--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Do you know...what I think is a great…" description: "\"Do you know...what I think is a great pity? It is this: that we have all become such skeptics that we hardly believe what our pious grandmothers told u..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d0/isak-dinesen-3174_believe_do-you-know-what-i-think-is-a-great-pity_2110229.jpg" --- # Do you know...what I think is a great pity? It is this… ![“Do you know...what I think is a great pity? It is this: that we have all become such skeptics that we hardly believe what our pious grandmothers told us.” quote by Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d0/isak-dinesen-3174_believe_do-you-know-what-i-think-is-a-great-pity_2110229.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d0/isak-dinesen-3174_believe_do-you-know-what-i-think-is-a-great-pity_2110229.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d0/isak-dinesen-3174_believe_do-you-know-what-i-think-is-a-great-pity_2110229.jpg) > “Do you know...what I think is a great pity? It is this: that we have all become such skeptics that we hardly believe what our pious grandmothers told us.” [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Modern skepticism has eroded trust in the wisdom of older generations, leading to a loss of valuable insight. **In simple terms:** Skepticism blinds us to elders’ wisdom. Key Takeaway Re‑evaluate the teachings of past generations. Themes skepticism tradition wisdom generational gap Mood reflective critical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - family discussions - cultural education - intergenerational dialogue - critical thinking Key Concepts philosophy social critique Questions to Reflect On - What old teachings could you rediscover? - How do you balance skepticism with openness? A Different Perspective Not all old advice is sound; some may be outdated. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Grandmother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grandmother/) [Pity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pity/) [Skeptic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skeptic/) [Skeptics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skeptics/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [It is a great pity but tis certain from every day's observation of man, that he may be set on fire like a candle,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-sterne/it-is-a-great-pity-but-tis-certain-from-every-day-s-observation-of/) [Laurence Sterne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-sterne/) > [And therefore I looked down into the great pity of a person’s life on this earth. I don’t mean that we all end up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/and-therefore-i-looked-down-into-the-great-pity-of-a-person-s-life-on/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [It is a great pity when the one who should be the head figure is a mere figure head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-spurgeon/it-is-a-great-pity-when-the-one-who-should-be-the-head-figure-is-a/) [Charles Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-spurgeon/) > [As there were no black Founding Fathers, there were no founding mothers - a great pity, on both counts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-chisholm/as-there-were-no-black-founding-fathers-there-were-no-founding/) [Shirley Chisholm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-chisholm/) > [Tis very great pity that they who are so apt to over-rate themselves in smaller matters, shou'd, where it most concerns them to know,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-astell/tis-very-great-pity-that-they-who-are-so-apt-to-over-rate-themselves/) [Mary Astell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-astell/) > [Trees had died to make these forms, and that seemed a great pity to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlaine-harris/trees-had-died-to-make-these-forms-and-that-seemed-a-great-pity-to-me/) [Charlaine Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlaine-harris/) > [too great pity is the greatest cruelty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-catherine-of-siena/too-great-pity-is-the-greatest-cruelty/) [St. Catherine of Siena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-catherine-of-siena/) > [It is a great pity that human beings cannot find all of their satisfaction in scientific contemplativeness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niels-bohr/it-is-a-great-pity-that-human-beings-cannot-find-all-of-their/) [Niels Bohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niels-bohr/) > [There are skeptics who do not come to their view because they have a source of income from carbon polluters. I don't mean to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-gore/there-are-skeptics-who-do-not-come-to-their-view-because-they-have-a-2/) [Al Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-gore/) > [The skeptics who say it can't be done are simply in extremely limited states of mind. They can't even perceive the possibility of anybody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/the-skeptics-who-say-it-can-t-be-done-are-simply-in-extremely-limited/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [“... But these skeptics are only selectively skeptical. They think themselves enlightened for resisting all this new proof and remaining steadfast in mistrusting anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-ilgunas/but-these-skeptics-are-only-selectively-skeptical-they-think/) [Ken Ilgunas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-ilgunas/) > [“I'm a Skeptic. And I'm a Journalist. I look up things in the library—a lot! I believe in the motto of Missouri, the 'Show-me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-lee/i-m-a-skeptic-and-i-m-a-journalist-i-look-up-things-in-the-library-a/) [Earl Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-lee/) > [There are skeptics who do not come to their view because they have a source of income from carbon polluters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-gore/there-are-skeptics-who-do-not-come-to-their-view-because-they-have-a/) [Al Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-gore/) > [“Skeptics are always marked by their total lack of skepticism towards whatever position they are defending.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-madison/skeptics-are-always-marked-by-their-total-lack-of-skepticism-towards/) Steve Madison > [Your sweet spot is in between the true believers and the scoffing skeptics…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-brezsny/your-sweet-spot-is-in-between-the-true-believers-and-the-scoffing/) [Rob Brezsny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-brezsny/) ## More by Isak Dinesen > [The divine art is the story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isak-dinesen/the-divine-art-is-the-story/) [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) > [Your own self, your personality and existence are reflected within the mind of each of the people whom you meet, ... into a likeness,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isak-dinesen/your-own-self-your-personality-and-existence-are-reflected-within-the/) [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) > [A great artist is never poor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isak-dinesen/a-great-artist-is-never-poor/) [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) > [To be a person is to have a story to tell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isak-dinesen/to-be-a-person-is-to-have-a-story-to-tell/) [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) > [One does not travel by plane. One is merely sent, like a parcel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isak-dinesen/one-does-not-travel-by-plane-one-is-merely-sent-like-a-parcel/) [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) > [When we are young the idea of death or failure is intolerable to us; even the possibility of ridicule we cannot bear. But we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isak-dinesen/when-we-are-young-the-idea-of-death-or-failure-is-intolerable-to-us/) [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) > [Here and there, in some older houses, old faded daguerreotypes still hang on the walls... They seem to us to be very simple... compared…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isak-dinesen/here-and-there-in-some-older-houses-old-faded-daguerreotypes-still/) [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) > [“It is more than their land that you take away from the people, whose Native land you take. It is their past as well,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isak-dinesen/it-is-more-than-their-land-that-you-take-away-from-the-people-whose/) [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) > [There was a place in the Hills, on the first ridge in the Game Reserve, that I myself at the time when I thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isak-dinesen/there-was-a-place-in-the-hills-on-the-first-ridge-in-the-game-reserve/) [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) > [If I know a song of Africa, of the giraffe and the African new moon lying on her back, of the plows in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isak-dinesen/if-i-know-a-song-of-africa-of-the-giraffe-and-the-african-new-moon/) [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) > [People who dream when they sleep at night know of a special kind of happiness which the world of the day holds not, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isak-dinesen/people-who-dream-when-they-sleep-at-night-know-of-a-special-kind-of/) [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) > [All sorrows can be borne if you can put them into a story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isak-dinesen/all-sorrows-can-be-borne-if-you-can-put-them-into-a-story/) [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) > [the true art of the gods is the comic. The comic is a condescension of the divine to the world of man; it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isak-dinesen/the-true-art-of-the-gods-is-the-comic-the-comic-is-a-condescension-of/) [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) > [“Dr Sass…maintained that in paradise, until the time of the fall, the whole world was flat, the back-curtain of the Lord, and that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isak-dinesen/dr-sass-maintained-that-in-paradise-until-the-time-of-the-fall-the/) [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) > [When you have a great and difficult task, something perhaps almost impossible, if you only work a little at a time, every day a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isak-dinesen/when-you-have-a-great-and-difficult-task-something-perhaps-almost/) [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) [Explore all 135 Isak Dinesen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) ## More Believe quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. 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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": "Do you know...what I think is a great pity? 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