--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We know from several statements of…" description: "\"“We know from several statements of Knecht's that he wanted to write the former Master's biography, but official duties left him no time for such a tas..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f03/hermann-hesse-130_attention_we-know-from-several-statements-of-knech_1981871.png" --- # We know from several statements of Knecht's that he wanted… ![“We know from several statements of Knecht's that he wanted to write the former Master's biography, but official duties left him no time for such a task. He had learned to curb his own wishes. Once he remarked to one of his tutors: "It is a pity that you students aren't fully aware of the luxury…” quote by Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f03/hermann-hesse-130_attention_we-know-from-several-statements-of-knech_1981871.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f03/hermann-hesse-130_attention_we-know-from-several-statements-of-knech_1981871.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f03/hermann-hesse-130_attention_we-know-from-several-statements-of-knech_1981871.png) > ““We know from several statements of Knecht's that he wanted to write the former Master's biography, but official duties left him no time for such a task. He had learned to curb his own wishes. Once he remarked to one of his tutors: "It is a pity that you students aren't fully aware of the luxury and abundance in which you live. But I was exactly the same when I was still a student. We study and work, don't waste much time, and think we may rightly call ourselves industrious–but we are scarcely conscious of all we could do, all that we might make of our freedom. Then we suddenly receive a call from the hierarchy, we are needed, are given a teaching assignment, a mission, a post, and from then on move up to a higher one, and unexpectedly find ourselves caught in a network of duties that tightens the more we try to move inside it. All the tasks are in themselves small, but each one has to be carried out at its proper hour, and the day has far more tasks than hours. That is well; one would not want it to be different. But if we ever think, between classrooms, Archives, secretariat, consulting room, meetings, and official journeys–if we ever think of the freedom we possessed and have lost, the freedom for self-chosen tasks, for unlimited, far-flung studies, we may well feel the greatest yearning for those days, and imagine that if we ever had such freedom again we would fully enjoy its pleasures and potentialities.”” [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage reflects on how duties and institutional roles trap individuals, limiting the freedom for self‑directed study and creative work. **In simple terms:** Obligations limit personal freedom and growth. Key Takeaway Seek balance between duty and personal pursuits. Themes freedom duty selfrealization Mood thoughtful inspirational Type philosophical reflective When to use this quote - academic life - career advancement - creative projects Key Concepts existentialism institutional critique Questions to Reflect On - How can one preserve autonomy within obligations? - What structures enable true freedom? A Different Perspective Balancing duties may be unrealistic. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) [Duties](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/duties/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Freedom Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom-self-521140/) [Knecht Wanted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knecht-wanted-3388151/) [Possibilities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/possibilities/) [Statements Knecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/statements-knecht-3388149/) [Studies Feel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/studies-feel-3388150/) [Study Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/study-work-1204346/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Youth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/youth/) ## Related quotes > [I have an open mind - - I read, I study, I study your work and the work of other people with less talent.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/i-have-an-open-mind-i-read-i-study-i-study-your-work-and-the-work-of/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Be sensitive to your mistakes. Put it on the wall for a couple of weeks. It may be that you can learn more from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-french-sloan/be-sensitive-to-your-mistakes-put-it-on-the-wall-for-a-couple-of/) [John French Sloan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-french-sloan/) > [The best way to learn to write is to study the work of the men and women who are doing the kind of writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/the-best-way-to-learn-to-write-is-to-study-the-work-of-the-men-and/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) > [Writing is a lonely way of life. You shut yourself up in your study and work and work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/writing-is-a-lonely-way-of-life-you-shut-yourself-up-in-your-study/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [I study what I work with. I studied all these different fields of science that I needed for my work. I studied how to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-denes/i-study-what-i-work-with-i-studied-all-these-different-fields-of/) [Agnes Denes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-denes/) > [I had the kind of family where I was told it was my job to study. They would work out the finances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-acosta/i-had-the-kind-of-family-where-i-was-told-it-was-my-job-to-study-they/) [Alexander Acosta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-acosta/) > [It's great to get out of the study and work with real living and breathing people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hampton/it-s-great-to-get-out-of-the-study-and-work-with-real-living-and/) [Christopher Hampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hampton/) > [I am doubtful of any talent, so whatever I choose to be, will be accomplished only by long study and work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackson-pollock/i-am-doubtful-of-any-talent-so-whatever-i-choose-to-be-will-be/) [Jackson Pollock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackson-pollock/) > [If I had to study and work hard, it would have to have the reward of a lot of cash.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abbey-clancy/if-i-had-to-study-and-work-hard-it-would-have-to-have-the-reward-of-a/) [Abbey Clancy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abbey-clancy/) > [Study and work and work and study will keep in active exercise both the physical and mental. These two, rightly conducted, will not war…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-g-white/study-and-work-and-work-and-study-will-keep-in-active-exercise-both/) [Ellen G. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-g-white/) > [I am happy that thousands of students, young designers and fashion people will be able to see and study my work in every aspect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valentino-garavani/i-am-happy-that-thousands-of-students-young-designers-and-fashion/) [Valentino Garavani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valentino-garavani/) > [it is possible to study fashion the way one can study a work of art, so that it reflects significantly upon the issues and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-chernin/it-is-possible-to-study-fashion-the-way-one-can-study-a-work-of-art/) [Kim Chernin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-chernin/) > [“...but I wasn't really very happy in that place, for these reasons, that I hadn't come all this way just to eat, sleep and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fabio-geda/but-i-wasn-t-really-very-happy-in-that-place-for-these-reasons-that-i/) [Fabio Geda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fabio-geda/) > [The best way to learn about writing is to study the work of other writers you admire.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffery-deaver/the-best-way-to-learn-about-writing-is-to-study-the-work-of-other/) [Jeffery Deaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffery-deaver/) > [“It is childish to study a work of fiction in order to gain information about a country or about a social class or about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/it-is-childish-to-study-a-work-of-fiction-in-order-to-gain/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) ## More by Hermann Hesse > [Only within yourself exists the other reality for which you long. I can give you nothing that has not already its being within yourself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/only-within-yourself-exists-the-other-reality-for-which-you-long-i/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Therefore, I see whatever exists as good, death is to me like life, sin like holiness, wisdom like foolishness, everything has to be as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/therefore-i-see-whatever-exists-as-good-death-is-to-me-like-life-sin/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [A home isn't just a roof over our heads. A home is a place where we feel loved and where we love others. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/a-home-isn-t-just-a-roof-over-our-heads-a-home-is-a-place-where-we/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Fortunately, like most children, I had learned what is most valuable, most indispensable for life before school years began, taught by apple trees, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/fortunately-like-most-children-i-had-learned-what-is-most-valuable/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [“The mistaken and unhappy notion that a man is an enduring unity is known to you. It is also known to you that a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/the-mistaken-and-unhappy-notion-that-a-man-is-an-enduring-unity-is/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [“... it would be better for our country and the world in general, if at least the few people who were capable of thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/it-would-be-better-for-our-country-and-the-world-in-general-if-at/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [The bird fights its way out of the egg. The egg is the world. Who would be born must first destroy a world. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/the-bird-fights-its-way-out-of-the-egg-the-egg-is-the-world-who-would/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Everything becomes a little different as soon as it is spoken out loud.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/everything-becomes-a-little-different-as-soon-as-it-is-spoken-out-loud/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [It may be important to great thinkers to examine the world, to explain and despise it. But I think it is only important to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/it-may-be-important-to-great-thinkers-to-examine-the-world-to-explain/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [“..it is useless for you to build walls and dormitories and chapels and churches. Death looks through the window and laughs..”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/it-is-useless-for-you-to-build-walls-and-dormitories-and-chapels-and/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [“When the world is at peace, when all things are tranquil and all men obey their superiors in all their courses, then music can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/when-the-world-is-at-peace-when-all-things-are-tranquil-and-all-men/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [A mere nothing suffices — and the lightning strikes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/a-mere-nothing-suffices-and-the-lightning-strikes/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [“And if time is not real, then the dividing line that seems to lie between this world and eternity, between suffering and bliss, between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/and-if-time-is-not-real-then-the-dividing-line-that-seems-to-lie/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Beautiful was this world, looking at it thus, without searching, thus simply, thus childlike.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/beautiful-was-this-world-looking-at-it-thus-without-searching-thus/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Were not the gods forms created like me and you, mortal, transient?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/were-not-the-gods-forms-created-like-me-and-you-mortal-transient/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) [Explore all 951 Hermann Hesse quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) ## More Attention quotes > [It appears to me that one great cause of our difference in opinion on subjects which we often discuss is that you have always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ricardo/it-appears-to-me-that-one-great-cause-of-our-difference-in-opinion-on/) [David Ricardo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ricardo/) > [People pay far too much attention to the television and they're quite literal in some ways. At the beginning, when I was playing very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ardal-o-hanlon/people-pay-far-too-much-attention-to-the-television-and-they-re-quite/) [Ardal O'Hanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ardal-o-hanlon/) > [Television, radio, social media. The 24/7 news cycle plows forward mercilessly on our desks, in our cars and in our pockets. Thousands and thousands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-prince/television-radio-social-media-the-24-7-news-cycle-plows-forward/) [Joseph Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-prince/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys-which-distract-our/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [What people don't normally know about us is the hustle is very real, and it's sorely driven a lot by how we consider ourselves.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lzzy-hale/what-people-don-t-normally-know-about-us-is-the-hustle-is-very-real/) [Lzzy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lzzy-hale/) > [For me, the term "psychotherapy" is limiting. It implies that we work with mind and emotions, but excludes the body and pays scant attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jed-diamond/for-me-the-term-psychotherapy-is-limiting-it-implies-that-we-work/) [Jed Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jed-diamond/) > [When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. Then don't leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minor-white/when-you-approach-something-to-photograph-it-first-be-still-with/) [Minor White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minor-white/) > [I'm writing about real things. Real people. Real characters. You have to believe what I write about is true or you wouldn't pay any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-reed/i-m-writing-about-real-things-real-people-real-characters-you-have-to/) [Lou Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-reed/) > [ I went to a mosque in Philadelphia with \[my wife\] in December 24, 1999. And we we went to this mosque in Philly, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahershala-ali/i-went-to-a-mosque-in-philadelphia-with-my-wife-in-december-24-1999/) [Mahershala Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahershala-ali/) > [The Harvard Business Review recently had an article called 'The Human Moment,' about how to make real contact with a person at work: ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-goleman/the-harvard-business-review-recently-had-an-article-called-the-human/) [Daniel Goleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-goleman/) > [Let us thank God heartily as often as we pray that we have His Spirit in us to teach us to pray. Thanksgiving will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-murray/let-us-thank-god-heartily-as-often-as-we-pray-that-we-have-his-spirit/) [Andy Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-murray/) > [Enlightened people live in very charged states of attention, with a tremendous power circuiting through them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/enlightened-people-live-in-very-charged-states-of-attention-with-a/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [We must have a welfare system that we can afford, which will mean giving greater attention to directing the welfare program toward its primary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/we-must-have-a-welfare-system-that-we-can-afford-which-will-mean/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [The director's job should give you a sense of music without drawing attention to itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hackford/the-director-s-job-should-give-you-a-sense-of-music-without-drawing/) [Taylor Hackford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hackford/) [Browse all 10,153 Attention quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We know from several statements of Knecht's that he wanted to write the former Master's biography, but official duties left him no time for such a task. He had learned to curb his own wishes. Once he remarked to one of his tutors: \"It is a pity that you students aren't fully aware of the luxury and abundance in which you live. But I was exactly the same when I was still a student. We study and work, don't waste much time, and think we may rightly call ourselves industrious–but we are scarcely conscious of all we could do, all that we might make of our freedom. Then we suddenly receive a call from the hierarchy, we are needed, are given a teaching assignment, a mission, a post, and from then on move up to a higher one, and unexpectedly find ourselves caught in a network of duties that tightens the more we try to move inside it. All the tasks are in themselves small, but each one has to be carried out at its proper hour, and the day has far more tasks than hours. That is well; one would not want it to be different. But if we ever think, between classrooms, Archives, secretariat, consulting room, meetings, and official journeys–if we ever think of the freedom we possessed and have lost, the freedom for self-chosen tasks, for unlimited, far-flung studies, we may well feel the greatest yearning for those days, and imagine that if we ever had such freedom again we would fully enjoy its pleasures and potentialities.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Hermann Hesse" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/we-know-from-several-statements-of-knecht-s-that-he-wanted-to-write/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Attention" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/we-know-from-several-statements-of-knecht-s-that-he-wanted-to-write/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f03/hermann-hesse-130_attention_we-know-from-several-statements-of-knech_1981871.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f03/hermann-hesse-130_attention_we-know-from-several-statements-of-knech_1981871.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f03/hermann-hesse-130_attention_we-know-from-several-statements-of-knech_1981871.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We know from several statements of Knecht's that he wanted to write the former Master's biography, but…” — Hermann Hesse", "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": "Hermann Hesse", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“We know from several statements of...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/we-know-from-several-statements-of-knecht-s-that-he-wanted-to-write/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/we-know-from-several-statements-of-knecht-s-that-he-wanted-to-write/#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 } } ] } ```