--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: No theory is too false, no fable too…" description: "\"No theory is too false, no fable too absurd, no superstition too degrading for acceptance when it has become embedded in common belief. Men will submit..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/68e/henry-george-8103_absurd_no-theory-is-too-false-no-fable-too-absu_70212.jpg" --- # No theory is too false, no fable too absurd, no… ![“No theory is too false, no fable too absurd, no superstition too degrading for acceptance when it has become embedded in common belief. Men will submit themselves to torture and to death, mothers will immolate [burn] their children at the bidding of beliefs they thus accept.” quote by Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/68e/henry-george-8103_absurd_no-theory-is-too-false-no-fable-too-absu_70212.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/68e/henry-george-8103_absurd_no-theory-is-too-false-no-fable-too-absu_70212.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/68e/henry-george-8103_absurd_no-theory-is-too-false-no-fable-too-absu_70212.jpg) > “No theory is too false, no fable too absurd, no superstition too degrading for acceptance when it has become embedded in common belief. Men will submit themselves to torture and to death, mothers will immolate \[burn\] their children at the bidding of beliefs they thus accept.” [Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Beliefs, no matter how irrational, gain power when they become socially entrenched, leading people to commit extreme acts in their name. **In simple terms:** Socially embedded beliefs can justify extreme behavior. Key Takeaway Embedded beliefs can drive self‑destructive actions. Themes social conformity belief power extremism psychology of obedience cultural narratives Mood cautionary somber reflective Type aphorism warning observation When to use this quote - mass hysteria - religious fanaticism - political propaganda - cult indoctrination Key Concepts social pressure groupthink cognitive dissonance moral relativism Practical Applications - critical thinking education - media literacy programs Questions to Reflect On - How do we recognize when a belief has become harmful? - What mechanisms can protect individuals from destructive conformity? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Absurd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absurd/) [Acceptance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acceptance/) [Belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Fables](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fables/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mother/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Superstition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/superstition/) [Superstitions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/superstitions/) [Torture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/torture/) ## Related quotes > [We dont have to accept each others beliefs..but we do have to accept each others right to believe them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/we-dont-have-to-accept-each-others-beliefs-but-we-do-have-to-accept/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [The prevailing idea seems to be, that I come to God and ask Him for something that I want, and that I expect Him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-w-pink/the-prevailing-idea-seems-to-be-that-i-come-to-god-and-ask-him-for/) [Arthur W. Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-w-pink/) > [“No man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship or ministry or shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-paul-davis/no-man-shall-be-compelled-to-frequent-or-support-any-religious-2/) [John Paul Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-paul-davis/) > [“We, on the contrary–basing ourselves on a tradition much more ancient and real than the one which can be claimed by the 'faith' of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julius-evola/we-on-the-contrary-basing-ourselves-on-a-tradition-much-more-ancient/) [Julius Evola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julius-evola/) > [Tell me there is a God in the serene heavens that will damn his children for the expression of an honest belief! More men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/tell-me-there-is-a-god-in-the-serene-heavens-that-will-damn-his/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [And by the way, my belief is that if men were the ones getting pregnant, abortions would be easier to get than food poisoning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-miller/and-by-the-way-my-belief-is-that-if-men-were-the-ones-getting/) [Dennis Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-miller/) > [My own belief is all men should be feminists, and with enthusiasm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-dunn/my-own-belief-is-all-men-should-be-feminists-and-with-enthusiasm/) [Andy Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-dunn/) > [Almighty God hath created the mind free. All attempts to influence it by temporal punishments or burthens...are a departure from the plan of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/almighty-god-hath-created-the-mind-free-all-attempts-to-influence-it/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Well aware that the opinions and belief of men depend not on their own will, but follow involuntarily the evidence proposed to their minds;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/well-aware-that-the-opinions-and-belief-of-men-depend-not-on-their/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [He had fallen into the error of all liberals: the belief that men are prepared to reform themselves, that good will attracts good will,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/he-had-fallen-into-the-error-of-all-liberals-the-belief-that-men-are/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In England Giordano Bruno had given lectures on the plurality of worlds, and in that country had written, in Italian, his most important works.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-william-draper/in-england-giordano-bruno-had-given-lectures-on-the-plurality-of/) [John William Draper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-william-draper/) > [“My central belief, though, is that men are made to protect the territory assigned to them and to assure that everything within that territory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-mansfield/my-central-belief-though-is-that-men-are-made-to-protect-the/) [Stephen Mansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-mansfield/) > [“This process is known as closed bidding and is not as formal as contract bidding, which is discussed later in the chapter.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruby-parker-puckett/this-process-is-known-as-closed-bidding-and-is-not-as-formal-as/) [Ruby Parker Puckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruby-parker-puckett/) > [I am a handmaiden of Death. I walk in His dark shadow and do His bidding. Serving Him is my only purpose in this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-am-a-handmaiden-of-death-i-walk-in-his-dark-shadow-and-do-his/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The international game has changed for bidding cities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-ueberroth/the-international-game-has-changed-for-bidding-cities/) [Peter Ueberroth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-ueberroth/) ## More by Henry George > [Private ownership of land is the nether mill-stone. Material progress is the upper mill-stone. Between them, with an increasing pressure, the working classes are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-george/private-ownership-of-land-is-the-nether-mill-stone-material-progress/) [Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) > [As it becomes more and more difficult to get land, so will the virtual enslavement of the laboring-classe s go on. As the value…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-george/as-it-becomes-more-and-more-difficult-to-get-land-so-will-the-virtual/) [Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) > [In all the new states of the Union, land monopolization has gone on at an alarming rate, but in none of them so fast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-george/in-all-the-new-states-of-the-union-land-monopolization-has-gone-on-at/) [Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) > [The ideal social state is not that in which each gets an equal amount of wealth, but in which each gets in proportion to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-george/the-ideal-social-state-is-not-that-in-which-each-gets-an-equal-amount/) [Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) > [The state, it cannot too often be repeated, does nothing, and can give nothing, which it does not take from somebody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-george/the-state-it-cannot-too-often-be-repeated-does-nothing-and-can-give/) [Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) > [It is not from top to bottom that societies die; it is from bottom to top.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-george/it-is-not-from-top-to-bottom-that-societies-die-it-is-from-bottom-to/) [Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) > [That amid our highest civilization men faint and die with want is not due to the niggardliness of nature, but to the injustice of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-george/that-amid-our-highest-civilization-men-faint-and-die-with-want-is-not/) [Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) > [I do not think that any sorrow of youth or manhood equalled in intensity or duration the black and hopeless misery which followed the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-george/i-do-not-think-that-any-sorrow-of-youth-or-manhood-equalled-in/) [Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) > [What protectionism teaches us, is to do to ourselves in time of peace what enemies seek to do to us in time of war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-george/what-protectionism-teaches-us-is-to-do-to-ourselves-in-time-of-peace/) [Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) > [It is too narrow an understanding of production which confines it merely to the making of things. Production includes not merely the making of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-george/it-is-too-narrow-an-understanding-of-production-which-confines-it/) [Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) > [It is not the business of government to make men virtuous or religious, or to preserve the fool from the consequences of his own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-george/it-is-not-the-business-of-government-to-make-men-virtuous-or/) [Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) > [Social progress makes the well-being of all more and more the business of each.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-george/social-progress-makes-the-well-being-of-all-more-and-more-the/) [Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) > [Let no man imagine that he has no influence. Whoever he may be, and wherever he may be placed, the man who thinks becomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-george/let-no-man-imagine-that-he-has-no-influence-whoever-he-may-be-and/) [Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) > [The value of a thing is the amount of laboring or work that its possession will save the possessor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-george/the-value-of-a-thing-is-the-amount-of-laboring-or-work-that-its/) [Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) > [The tolerance of wrong dulls our sense of its injustice. Men may become accustomed to theft, murder, even to slavery - that sum of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-george/the-tolerance-of-wrong-dulls-our-sense-of-its-injustice-men-may/) [Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) [Explore all 84 Henry George quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) ## More Absurd quotes > [“It seem absurd to me that they don't know, haven't felt any change or tremor, even as my life has been completely turned upside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/it-seem-absurd-to-me-that-they-don-t-know-haven-t-felt-any-change-or/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [When a person’s tongue is extensively wrong, it is absurd, no less than unscriptural, to say that their heart is right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-c-ryle/when-a-person-s-tongue-is-extensively-wrong-it-is-absurd-no-less-than/) [J. C. Ryle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-c-ryle/) > [Every sensible man, every honorable man, must hold the Christian sect in horror." "Christianity is the most ridiculous, the most absurd and bloody religion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/every-sensible-man-every-honorable-man-must-hold-the-christian-sect/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [It is human nature to think wisely and to act in an absurd fashion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatole-france/it-is-human-nature-to-think-wisely-and-to-act-in-an-absurd-fashion/) [Anatole France](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatole-france/) > [It is a dangerous and fateful presumption, besides the absurd temerity that it implies, to disdain what we do not comprehend. For after you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-a-dangerous-and-fateful-presumption-besides-the-absurd-temerity/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I thought to myself: if it’s true that every person has a star in the sky, mine must be distant, dim, and absurd. Perhaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sadegh-hedayat/i-thought-to-myself-if-it-s-true-that-every-person-has-a-star-in-the/) [Sadegh Hedayat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sadegh-hedayat/) > [If, indeed, a firearm were more dangerous to its possessors than to potential aggressors, would it not make sense for the government to arm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/if-indeed-a-firearm-were-more-dangerous-to-its-possessors-than-to/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [“You were torturing a cat," she says. "With a freaking prod." "A prod I built myself in metal shop," he says. 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But solitude also produces perverseness, the disproportianate, the absurd and the forbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-mann/solitude-produces-originality-bold-and-astonishing-beauty-poetry-but/) [Thomas Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mann/) [Browse all 1,644 Absurd quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absurd/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "No theory is too false, no fable too absurd, no superstition too degrading for acceptance when it has become embedded in common belief. 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