--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If we have learned anything, it is the…" description: "\"“If we have learned anything, it is the horror that can happen when people don't think for themselves, but instead follow authority blindly.”\" — Jacque..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e1/jacqueline-novogratz-2383_blindly_if-we-have-learned-anything-it-is-the-ho_406700.png" --- # If we have learned anything, it is the horror that can… ![“If we have learned anything, it is the horror that can happen when people don't think for themselves, but instead follow authority blindly.” quote by Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e1/jacqueline-novogratz-2383_blindly_if-we-have-learned-anything-it-is-the-ho_406700.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e1/jacqueline-novogratz-2383_blindly_if-we-have-learned-anything-it-is-the-ho_406700.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e1/jacqueline-novogratz-2383_blindly_if-we-have-learned-anything-it-is-the-ho_406700.png) > ““If we have learned anything, it is the horror that can happen when people don't think for themselves, but instead follow authority blindly.”” [Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Blind obedience to authority can lead to collective tragedies; independent thought is essential. **In simple terms:** Think for yourself to avoid disaster. Key Takeaway Cultivate critical thinking. Themes authority independence ethics Mood cautious inquisitive Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - workplace decisions - political movements - education - community organizing Key Concepts philosophy social psychology Questions to Reflect On - When is it wise to follow guidance? - What safeguards prevent blind compliance? A Different Perspective Authority can sometimes protect stability. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [We are trained from birth not to question authority and to blindly follow it into the abyss.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rev-richard-skaff/we-are-trained-from-birth-not-to-question-authority-and-to-blindly/) [Rev Richard Skaff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rev-richard-skaff/) > [People always follow the crowd. Be brave, Dare to do something different. Let the crowd follow you. Instead you follow them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anurag-prakash-ray/people-always-follow-the-crowd-be-brave-dare-to-do-something/) [Anurag Prakash Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anurag-prakash-ray/) > [“If you follow the herd, you’ll end up stepping in shit.” The shit I refer to is living with yourself when you ignore what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-w-dyer/if-you-follow-the-herd-you-ll-end-up-stepping-in-shit-the-shit-i/) [Wayne W. Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-w-dyer/) > [Never lose hope once you came across the crossroads, Never turn back once came across the crossroads, Never wait for someone to choose which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simphiwe/never-lose-hope-once-you-came-across-the-crossroads-never-turn-back/) [Simphiwe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simphiwe/) > [A request to my specials - I trust you blindly.. But Please. . . . never prove me BLIND..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nit/a-request-to-my-specials-i-trust-you-blindly-but-please-never-prove/) Nit > [I trusted you blindly but don't think I am blind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sushan-sharma/i-trusted-you-blindly-but-don-t-think-i-am-blind/) [Sushan Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sushan-sharma/) > [“How could the people around me not see that I’d been spending my day in nineteenth-century Kansas, or in the pit of a giant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-joy-arnold/how-could-the-people-around-me-not-see-that-i-d-been-spending-my-day/) [Elizabeth Joy Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-joy-arnold/) > [Human beings, when they encounter that which can't be understood, either run away from it, run towards it blindly, or just rationalize it out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/human-beings-when-they-encounter-that-which-can-t-be-understood/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [To Follow by faith alone is to follow blindly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/to-follow-by-faith-alone-is-to-follow-blindly/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“A girl may fall in love blindly, but she becomes very clear sighted to her man’s flaws into a year of the relationship.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sneha-mehta/a-girl-may-fall-in-love-blindly-but-she-becomes-very-clear-sighted-to/) [Sneha Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sneha-mehta/) > [“But in love, merit is won blindly and unaccountably, and in this blindness and unaccountability lies happiness. pp. 445-446”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivan-goncharov/but-in-love-merit-is-won-blindly-and-unaccountably-and-in-this/) [Ivan Goncharov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivan-goncharov/) > [We can't gather the intelligence we need to foil future attacks, if we are blindly granting terrorists the right to remain silent. But for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-can-t-gather-the-intelligence-we-need-to-foil-future-attacks-if-we/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sometimes its easier to look at the world blindly and not see the ugliness that reveals within.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eboni-gilree/sometimes-its-easier-to-look-at-the-world-blindly-and-not-see-the/) Eboni Gilree > [I always was kind of on the edge of the church when I was fully in it , cos I was always asking the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-o-donohue/i-always-was-kind-of-on-the-edge-of-the-church-when-i-was-fully-in-it/) [John O'Donohue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-o-donohue/) > [ Man blindly works the will of fate. \[Ger., Blindlings that er blos den Willen des Geschickes.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christoph-martin-wieland/man-blindly-works-the-will-of-fate-ger-blindlings-that-er-blos-den/) [Christoph Martin Wieland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christoph-martin-wieland/) ## More by Jacqueline Novogratz > [“If you move through the world with only your compassion, then you walk on only one leg. But if you move through the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/if-you-move-through-the-world-with-only-your-compassion-then-you-walk/) [Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) > [Malaria is a disease that kills one to three million people a year. 300 to 500 million cases are reported. It's estimated that Africa…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/malaria-is-a-disease-that-kills-one-to-three-million-people-a-year/) [Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) > [Grief releases love and it also instills a profound sense of connection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/grief-releases-love-and-it-also-instills-a-profound-sense-of/) [Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) > [What we yearn for as human beings is to be visible to each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/what-we-yearn-for-as-human-beings-is-to-be-visible-to-each-other/) [Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) > [“We are connected, but the weave is sometimes fragile. (192)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/we-are-connected-but-the-weave-is-sometimes-fragile-192/) [Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) > [We are connected to each other not only as humans, but to every living thing on the planet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/we-are-connected-to-each-other-not-only-as-humans-but-to-every-living/) [Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) > [Impact investing has become a broad umbrella that includes all investing with a focus on both financial return and social impact, but in its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/impact-investing-has-become-a-broad-umbrella-that-includes-all/) [Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) > [The older I get, the more determined I feel to do whatever I can to help release that human potential somehow. Not in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/the-older-i-get-the-more-determined-i-feel-to-do-whatever-i-can-to/) [Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) > [After all this atrocity, this is how human beings really pray.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/after-all-this-atrocity-this-is-how-human-beings-really-pray/) [Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) > [“Honorata's story reminds me of the extraordinary power of the human spirit to withstand almost anything. Her story also speaks to the power of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/honorata-s-story-reminds-me-of-the-extraordinary-power-of-the-human/) [Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) > [I feel like I'm a relentless, pragmatic, determined optimist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/i-feel-like-i-m-a-relentless-pragmatic-determined-optimist/) [Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) > [Monsters will always exist. There's one inside each of us. But an angel lives there, too. There is no more important agenda than figuring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/monsters-will-always-exist-there-s-one-inside-each-of-us-but-an-angel/) [Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) > [“If you don’t like the way the world is, you change it. You have an obligation to change it. You just do it one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/if-you-don-t-like-the-way-the-world-is-you-change-it-you-have-an/) [Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) > [“Don't wait for perfection. Just start and let the work teach you. No one expects you to get it right in the beginning, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/don-t-wait-for-perfection-just-start-and-let-the-work-teach-you-no/) [Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) > [Honour what is most beautiful about the past and build it into the promise of the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/honour-what-is-most-beautiful-about-the-past-and-build-it-into-the/) [Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) [Explore all 169 Jacqueline Novogratz quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) ## More Blindly quotes > [ Man blindly works the will of fate. \[Ger., Blindlings that er blos den Willen des Geschickes.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christoph-martin-wieland/man-blindly-works-the-will-of-fate-ger-blindlings-that-er-blos-den/) [Christoph Martin Wieland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christoph-martin-wieland/) > [I always was kind of on the edge of the church when I was fully in it , cos I was always asking the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-o-donohue/i-always-was-kind-of-on-the-edge-of-the-church-when-i-was-fully-in-it/) [John O'Donohue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-o-donohue/) > [Sometimes its easier to look at the world blindly and not see the ugliness that reveals within.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eboni-gilree/sometimes-its-easier-to-look-at-the-world-blindly-and-not-see-the/) Eboni Gilree > [We can't gather the intelligence we need to foil future attacks, if we are blindly granting terrorists the right to remain silent. But for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-can-t-gather-the-intelligence-we-need-to-foil-future-attacks-if-we/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“But in love, merit is won blindly and unaccountably, and in this blindness and unaccountability lies happiness. pp. 445-446”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivan-goncharov/but-in-love-merit-is-won-blindly-and-unaccountably-and-in-this/) [Ivan Goncharov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivan-goncharov/) > [“A girl may fall in love blindly, but she becomes very clear sighted to her man’s flaws into a year of the relationship.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sneha-mehta/a-girl-may-fall-in-love-blindly-but-she-becomes-very-clear-sighted-to/) [Sneha Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sneha-mehta/) > [To Follow by faith alone is to follow blindly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/to-follow-by-faith-alone-is-to-follow-blindly/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [Human beings, when they encounter that which can't be understood, either run away from it, run towards it blindly, or just rationalize it out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/human-beings-when-they-encounter-that-which-can-t-be-understood/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [“How could the people around me not see that I’d been spending my day in nineteenth-century Kansas, or in the pit of a giant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-joy-arnold/how-could-the-people-around-me-not-see-that-i-d-been-spending-my-day/) [Elizabeth Joy Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-joy-arnold/) > [I trusted you blindly but don't think I am blind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sushan-sharma/i-trusted-you-blindly-but-don-t-think-i-am-blind/) [Sushan Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sushan-sharma/) > [A request to my specials - I trust you blindly.. But Please. . . . never prove me BLIND..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nit/a-request-to-my-specials-i-trust-you-blindly-but-please-never-prove/) Nit > [We are trained from birth not to question authority and to blindly follow it into the abyss.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rev-richard-skaff/we-are-trained-from-birth-not-to-question-authority-and-to-blindly/) [Rev Richard Skaff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rev-richard-skaff/) > [“I followed Peter heedlessly, or more specifically, my penis followed blindly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dani-alexander/i-followed-peter-heedlessly-or-more-specifically-my-penis-followed/) [Dani Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dani-alexander/) > [When someone trusts you blindly, never prove that they are blind..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/when-someone-trusts-you-blindly-never-prove-that-they-are-blind/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [“there are many points in life when we cannot see what awaits us around the corner, and it is precisely at such times, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-c-morais/there-are-many-points-in-life-when-we-cannot-see-what-awaits-us/) [Richard C. Morais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-c-morais/) Browse all 111 Blindly quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“If we have learned anything, it is the horror that can happen when people don't think for themselves, but instead follow authority blindly.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jacqueline Novogratz" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/if-we-have-learned-anything-it-is-the-horror-that-can-happen-when/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Blindly" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/if-we-have-learned-anything-it-is-the-horror-that-can-happen-when/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e1/jacqueline-novogratz-2383_blindly_if-we-have-learned-anything-it-is-the-ho_406700.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e1/jacqueline-novogratz-2383_blindly_if-we-have-learned-anything-it-is-the-ho_406700.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e1/jacqueline-novogratz-2383_blindly_if-we-have-learned-anything-it-is-the-ho_406700.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If we have learned anything, it is the horror that can happen when people don't think for themselves, but…” — Jacqueline Novogratz", "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": "Jacqueline Novogratz", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“If we have learned anything, it...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/if-we-have-learned-anything-it-is-the-horror-that-can-happen-when/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/if-we-have-learned-anything-it-is-the-horror-that-can-happen-when/#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 } } ] } ```