---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: People think that I've committed myself…"
description: "\"People think that I've committed myself to idealism, to solipsism, or to doctrines of the cabala, because I've used them in my tales. But really I was ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed5/jorge-luis-borges-275_affinity_people-think-that-i-ve-committed-myself_2987740.jpg"
---

#  People think that I've committed myself to idealism, to…

![“People think that I've committed myself to idealism, to solipsism, or to doctrines of the cabala, because I've used them in my tales. But really I was only trying to see what could be done with them. On the other hand, it might be argued that if I use them it's because I was feeling an affinity to…” quote by Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed5/jorge-luis-borges-275_affinity_people-think-that-i-ve-committed-myself_2987740.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed5/jorge-luis-borges-275_affinity_people-think-that-i-ve-committed-myself_2987740.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed5/jorge-luis-borges-275_affinity_people-think-that-i-ve-committed-myself_2987740.jpg)

> “People think that I've committed myself to idealism, to solipsism, or to doctrines of the cabala, because I've used them in my tales. But really I was only trying to see what could be done with them. On the other hand, it might be argued that if I use them it's because I was feeling an affinity to them. Of course, that's true.”

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

## About This Quote

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

Borges uses philosophical doctrines as narrative tools, exploring their possibilities while acknowledging personal affinity for them.

**In simple terms:** He experiments with ideas, not endorses them.

Key Takeaway

Explore concepts without dogma.

Themes

philosophy exploration creative experimentation

Mood

curious thoughtful

Type

literary introspective

When to use this quote

- fiction writing
- academic study
- personal belief

Key Concepts

cabala ideological tools

Questions to Reflect On

- What ideas intrigue you creatively?
- How do you separate use from belief?

A Different Perspective

Risk of misinterpretation of doctrines.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Affinity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affinity/) [Committed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/committed/) [Committed Idealism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/committed-idealism-4678826/) [Courses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courses/) [Doctrine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctrine/) [Done](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/done/) [Feeling Affinity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feeling-affinity-4678828/) [Feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feelings/) [Hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hands/) [Idealism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idealism/) [Idealism Solipsism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idealism-solipsism-4678825/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Might](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/might/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Solipsism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/solipsism/) [Solipsism Doctrines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/solipsism-doctrines-4678827/) [Tales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tales/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) [Use](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/use/) [Used](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/used/)

## Related quotes

> [“We all have our little solipsistic delusions, ghastly intuitions of utter singularity: that we are the only one in the house who ever fills…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-foster-wallace/we-all-have-our-little-solipsistic-delusions-ghastly-intuitions-of/)

[David Foster Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-foster-wallace/)

> [“English: "The manner of clouding our past interiority is similar to the manner of clouding the interiority of others." Česky: „Způsob zamlžení našeho minulého…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebasti-n-wortys/english-the-manner-of-clouding-our-past-interiority-is-similar-to-the/)

[Sebastián Wortys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebasti-n-wortys/)

> [One of the things that makes Wittgenstein a real artist to me is that he realized that no conclusion could be more horrible than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-foster-wallace/one-of-the-things-that-makes-wittgenstein-a-real-artist-to-me-is-that/)

[David Foster Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-foster-wallace/)

> [A picture held us captive. And we could not get outside it, for it lay in our language and language seemed to repeat it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-wittgenstein/a-picture-held-us-captive-and-we-could-not-get-outside-it-for-it-lay/)

[Ludwig Wittgenstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-wittgenstein/)

> [“Investigations “eliminated solipsism but not the horror.” The only difference between this new predicament and that of the Tractatus was that rather than being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-ryerson/investigations-eliminated-solipsism-but-not-the-horror-the-only/)

[James Ryerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-ryerson/)

> [“As against solipsism it is to be said, in the first place, that it is psychologically impossible to believe, and is rejected in fact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/as-against-solipsism-it-is-to-be-said-in-the-first-place-that-it-is/)

[Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/)

> [Beware of solipsism Funny word. Sounds like it means "love of melons" or something. I looked it up. It means believing that "the self…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-spinelli/beware-of-solipsism-funny-word-sounds-like-it-means-love-of-melons-or/)

[Jerry Spinelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-spinelli/)

> [The assumption that you everyone else is like you. That you are the world. The disease of consumer capitalism. The complacent solipsism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-foster-wallace/the-assumption-that-you-everyone-else-is-like-you-that-you-are-the/)

[David Foster Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-foster-wallace/)

> [“Scientists have solved the problem of solipsism with a strategy called 'inference to the best explanation'. It's a cheap accommodation, and no one is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-joy-fowler/scientists-have-solved-the-problem-of-solipsism-with-a-strategy/)

[Karen Joy Fowler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-joy-fowler/)

> [“There still remain four irreducible objections to religious faith: that it wholly misrepresents the origins of man and the cosmos, that because of this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/there-still-remain-four-irreducible-objections-to-religious-faith/)

[Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/)

> [ “It seemed to him \[Otto Kugelblitz\] obvious that the human life span runs through the varieties of mental disorder as understood in his day—the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-pynchon/it-seemed-to-him-otto-kugelblitz-obvious-that-the-human-life-span/)

[Thomas Pynchon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-pynchon/)

> [Sometimes I think I am going mad. I live for days in the mystery and tears of things so that the commonest object, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-n-p-barbellion/sometimes-i-think-i-am-going-mad-i-live-for-days-in-the-mystery-and/)

[W.N.P. Barbellion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-n-p-barbellion/)

> [“The stumbling block will turn out to be the traditional one for students of consciousness: the flashlight is incapable of shining on itself, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/the-stumbling-block-will-turn-out-to-be-the-traditional-one-for/)

[Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/)

> [“Pretending not to see would, she believes, take her past some point of no return, past the event horizon of hypocrisy into a black…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-r-carey/pretending-not-to-see-would-she-believes-take-her-past-some-point-of/)

[M.R. Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-r-carey/)

> [Religion fosters servility and solipsism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/religion-fosters-servility-and-solipsism/)

[Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/)

## More by Jorge Luis Borges

> [“No hables a menos que puedas mejorar el silencio.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/no-hables-a-menos-que-puedas-mejorar-el-silencio/)

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

> [The execution was set for the 29th of March, at nine in the morning. This delay was due to a desire on the part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/the-execution-was-set-for-the-29th-of-march-at-nine-in-the-morning/)

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

> [Like all writers, he measured the achievements of others by what they had accomplished, asking of them that they measure him by what he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/like-all-writers-he-measured-the-achievements-of-others-by-what-they/)

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

> [How can we manage to illuminate the pathos of our lives?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/how-can-we-manage-to-illuminate-the-pathos-of-our-lives/)

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

> [Loneliness does not worry me; life is difficult enough, putting up with yourself and with your own habits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/loneliness-does-not-worry-me-life-is-difficult-enough-putting-up-with/)

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

> [The fact is that all writers create their precursors. Their work modifies our conception of the past, just as it is bound to modify…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/the-fact-is-that-all-writers-create-their-precursors-their-work/)

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

> [I don't think we're capable of knowledge, but I like to keep an open mind. So if you ask me whether I believe in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/i-don-t-think-we-re-capable-of-knowledge-but-i-like-to-keep-an-open/)

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

> [The web of time - the strands of which approach one another, bifurcate, intersect, or ignore each other through the centuries - embraces "every"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/the-web-of-time-the-strands-of-which-approach-one-another-bifurcate/)

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

> [“My memory, sir, is like a garbage disposal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/my-memory-sir-is-like-a-garbage-disposal/)

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

> [When I write, I do it urged by an intimate necessity. I don't have in mind an exclusive public, or a public of multitudes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/when-i-write-i-do-it-urged-by-an-intimate-necessity-i-don-t-have-in/)

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

> [The mind was dreaming. The world was its dream.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/the-mind-was-dreaming-the-world-was-its-dream/)

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

> [I foresee that man will resign himself each day to new abominations, and soon that only bandits and soldiers will be left.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/i-foresee-that-man-will-resign-himself-each-day-to-new-abominations/)

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

> [“If I could live again - I will travel light, If I could live again - I'll try to work bare feet at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/if-i-could-live-again-i-will-travel-light-if-i-could-live-again-i-ll/)

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

> [Every man should be capable of all ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/every-man-should-be-capable-of-all-ideas/)

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

> [Writing is only a guided dream.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/writing-is-only-a-guided-dream/)

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

[Explore all 558 Jorge Luis Borges quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

## More Affinity quotes

> [I have an affinity with the Leicester community and want the best for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-morrison/i-have-an-affinity-with-the-leicester-community-and-want-the-best-for/)

[Mark Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-morrison/)

> [There certainly is an affinity between a person and his work, but it is not easy to define what this affinity is, and on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-van-gogh/there-certainly-is-an-affinity-between-a-person-and-his-work-but-it/)

[Vincent Van Gogh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-van-gogh/)

> [This formula of Love is universal; all the laws of Nature are its servitors. Thus, gravitation, chemical affinity, electrical potential, and the rest -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleister-crowley/this-formula-of-love-is-universal-all-the-laws-of-nature-are-its/)

[Aleister Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleister-crowley/)

> [Your brain may give birth to any technology, but other brains will decide whether the technology thrives. The number of possible technologies is infinite,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-wright/your-brain-may-give-birth-to-any-technology-but-other-brains-will/)

[Robert Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-wright/)

> [I receive huge support from Irish and British sports fans alike and it is greatly appreciated. Likewise I feel I have a great affinity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rory-mcilroy/i-receive-huge-support-from-irish-and-british-sports-fans-alike-and/)

[Rory McIlroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rory-mcilroy/)

> [Savages have often been likened to children, and the comparison is not only correct but also highly instructive. Many naturalists consider that the early…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lubbock/savages-have-often-been-likened-to-children-and-the-comparison-is-not/)

[John Lubbock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lubbock/)

> [My father being in the movie business, I thought being an actor would be great. But when I started singing to people in coffeehouses,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crosby/my-father-being-in-the-movie-business-i-thought-being-an-actor-would/)

[David Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crosby/)

> [Gay men are perfect men for girls who are tough. They're not threatened by strong women, and they're usually very in touch with their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madonna-ciccone/gay-men-are-perfect-men-for-girls-who-are-tough-they-re-not/)

[Madonna Ciccone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madonna-ciccone/)

> [A man is known by the books he reads, by the company he keeps, by the praise he gives, by his dress, by his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-man-is-known-by-the-books-he-reads-by-the-company-he-keeps-by-the/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [I've got German, Cornish and Scottish ancestry. It might help explain my affinity for forests, the sea, and fatty foods.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyle-maclachlan/i-ve-got-german-cornish-and-scottish-ancestry-it-might-help-explain/)

[Kyle MacLachlan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyle-maclachlan/)

> [I found myself being more and more involved with people who were rejected by society - with drug addicts, alcoholism, battered this, battered that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/princess-diana/i-found-myself-being-more-and-more-involved-with-people-who-were/)

[Princess Diana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/princess-diana/)

> [The affinity of blood or pure haemoglobins for oxygen is a complex phenomenon, depending upon a number of conditions, the most important of which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-krogh/the-affinity-of-blood-or-pure-haemoglobins-for-oxygen-is-a-complex/)

[August Krogh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/august-krogh/)

> [Even if you have money, access to MoCap technology, and strong choreographic and computer-animation abilities, don't try to make a film like this if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-epoque/even-if-you-have-money-access-to-mocap-technology-and-strong/)

[Martine Epoque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-epoque/)

> [Would movie moguls release a film portraying Adolph Hitler as a great benefactor of the Jews? Hardly. Would they release a movie if the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-wildmon/would-movie-moguls-release-a-film-portraying-adolph-hitler-as-a-great/)

[Donald Wildmon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-wildmon/)

> [The profoundest affinities are the most readily felt; they remain a background and standard for all happiness and if we trace them out we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-santayana/the-profoundest-affinities-are-the-most-readily-felt-they-remain-a/)

[George Santayana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-santayana/)

[Browse all 259 Affinity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affinity/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "People think that I've committed myself to idealism, to solipsism, or to doctrines of the cabala, because I've used them in my tales. But really I was only trying to see what could be done with them. On the other hand, it might be argued that if I use them it's because I was feeling an affinity to them. Of course, that's true.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Jorge Luis Borges"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/people-think-that-i-ve-committed-myself-to-idealism-to-solipsism-or/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Affinity"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/people-think-that-i-ve-committed-myself-to-idealism-to-solipsism-or/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed5/jorge-luis-borges-275_affinity_people-think-that-i-ve-committed-myself_2987740.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed5/jorge-luis-borges-275_affinity_people-think-that-i-ve-committed-myself_2987740.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed5/jorge-luis-borges-275_affinity_people-think-that-i-ve-committed-myself_2987740.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“People think that I've committed myself to idealism, to solipsism, or to doctrines of the cabala, because…” — Jorge Luis Borges",
                "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": "Jorge Luis Borges",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "People think that I've committed myself...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/people-think-that-i-ve-committed-myself-to-idealism-to-solipsism-or/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/people-think-that-i-ve-committed-myself-to-idealism-to-solipsism-or/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
