--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is not that what you can imagine…" description: "\"“It is not that what you can imagine depends on what you know, but that what you know depends on what you can imagine. The history of science couldn't ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/96a/jesse-lopes-247767_history_it-is-not-that-what-you-can-imagine-depe_1007225.jpg" --- # It is not that what you can imagine depends on what you… ![“It is not that what you can imagine depends on what you know, but that what you know depends on what you can imagine. The history of science couldn't be clearer on this point, and, therefore, Dennett is a sophist.” quote by Jesse Lopes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/96a/jesse-lopes-247767_history_it-is-not-that-what-you-can-imagine-depe_1007225.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/96a/jesse-lopes-247767_history_it-is-not-that-what-you-can-imagine-depe_1007225.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/96a/jesse-lopes-247767_history_it-is-not-that-what-you-can-imagine-depe_1007225.jpg) > ““It is not that what you can imagine depends on what you know, but that what you know depends on what you can imagine. The history of science couldn't be clearer on this point, and, therefore, Dennett is a sophist.”” Jesse Lopes ## 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 argues that imagination expands knowledge, not the reverse, and critiques Dennett. **In simple terms:** Imagination drives knowledge, not knowledge drives imagination. Key Takeaway Cultivate imagination to expand understanding. Themes creativity knowledge philosophy Mood inquisitive analytical Type philosophical critical When to use this quote - educational design - philosophical debate Key Concepts imagination science history critical thinking Questions to Reflect On - How does imagination influence scientific breakthroughs? - Can knowledge ever limit imagination? A Different Perspective The statement oversimplifies the relationship between knowledge and imagination. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) ## Related quotes > [An event in the present evokes past sensations. But science couldn't explain how a foolish heart had the power to overrule common sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-wiggs/an-event-in-the-present-evokes-past-sensations-but-science-couldn-t/) [Susan Wiggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-wiggs/) > [What you can imagine depends on what you know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-dennett/what-you-can-imagine-depends-on-what-you-know/) [Daniel Dennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-dennett/) > [What you can imagine depends on what you know. Philosophers who know only philosophy consign themselves to a janitorial role in the great enterprises…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-you-can-imagine-depends-on-what-you-know-philosophers-who-know/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“This girl? Imagine that she depends on you. She needs you to cherish her and make her feel like the Selection didn't even happen.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiera-cass/this-girl-imagine-that-she-depends-on-you-she-needs-you-to-cherish/) [Kiera Cass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiera-cass/) > [Fear arises when we imagine that everything depends on us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-elliot/fear-arises-when-we-imagine-that-everything-depends-on-us/) [Elisabeth Elliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-elliot/) > [Be neither saint nor sophist-led, but be a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-arnold/be-neither-saint-nor-sophist-led-but-be-a-man/) [Matthew Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-arnold/) > [“Man is the measure of all things', said the Sophist Protagora (c. 485-410 B.C.). By that he meant that the question of whether a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/man-is-the-measure-of-all-things-said-the-sophist-protagora-c-485-410/) [Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/) > [The sophist sneers: Fool, take Thy pleasure, right or wrong! The pious wail: Forsake A world these sophists throng! Be neither saint nor sophist-led,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-arnold/the-sophist-sneers-fool-take-thy-pleasure-right-or-wrong-the-pious/) [Matthew Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-arnold/) > [“When someone blamed Hecataeus the sophist because that, being invited to the public table, he had not spoken one word all supper-time, Archidamidas answered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plutarch/when-someone-blamed-hecataeus-the-sophist-because-that-being-invited/) [Plutarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plutarch/) > [“He could argue a case for anything, but that doesn’t change the fact he’s wrong most of the time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-monroe/he-could-argue-a-case-for-anything-but-that-doesn-t-change-the-fact/) [Michael Monroe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-monroe/) > [Whoever does not philosophize for the sake of philosophy, but rather uses philosophy as a means, is a sophist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-wilhelm-friedrich-schlegel/whoever-does-not-philosophize-for-the-sake-of-philosophy-but-rather/) [Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-wilhelm-friedrich-schlegel/) > [“The most striking difference between ancient and modern sophists is that the ancients were satisfied with a passing victory of the argument at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-arendt/the-most-striking-difference-between-ancient-and-modern-sophists-is/) [Hannah Arendt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-arendt/) > [“What makes a man a 'sophist' is not his faculty, but his moral purpose. (1355b 17)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/what-makes-a-man-a-sophist-is-not-his-faculty-but-his-moral-purpose/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [It is said that history turns on small hinges. A human career, too, results from an accumulating series of decisions about large and small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/it-is-said-that-history-turns-on-small-hinges-a-human-career-too/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [Histories never conclude; they just pause their prose. Their stories are, if they are truthful, untidy affairs, resistant to windings-up and sortings-out. They beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/histories-never-conclude-they-just-pause-their-prose-their-stories/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) ## More History quotes > [Histories never conclude; they just pause their prose. 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