happy-have-whole-days/) [Colley Cibber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colley-cibber/) > [Congratulations to Facebook on going public with all my private information...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/congratulations-to-facebook-on-going-public-with-all-my-private/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Why are things as they are and not otherwise?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johannes-kepler/why-are-things-as-they-are-and-not-otherwise/) [Johannes Kepler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johannes-kepler/) > [I've been funny my whole life. This is a gift God gave me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-morgan/i-ve-been-funny-my-whole-life-this-is-a-gift-god-gave-me/) [Tracy Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-morgan/) > [Penis goes in , sperms cums out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/penis-goes-in-sperms-cums-out/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [If you were to send a werewolf to the moon, would he be a werewolf permanently?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-schaal/if-you-were-to-send-a-werewolf-to-the-moon-would-he-be-a-werewolf/) [Kristen Schaal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-schaal/) > [When you have a choice, choose happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pancho-barnes/when-you-have-a-choice-choose-happy/) Pancho Barnes > [If you can connect people, you can create the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-heiferman/if-you-can-connect-people-you-can-create-the-future/) [Scott Heiferman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-heiferman/) > [Don't think OF the market. Think AS the market.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-fishman/don-t-think-of-the-market-think-as-the-market/) Michael Fishman [Browse all 39,858 Funny quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We do not know what we see, but we see what we know.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Hans Rookmaaker" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-rookmaaker/we-do-not-know-what-we-see-but-we-see-what-we-know/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Funny" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-rookmaaker/we-do-not-know-what-we-see-but-we-see-what-we-know/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af9/hans-rookmaaker-38063_funny_we-do-not-know-what-we-see-but-we-see-wh_2214853.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af9/hans-rookmaaker-38063_funny_we-do-not-know-what-we-see-but-we-see-wh_2214853.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af9/hans-rookmaaker-38063_funny_we-do-not-know-what-we-see-but-we-see-wh_2214853.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We do not know what we see, but we see what we know.” — Hans Rookmaaker", "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": "Hans Rookmaaker", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-rookmaaker/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We do not know what we...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-rookmaaker/we-do-not-know-what-we-see-but-we-see-what-we-know/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-rookmaaker/we-do-not-know-what-we-see-but-we-see-what-we-know/#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 } } ] } ```