--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We could argue that the ancient Egyptians…" description: "\"“We could argue that the ancient Egyptians were positively constrained by their hieroglyphic system of writing to express abstract qualities in a crude..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/964/jeremy-naydler-247548_ancient-egyptian_we-could-argue-that-the-ancient-egyptian_2321907.jpg" --- # We could argue that the ancient Egyptians were positively… ![“We could argue that the ancient Egyptians were positively constrained by their hieroglyphic system of writing to express abstract qualities in a crudely physical way. Against such an interpretation, it is important to bear in mind that language is not simply the vehicle of expression of a given…” quote by Jeremy Naydler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/964/jeremy-naydler-247548_ancient-egyptian_we-could-argue-that-the-ancient-egyptian_2321907.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/964/jeremy-naydler-247548_ancient-egyptian_we-could-argue-that-the-ancient-egyptian_2321907.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/964/jeremy-naydler-247548_ancient-egyptian_we-could-argue-that-the-ancient-egyptian_2321907.jpg) > ““We could argue that the ancient Egyptians were positively constrained by their hieroglyphic system of writing to express abstract qualities in a crudely physical way. Against such an interpretation, it is important to bear in mind that language is not simply the vehicle of expression of a given mentality, it actually is that mentality giving expression to itself. The very structures of language are the articulation of the mentality. We should be wary of thinking that the ancient Egyptian mind was “really” like ours, but was constrained by the hieroglyphic script. Rather, the hieroglyphic script was the medium most appropriate for the articulation of the ancient Egyptian mentality. Far from being crude, it reflected richly symbolic modes of conceiving and relating to both the physical and the psychic spheres of existence. It has already become apparent that these two spheres were not experienced as separated from each other—as we today tend to experience them. It is now necessary to go further, and seriously consider the idea that psychic attributes were indeed experienced as “situated” in various parts of the body. The pictorial character of the hieroglyphic form of writing made possible a quite effortless translation of this experience into the written word. For the hieroglyphic script, because it was pictorial, had not yet created a division between concrete and abstract, between “outer” and “inner.” And it had not done so just because the ancient Egyptian mentality had not done so.”” [Jeremy Naydler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-naydler/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Hieroglyphs shaped Egyptian thought, intertwining language and mindset, not limiting it. **In simple terms:** Writing reflects mind. Key Takeaway Study language as cultural mindset. Themes language culture mindset Mood analytical thoughtful Type ancient egyptian:1 expression:1 hieroglyphic:1 language:1 psychology:1 hieroglyphic writing:1 egyptian mind:1 hieroglyphic form:1 hieroglyphic script:1 When to use this quote - education - museum curation - archaeology - cross‑cultural studies Key Concepts semiotics cognitive anthropology ancient history Questions to Reflect On - How does language shape perception? - What modern analogies illustrate this? A Different Perspective Modern scripts differ, limiting direct comparison. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ancient egyptian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ancient-egyptian/) [Egyptian Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/egyptian-mind-5553336/) [Expression](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/expression/) [Hieroglyphic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hieroglyphic/) [Hieroglyphic Form](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hieroglyphic-form-5553337/) [Hieroglyphic Script](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hieroglyphic-script-5553338/) [Hieroglyphic Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hieroglyphic-writing-5553335/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) ## Related quotes > [“Though she knew even less about radios than about Southern Californians, there were to both outward patterns a hieroglyphic sense of concealed meaning, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-pynchon/though-she-knew-even-less-about-radios-than-about-southern/) [Thomas Pynchon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-pynchon/) > [“The attention given to the side of the head which has received the injury, in connection with a specific reference to the side of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-henry-breasted/the-attention-given-to-the-side-of-the-head-which-has-received-the/) [James Henry Breasted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-henry-breasted/) > [Philosophical studies are beset by one peril, a person easily brings himself to think that he thinks; and a smattering of science encourages conceit.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/philosophical-studies-are-beset-by-one-peril-a-person-easily-brings/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [“Can't have a care when you unzip & bare the rare hieroglyphs from the archeological digs unearthed from those undiscovered inner layers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-tyrone-jones/can-t-have-a-care-when-you-unzip-bare-the-rare-hieroglyphs-from-the/) [Curtis Tyrone Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-tyrone-jones/) > [“It is hieroglyphic that will last, not stone heads. The future belongs to the word, not the image. (The mason Mutsose, in Achet-Aten).”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-william-lawrie/it-is-hieroglyphic-that-will-last-not-stone-heads-the-future-belongs/) [Steven William Lawrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-william-lawrie/) > [ “Very often conditions are recorded as observable "under thy fingers" \[...\] Among such observations it is important to notice that the pulsations of the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-henry-breasted/very-often-conditions-are-recorded-as-observable-under-thy-fingers/) [James Henry Breasted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-henry-breasted/) > [Nature is hieroglyphic. 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Almost invariably it is all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/in-life-the-visible-surface-of-the-sperm-whale-is-not-the-least-among/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [Therefore, the central point which we see in the centre of the hieroglyphic Monad produces the Earth , round which the Sun , the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dee/therefore-the-central-point-which-we-see-in-the-centre-of-the/) [John Dee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dee/) > [ “\[...\] we have in our treatise a series of fifty-seven examinations, almost exclusively of injuries of the human body forming a group of observations… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-henry-breasted/we-have-in-our-treatise-a-series-of-fifty-seven-examinations-almost/) [James Henry Breasted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-henry-breasted/) > [Behind the hieroglyphic streets there would either be a transcendent meaning, or only the earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-pynchon/behind-the-hieroglyphic-streets-there-would-either-be-a-transcendent/) [Thomas Pynchon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-pynchon/) > [“Whenever I think about ancient cultures nostalgia seizes me. 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It went on for thousands of years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-gates/ancient-egyptian-culture-was-so-enduring-it-went-on-for-thousands-of/) [Josh Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-gates/) > [“The term Greek philosophy, to begin with is a misnomer, for there is no such philosophy in existence. The ancient Egyptians had developed a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-g-m-james/the-term-greek-philosophy-to-begin-with-is-a-misnomer-for-there-is-no/) [George G.M. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-g-m-james/) [Browse all 91 Ancient egyptian quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ancient-egyptian/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We could argue that the ancient Egyptians were positively constrained by their hieroglyphic system of writing to express abstract qualities in a crudely physical way. 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