---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Old ideas give way slowly; for they are…"
description: "\"Old ideas give way slowly; for they are more than abstract logical forms and categories. They are habits, predispositions, deeply ingrained attitudes o..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89a/john-dewey-545_abstract_old-ideas-give-way-slowly-for-they-are-m_1774134.png"
---

#  Old ideas give way slowly; for they are more than abstract…

![“Old ideas give way slowly; for they are more than abstract logical forms and categories. They are habits, predispositions, deeply ingrained attitudes of aversion and preference.” quote by John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89a/john-dewey-545_abstract_old-ideas-give-way-slowly-for-they-are-m_1774134.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89a/john-dewey-545_abstract_old-ideas-give-way-slowly-for-they-are-m_1774134.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89a/john-dewey-545_abstract_old-ideas-give-way-slowly-for-they-are-m_1774134.png)

> “Old ideas give way slowly; for they are more than abstract logical forms and categories. They are habits, predispositions, deeply ingrained attitudes of aversion and preference.”

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Ideas evolve into habits and attitudes, shaping how we perceive and act in the world.

**In simple terms:** Ideas become habits and attitudes.

Key Takeaway

Cultivate reflective habits.

Themes

education psychology culture

Mood

thoughtful analytical

Type

philosophical educational

When to use this quote

- classroom teaching
- organizational change
- personal development

Key Concepts

habit formation cognitive bias social conditioning

Questions to Reflect On

- What habits reflect your core ideas?
- How can you reshape ingrained attitudes?

A Different Perspective

Changing deep‑seated attitudes requires sustained effort.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Abstract](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstract/) [Acceptance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acceptance/) [Adoption](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adoption/) [Attitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attitude/) [Aversion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aversion/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Habit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habit/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Ideas and innovation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas-and-innovation/) [Old ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-ideas/) [Preference](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preference/) [Rejection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rejection/)

## Related quotes

> [The creative person wants to be a know-it-all. He wants to know about all kinds of things-ancient history, nineteenth century mathematics, current manufacturing techniques,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-creative-person-wants-to-be-a-know-it-all-he-wants-to-know-about/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [The difficulty lies, not in the new ideas, but in escaping from the old ones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-maynard-keynes/the-difficulty-lies-not-in-the-new-ideas-but-in-escaping-from-the-old/)

[John Maynard Keynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-maynard-keynes/)

> [Innovation- any new idea-by definition will not be accepted at first. It takes repeated attempts, endless demonstrations, monotonous rehearsals before innovation can be accepted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-g-bennis/innovation-any-new-idea-by-definition-will-not-be-accepted-at-first/)

[Warren G. Bennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-g-bennis/)

> [There can be no solution to the challenge of climate change that is not global. But if we can come together in partnership, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ban-ki-moon/there-can-be-no-solution-to-the-challenge-of-climate-change-that-is/)

[Ban Ki-moon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ban-ki-moon/)

> [Where do you put the fear when you choose to innovate? The fear is there, but you have to find a place to put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/where-do-you-put-the-fear-when-you-choose-to-innovate-the-fear-is/)

[Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/)

> [The best ideas lose their owners and take on lives of their own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nolan-bushnell/the-best-ideas-lose-their-owners-and-take-on-lives-of-their-own/)

[Nolan Bushnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nolan-bushnell/)

> [It's not about money. It's about the people you have, how you're led, and how much you get it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/it-s-not-about-money-it-s-about-the-people-you-have-how-you-re-led/)

[Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/)

> [Innovation is the creation of the new, or the re-arranging of the old in a new way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-vance/innovation-is-the-creation-of-the-new-or-the-re-arranging-of-the-old/)

[Mike Vance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-vance/)

> [All it takes is one idea to solve an impossible problem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-h-schuller/all-it-takes-is-one-idea-to-solve-an-impossible-problem/)

[Robert H. Schuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-h-schuller/)

> [You can have brilliant ideas, but if you can't get them across, your ideas won't get you anywhere. Lee Iacocca Love is the irresistible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/you-can-have-brilliant-ideas-but-if-you-can-t-get-them-across-your/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [The innovation point is the pivotal moment when talented and motivated people seek the opportunity to act on their ideas and dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-arthur-porter/the-innovation-point-is-the-pivotal-moment-when-talented-and/)

W. Arthur Porter

> [If you are only skeptical, then no new ideas make it through to you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/if-you-are-only-skeptical-then-no-new-ideas-make-it-through-to-you/)

[Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/)

> [After years of telling corporate citizens to 'trust the system,' many companies must relearn instead to trust their people - and encourage their people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosabeth-moss-kanter/after-years-of-telling-corporate-citizens-to-trust-the-system-many/)

[Rosabeth Moss Kanter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosabeth-moss-kanter/)

> [Held in the palms of thousands of disgruntled people over the centuries have been ideas worth millions - if they only had taken the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-hayes/held-in-the-palms-of-thousands-of-disgruntled-people-over-the/)

Robert M. Hayes

> [Good ideas and innovations must be driven into existence by courage and patience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hyman-rickover/good-ideas-and-innovations-must-be-driven-into-existence-by-courage/)

[Hyman Rickover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hyman-rickover/)

## More by John Dewey

> [“The deepest urge in human nature is the desire to be important.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/the-deepest-urge-in-human-nature-is-the-desire-to-be-important/)

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

> [“Empirically, things are poignant, tragic, beautiful, humorous, settled, disturbed, comfortable, annoying, barren, harsh, consoling, splendid, fearful; are such immediately and in their own right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/empirically-things-are-poignant-tragic-beautiful-humorous-settled/)

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

> [A good aim surveys the present state of experience of pupils, and forming a tentative plan of treatment, keeps the plan constantly in view…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/a-good-aim-surveys-the-present-state-of-experience-of-pupils-and/)

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

> [Experiences in order to be educative must lead out into an expanding world of subject matter, a subject matter of facts or information and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/experiences-in-order-to-be-educative-must-lead-out-into-an-expanding/)

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

> [A tribe, let us say, is warlike. The successes for which it strives, the achievements upon which it sets store, are connected with fighting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/a-tribe-let-us-say-is-warlike-the-successes-for-which-it-strives-the/)

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

> [The phrase "think for one's self" is a pleonasm. Unless one does it for one's self, it isn't thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/the-phrase-think-for-one-s-self-is-a-pleonasm-unless-one-does-it-for/)

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

> [Doctrine that eliminates or even obscures the function of choice of values and enlistment of desires and emotions in behalf of those chosen weakens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/doctrine-that-eliminates-or-even-obscures-the-function-of-choice-of/)

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

> [There is no such thing as educational value in the abstract. The notion that some subjects and methods and that acquaintance with certain facts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/there-is-no-such-thing-as-educational-value-in-the-abstract-the/)

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

> [Men live in a community in virtue of the things which they have in common; and communication is the way in which they come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/men-live-in-a-community-in-virtue-of-the-things-which-they-have-in/)

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

> [We can have facts without thinking but we cannot have thinking without facts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/we-can-have-facts-without-thinking-but-we-cannot-have-thinking/)

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

> [But progress in knowledge has made us aware of the superficiality of Plato's lumping of individuals and their original powers into a few sharply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/but-progress-in-knowledge-has-made-us-aware-of-the-superficiality-of/)

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

> [Even the alleged benefits of war, so far as more than alleged, spring from the fact that conflict of peoples at least enforces intercourse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/even-the-alleged-benefits-of-war-so-far-as-more-than-alleged-spring/)

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

> [“When the organization called soul is free, moving and operative, initial as well as terminal, it is spirit. Qualities are both static, substantial, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/when-the-organization-called-soul-is-free-moving-and-operative/)

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

> [Since in reality there is nothing to which growth is relative save more growth, there is nothing to which education is subordinate save more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/since-in-reality-there-is-nothing-to-which-growth-is-relative-save/)

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

> [Creative thinking will improve as we relate the new fact to the old and all facts to each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/creative-thinking-will-improve-as-we-relate-the-new-fact-to-the-old/)

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

[Explore all 486 John Dewey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

## More Abstract quotes

> [Love is like that, fragile and light. No wonder it rests upon our hearts in intangible moments, bids us follow fleeting thoughts and ideas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-is-like-that-fragile-and-light-no-wonder-it-rests-upon-our/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Wisdom is the abstract of the past, but beauty is the promise of the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/wisdom-is-the-abstract-of-the-past-but-beauty-is-the-promise-of-the/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Where human eyes have never seen, where human beings have never been, I build a world of abstract dreams, and I wait for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-ra/where-human-eyes-have-never-seen-where-human-beings-have-never-been-i/)

[Sun Ra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-ra/)

> [A little too abstract, a little too wise, It is time for us to kiss the earth again, It is time to let the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/a-little-too-abstract-a-little-too-wise-it-is-time-for-us-to-kiss-the/)

[Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/)

> [“Happy is very abstract, you can't touch it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julius-veal/happy-is-very-abstract-you-can-t-touch-it/)

[Julius Veal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julius-veal/)

> [Abstract Expressionism was invented by New York drunks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/abstract-expressionism-was-invented-by-new-york-drunks/)

[Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/)

> [The more horrible this world (as today, for instance), the more abstract our art, whereas a happy world brings forth an art of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-klee/the-more-horrible-this-world-as-today-for-instance-the-more-abstract/)

[Paul Klee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-klee/)

> [Describing comic sensibility is near impossible. It's sort of an abstract silliness, that sometimes the joke isn't the star.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-carvey/describing-comic-sensibility-is-near-impossible-it-s-sort-of-an/)

[Dana Carvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-carvey/)

> [For people of color - especially African Americans - the idea that racist cops might frame members of their community is no abstract notion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/for-people-of-color-especially-african-americans-the-idea-that-racist/)

[Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/)

> [The word of the Lord never comes to us as an opinion, no attempt is made to support it by argument, it comes as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-w-ivins/the-word-of-the-lord-never-comes-to-us-as-an-opinion-no-attempt-is/)

Anthony W. Ivins

> [A mobile is an abstract sculpture made chiefly out of sheet metal, steel rods, wire and wood. Some or all of these elements move,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-calder/a-mobile-is-an-abstract-sculpture-made-chiefly-out-of-sheet-metal/)

[Alexander Calder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-calder/)

> [I'm this superphilosophical kind of person. Stuck in a prison of abstract ideas and overpowering emotions, I have this personality that makes it really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natsuo-kirino/i-m-this-superphilosophical-kind-of-person-stuck-in-a-prison-of/)

[Natsuo Kirino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natsuo-kirino/)

> [Future lawyers should be more aware that law is not a system of abstract logic, but the web of arrangements, rooted in history but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-frankfurter/future-lawyers-should-be-more-aware-that-law-is-not-a-system-of/)

[Felix Frankfurter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-frankfurter/)

> [The trouble is that when you read criticisms about the other films that I've made you get the impression that they're all about themes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-haneke/the-trouble-is-that-when-you-read-criticisms-about-the-other-films/)

[Michael Haneke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-haneke/)

> [Painting is... a richer language than words... Painting operates through signs which are not abstract and incorporeal like words. The signs of painting are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-dubuffet/painting-is-a-richer-language-than-words-painting-operates-through/)

[Jean Dubuffet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-dubuffet/)

[Browse all 1,403 Abstract quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstract/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Old ideas give way slowly; for they are more than abstract logical forms and categories. They are habits, predispositions, deeply ingrained attitudes of aversion and preference.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "John Dewey"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/old-ideas-give-way-slowly-for-they-are-more-than-abstract-logical/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Abstract"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/old-ideas-give-way-slowly-for-they-are-more-than-abstract-logical/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89a/john-dewey-545_abstract_old-ideas-give-way-slowly-for-they-are-m_1774134.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89a/john-dewey-545_abstract_old-ideas-give-way-slowly-for-they-are-m_1774134.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89a/john-dewey-545_abstract_old-ideas-give-way-slowly-for-they-are-m_1774134.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Old ideas give way slowly; for they are more than abstract logical forms and categories. They are habits…” — John Dewey",
                "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": "John Dewey",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Old ideas give way slowly; for...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/old-ideas-give-way-slowly-for-they-are-more-than-abstract-logical/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/old-ideas-give-way-slowly-for-they-are-more-than-abstract-logical/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
