--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Labels such as ‘‘the culture wars,’’…" description: "\"“Labels such as ‘‘the culture wars,’’ ‘‘the science wars,’’ or ‘‘the Freud wars’’ are now widely used to refer to some of the disagreements that plague..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/beb/ian-hacking-9085_conditioning_labels-such-as-the-culture-wars-the-scie_634717.jpg" --- # Labels such as ‘‘the culture wars,’’ ‘‘the science wars,’’… ![“Labels such as ‘‘the culture wars,’’ ‘‘the science wars,’’ or ‘‘the Freud wars’’ are now widely used to refer to some of the disagreements that plague contemporary intellectual life ... But I would like to register a gentle protest. Metaphors influence the mind in many unnoticed ways. The…” quote by Ian Hacking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/beb/ian-hacking-9085_conditioning_labels-such-as-the-culture-wars-the-scie_634717.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/beb/ian-hacking-9085_conditioning_labels-such-as-the-culture-wars-the-scie_634717.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/beb/ian-hacking-9085_conditioning_labels-such-as-the-culture-wars-the-scie_634717.jpg) > ““Labels such as ‘‘the culture wars,’’ ‘‘the science wars,’’ or ‘‘the Freud wars’’ are now widely used to refer to some of the disagreements that plague contemporary intellectual life ... But I would like to register a gentle protest. Metaphors influence the mind in many unnoticed ways. The willingness to describe fierce disagreement in terms of the metaphors of war makes the very existence of real wars seem more natural, more inevitable, more a part of the human condition. It also betrays us into an insensibility toward the very idea of war, so that we are less prone to be aware of how totally disgusting real wars really are.”” [Ian Hacking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-hacking/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. War metaphors shape how we view intellectual disputes, making conflict seem inevitable and dulling our sense of war’s horror. **In simple terms:** War language normalizes conflict and numbs moral awareness. Key Takeaway Use neutral language to discuss disagreements. Themes language metaphor conflict ethics Mood critical thought‑provoking Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - academic debate - public policy - media commentary Key Concepts cognitive framing social discourse critical thinking Questions to Reflect On - What alternative metaphors could foster cooperation? - How does language affect moral perception? A Different Perspective Metaphors can oversimplify complex issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conditioning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conditioning/) [Human condition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-condition/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Metaphor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/metaphor/) [Mind control](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind-control/) [Normalization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/normalization/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [“I read a postelection blog post by the great Ursula K. Le Guin that said that we should stop using the metaphors of war.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-joy-fowler/i-read-a-postelection-blog-post-by-the-great-ursula-k-le-guin-that/) [Karen Joy Fowler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-joy-fowler/) > [It's our tendency to approach every problem as if it were a fight between two sides. 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For example, Jessica is deathly afraid of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-moehn/exposure-therapy-exposure-therapy-also-known-as-desensitization-works/) [Heather Moehn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-moehn/) > [“A pleasing paradox — The more frequently we contemplate our death, the less dominant its effect in our lives becomes. Like King Mithridates, who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giannis-delimitsos/a-pleasing-paradox-the-more-frequently-we-contemplate-our-death-the/) [Giannis Delimitsos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giannis-delimitsos/) > [ I don't think that \[normalization\] necessarily is going to damage the emerging economies. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-dimon/i-don-t-think-that-normalization-necessarily-is-going-to-damage-the/) [Jamie Dimon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-dimon/) > [The expectation of gradual policy normalization should reduce the likelihood of outsized movements in interest rates.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-powell/the-expectation-of-gradual-policy-normalization-should-reduce-the/) [Jerome Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-powell/) > [The blockchain is an asset normalization platform that can enable a new liquidity in transactions, hence creating large networks of usage and value effects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mougayar/the-blockchain-is-an-asset-normalization-platform-that-can-enable-a/) [William Mougayar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mougayar/) > [I'm incredibly enthusiastic about the normalization, I think it's very promising. 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Normal merely means there is a social consensus that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-focke/just-because-something-is-normal-in-a-culture-does-not-make-it/) [Kevin Focke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-focke/) > [ “\[I\]t was really only in the generation or two before hers that the idea had started to traverse the spectrum of likelihood in the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-m-banks/i-t-was-really-only-in-the-generation-or-two-before-hers-that-the/) [Iain M. Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-m-banks/) ## More by Ian Hacking > [The best reaction to a paradox is to invent a genuinely new and deep idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-hacking/the-best-reaction-to-a-paradox-is-to-invent-a-genuinely-new-and-deep/) [Ian Hacking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-hacking/) > [One of the things Kuhn said about normal science is that people 'expect' things to be discovered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-hacking/one-of-the-things-kuhn-said-about-normal-science-is-that-people/) [Ian Hacking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-hacking/) > [Probability fractions arise from our knowledge and from our ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-hacking/probability-fractions-arise-from-our-knowledge-and-from-our-ignorance/) [Ian Hacking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-hacking/) > [One ought to begin an analysis of power from the ground up, at the level of tiny local events where battles are unwittingly enacted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-hacking/one-ought-to-begin-an-analysis-of-power-from-the-ground-up-at-the/) [Ian Hacking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-hacking/) > [It is possible to argue that our present conception of revolution was staked out more securely in science than in political action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-hacking/it-is-possible-to-argue-that-our-present-conception-of-revolution-was/) [Ian Hacking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-hacking/) > [Why should there be the method of science? 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Doing nothing at all counts as an act.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-hacking/in-each-case-you-settle-on-an-act-doing-nothing-at-all-counts-as-an/) [Ian Hacking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-hacking/) > [I think it's unfortunate when people say that there is just one true story of science. For one thing, there are many different sciences,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-hacking/i-think-it-s-unfortunate-when-people-say-that-there-is-just-one-true/) [Ian Hacking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-hacking/) > [As a political metaphor, a revolution could, in that sense, mean only a return to better times, or to the true constitution: a ridding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-hacking/as-a-political-metaphor-a-revolution-could-in-that-sense-mean-only-a/) [Ian Hacking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-hacking/) > [There are two ways in which a science develops; in response to problems which is itself creates, and in response to problems that are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-hacking/there-are-two-ways-in-which-a-science-develops-in-response-to/) [Ian Hacking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-hacking/) > [From any vocabulary of ideas we can build other ideas by formal combinations of signs. 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When consciously and kindly focusing awareness on life as it unfolds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-thoele/mindfulness-is-being-aware-of-yourself-others-and-your-surroundings/) [Sue Thoele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-thoele/) > [“One way or another, we spend our whole lives being conditioned into accepting some line or order, some position of domination or subjection. It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cliff-james/one-way-or-another-we-spend-our-whole-lives-being-conditioned-into/) [Cliff James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cliff-james/) > [The more aware you become, the more you shed from day to day what you have learned so that your mind is always fresh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-lee/the-more-aware-you-become-the-more-you-shed-from-day-to-day-what-you/) [Bruce Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-lee/) > [Highly proactive people don't blame circumstances, conditions, or conditioning for their behavior. Their behavior is a product of their own conscious choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-covey/highly-proactive-people-don-t-blame-circumstances-conditions-or/) [Stephen Covey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-covey/) > [What do you have to surrender? A drop has to dissolve into the ocean to become the ocean. And a drop cannot be greater…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nirmala-srivastava/what-do-you-have-to-surrender-a-drop-has-to-dissolve-into-the-ocean/) [Nirmala Srivastava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nirmala-srivastava/) > [My sole goal when getting ready for a contest was not building a lot of size, although when I was coming up pure muscle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorian-yates/my-sole-goal-when-getting-ready-for-a-contest-was-not-building-a-lot/) [Dorian Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorian-yates/) > [Naturally, to follow dharma, we have to find out what it is. You have to struggle with it. 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Metaphors influence the mind in many unnoticed ways. The willingness to describe fierce disagreement in terms of the metaphors of war makes the very existence of real wars seem more natural, more inevitable, more a part of the human condition. 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