--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: No sane person should believe that…" description: "\"No sane person should believe that something is subjective merely because it cannot be settled beyond controversy.\" — Hilary Putnam" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4fe/hilary-putnam-38564_believe_no-sane-person-should-believe-that-somet_2619595.jpg" --- # No sane person should believe that something is subjective… ![“No sane person should believe that something is subjective merely because it cannot be settled beyond controversy.” quote by Hilary Putnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4fe/hilary-putnam-38564_believe_no-sane-person-should-believe-that-somet_2619595.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4fe/hilary-putnam-38564_believe_no-sane-person-should-believe-that-somet_2619595.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4fe/hilary-putnam-38564_believe_no-sane-person-should-believe-that-somet_2619595.jpg) > “No sane person should believe that something is subjective merely because it cannot be settled beyond controversy.” [Hilary Putnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-putnam/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote warns against labeling an issue subjective simply because it is controversial, urging rigorous standards for objectivity. **In simple terms:** Don't call something subjective just because it's controversial. Key Takeaway Demand evidence before deeming matters subjective. Themes philosophy epistemology objectivity Mood thoughtful critical Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - academic debate - public policy - media analysis Key Concepts subjectivity controversy critical thinking Questions to Reflect On - How do we distinguish true subjectivity from unresolved controversy? - What standards should guide claims of objectivity? A Different Perspective Controversy may stem from genuine uncertainty, not just lack of consensus. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Controversy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/controversy/) [Subjective](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/subjective/) ## Related quotes > [If you believe in subjective morality, why do you lock your doors at night?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/if-you-believe-in-subjective-morality-why-do-you-lock-your-doors-at/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [What sane person could live in this world and not be crazy?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/what-sane-person-could-live-in-this-world-and-not-be-crazy/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [Any sane person would have left long ago. But I cannot. I have my sons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/princess-diana/any-sane-person-would-have-left-long-ago-but-i-cannot-i-have-my-sons/) [Princess Diana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/princess-diana/) > [“Only a truly sane person would ask if he were mad." Avieyar, TheDreamMakers”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diem-burden/only-a-truly-sane-person-would-ask-if-he-were-mad-avieyar/) [Diem Burden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diem-burden/) > [An individual who can freely and with a clear heart do things because they're fun is a very sane person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-ron-hubbard/an-individual-who-can-freely-and-with-a-clear-heart-do-things-because/) [L. Ron Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-ron-hubbard/) > [One can only guess the amount of magic mushrooms a sane person would have to consume to believe that a frisbee constituted a genuine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-thomas/one-can-only-guess-the-amount-of-magic-mushrooms-a-sane-person-would/) [Mark Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-thomas/) > [Politicians were like talking dogs in a circus: the fact that they existed was uncommonly interesting, but no sane person would actually believe what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-furst/politicians-were-like-talking-dogs-in-a-circus-the-fact-that-they/) [Alan Furst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-furst/) > [“How do people know they are sane? Can a person be gripped by lunacy, only to be released a short time later, never to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-remy/how-do-people-know-they-are-sane-can-a-person-be-gripped-by-lunacy/) [Dee Remy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-remy/) > [If the ability to tell right from wrong should have anything to do with the ability to think, then we must be able to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-arendt/if-the-ability-to-tell-right-from-wrong-should-have-anything-to-do/) [Hannah Arendt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-arendt/) > [“No sane person could witness what they saw every day in the field, or carry out the acts of violence they were tasked with,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronie-kendig/no-sane-person-could-witness-what-they-saw-every-day-in-the-field-or/) [Ronie Kendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronie-kendig/) > [“What's your definition of sanity, Skipper?’ ‘The ability to swim,’ said Sparrow. Ramsey felt a cold shock, as though he had been immersed suddenly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/what-s-your-definition-of-sanity-skipper-the-ability-to-swim-said/) [Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/) > [I'm not Britney Spears, so I still have a life. I can go certain places without getting hounded by little 5-year-olds. So I'm very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mya/i-m-not-britney-spears-so-i-still-have-a-life-i-can-go-certain-places/) [Mya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mya/) > [“...they were all, if the truth was only known, a little bit off in their heads. What possible reason could a sane person have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/they-were-all-if-the-truth-was-only-known-a-little-bit-off-in-their/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [I don't really trust a sane person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lyle-alzado/i-don-t-really-trust-a-sane-person/) [Lyle Alzado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lyle-alzado/) > [“I didn't say he wasn't a good employer, just that he's not going to be awarded a Sane Person of the Year award.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-macalister/i-didn-t-say-he-wasn-t-a-good-employer-just-that-he-s-not-going-to-be/) [Katie MacAlister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-macalister/) ## More by Hilary Putnam > [Science is wonderful at destroying metaphysical answers, but incapable of providing substitute ones. Science takes away foundations without providing a replacement. Whether we want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-putnam/science-is-wonderful-at-destroying-metaphysical-answers-but-incapable/) [Hilary Putnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-putnam/) > [Cut the pie any way you like, "meanings" just ain't in the head!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-putnam/cut-the-pie-any-way-you-like-meanings-just-ain-t-in-the-head/) [Hilary Putnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-putnam/) > [I can only please one person per day. Today isn't your day, tomorrow doesn't look good either.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-putnam/i-can-only-please-one-person-per-day-today-isn-t-your-day-tomorrow/) [Hilary Putnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-putnam/) > [The physicist who states a law of nature with the aid of a mathematical formula is abstracting a real feature of a real material…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-putnam/the-physicist-who-states-a-law-of-nature-with-the-aid-of-a/) [Hilary Putnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-putnam/) > [“Philosophy needs vision and argument… there is something disappointing about a philosophical work that contains arguments, however good, which are not inspired by some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-putnam/philosophy-needs-vision-and-argument-there-is-something-disappointing/) [Hilary Putnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-putnam/) > [... causes (pains) are not logical constructions out of their effects (behaviour).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-putnam/causes-pains-are-not-logical-constructions-out-of-their-effects/) [Hilary Putnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-putnam/) > [It was Rudolf Carnap's dream for the last three decades of his life to show that science proceeds by a formal syntactic method; today…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-putnam/it-was-rudolf-carnap-s-dream-for-the-last-three-decades-of-his-life/) [Hilary Putnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-putnam/) > [...while there is such a thing as correctness in ethics, in interpretation, in mathematics, the way to understand that is not by trying to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-putnam/while-there-is-such-a-thing-as-correctness-in-ethics-in/) [Hilary Putnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-putnam/) > [“All of this is really impossible, in the way that it is really impossible that monkeys should by chance type out a copy of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-putnam/all-of-this-is-really-impossible-in-the-way-that-it-is-really/) [Hilary Putnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-putnam/) > [I think part of the appeal of mathematical logic is that the formulas look mysterious - you write backward Es!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-putnam/i-think-part-of-the-appeal-of-mathematical-logic-is-that-the-formulas/) [Hilary Putnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-putnam/) [Explore all 11 Hilary Putnam quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-putnam/) ## More Believe quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. It makes a mockery of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-robison/some-people-still-believe-you-should-just-fall-in-line-with-what-s/) [Emily Robison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-robison/) > [The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-propaganda-on-its-own-cannot-force-its-way/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Resist discouragement by speaking His Word over your future. Keep standing. Keep hoping; keep believing because He is working behind the scenes. He's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/resist-discouragement-by-speaking-his-word-over-your-future-keep/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [I can't believe that I'm sitting in meetings with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Annette Bening. I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [There is no such word as item girl in the dictionary. People have created this word and I don't believe that I am an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shefali-zariwala/there-is-no-such-word-as-item-girl-in-the-dictionary-people-have/) [Shefali Zariwala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shefali-zariwala/) > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I don't really like too much credit. I know nobody's going to believe this, but I'd rather be able to score goals and nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-wright-phillips/i-don-t-really-like-too-much-credit-i-know-nobody-s-going-to-believe/) [Bradley Wright-Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-wright-phillips/) > [“What I have a problem with is not so much religion or god, but faith. When you say you believe something in your heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/what-i-have-a-problem-with-is-not-so-much-religion-or-god-but-faith/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [Bush reiterated his stand to conservatives opposing his decision on stem cell research. He said today he believes life begins at conception and ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/bush-reiterated-his-stand-to-conservatives-opposing-his-decision-on/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [Never underestimate the power of the human mind to believe what it wants to believe, no matter the conflicting evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-herbert/never-underestimate-the-power-of-the-human-mind-to-believe-what-it/) [Brian Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-herbert/) > [To believe in love, to be ready to give up anything for it, to be willing to risk your life for it, is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/to-believe-in-love-to-be-ready-to-give-up-anything-for-it-to-be/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) > [That's why I don't generally talk about endorsements because I don't believe we have to tell people who to vote for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-iii/that-s-why-i-don-t-generally-talk-about-endorsements-because-i-don-t/) [Martin Luther King III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-iii/) > [Mankind have been slow to believe that order reigns in the universe-that the world is a cosmos and a chaos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/mankind-have-been-slow-to-believe-that-order-reigns-in-the-universe/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [We instantly believe everything we think. Isn't that insane? It's good for us to explore the depravity of our minds, so we know we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krishna-das/we-instantly-believe-everything-we-think-isn-t-that-insane-it-s-good/) [Krishna Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krishna-das/) Browse all 47,704 Believe quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "No sane person should believe that something is subjective merely because it cannot be settled beyond controversy.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Hilary Putnam" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-putnam/no-sane-person-should-believe-that-something-is-subjective-merely/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Believe" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-putnam/no-sane-person-should-believe-that-something-is-subjective-merely/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4fe/hilary-putnam-38564_believe_no-sane-person-should-believe-that-somet_2619595.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4fe/hilary-putnam-38564_believe_no-sane-person-should-believe-that-somet_2619595.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4fe/hilary-putnam-38564_believe_no-sane-person-should-believe-that-somet_2619595.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“No sane person should believe that something is subjective merely because it cannot be settled beyond…” — Hilary Putnam", "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": "Hilary Putnam", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-putnam/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "No sane person should believe that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-putnam/no-sane-person-should-believe-that-something-is-subjective-merely/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-putnam/no-sane-person-should-believe-that-something-is-subjective-merely/#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 } } ] } ```