--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To think is to ignore the differences, to…" description: "\"“To think is to ignore the differences, to generalize, to abstract.”\" — Jorge Luis Borges" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a81/jorge-luis-borges-275_generalize_to-think-is-to-ignore-the-differences-to_2597882.jpg" --- # To think is to ignore the differences, to generalize, to… ![“To think is to ignore the differences, to generalize, to abstract.” quote by Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a81/jorge-luis-borges-275_generalize_to-think-is-to-ignore-the-differences-to_2597882.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a81/jorge-luis-borges-275_generalize_to-think-is-to-ignore-the-differences-to_2597882.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a81/jorge-luis-borges-275_generalize_to-think-is-to-ignore-the-differences-to_2597882.jpg) > ““To think is to ignore the differences, to generalize, to abstract.”” [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. Thinking abstracts away differences, leading to generalizations. **In simple terms:** Thinking abstracts differences. Key Takeaway Beware of over‑generalization. Themes philosophy abstraction generalization Mood analytical thoughtful Type philosophical educational When to use this quote - education - critical thinking - policy making - art critique Key Concepts Epistemology cognitive bias Questions to Reflect On - When does abstraction help? - How to balance detail and generalization? A Different Perspective Abstraction can also reveal patterns. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Differences Generalize](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/differences-generalize-1749609/) [Generalize](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generalize/) [Generalize Abstract](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generalize-abstract-1918324/) [Ignore Differences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ignore-differences-1918325/) [Think Ignore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-ignore-500396/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [“To think is to forget differences, generalize, make abstractions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-harris/to-think-is-to-forget-differences-generalize-make-abstractions/) [Angela Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-harris/) > [Peace is a never ending process... It cannot ignore our differences or overlook our common interests. It requires us to work and live together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/peace-is-a-never-ending-process-it-cannot-ignore-our-differences-or/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If thats what they think of you, ignore them; thats their opinion not a fact everyone believes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-thats-what-they-think-of-you-ignore-them-thats-their-opinion-not-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The worst thing a guy could do for a girl? Personally I think it's to ignore her while she's loving you with all her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/one-direction/the-worst-thing-a-guy-could-do-for-a-girl-personally-i-think-it-s-to/) [One Direction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/one-direction/) > [“I ignore Jaco Coote when I see him. I'm not sure why. It's not as if I dislike him or anything. I think I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melina-marchetta/i-ignore-jaco-coote-when-i-see-him-i-m-not-sure-why-it-s-not-as-if-i/) [Melina Marchetta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melina-marchetta/) > [Geeks like to think that they can ignore politics, you can leave politics alone, but politics won't leave you alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-stallman/geeks-like-to-think-that-they-can-ignore-politics-you-can-leave/) [Richard Stallman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-stallman/) > [“Practice makes perfect Ha, ha, ha, I don’t think so Ignore my sobbing”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/practice-makes-perfect-ha-ha-ha-i-don-t-think-so-ignore-my-sobbing/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [Just because India is a large country, we cannot be arrogant and think that we can ignore others. We live in a different era.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/narendra-modi/just-because-india-is-a-large-country-we-cannot-be-arrogant-and-think/) [Narendra Modi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/narendra-modi/) > [“There was, for starters, the tendency of everyone who actually played the game to generalize wildly from his own experience. People always thought their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/there-was-for-starters-the-tendency-of-everyone-who-actually-played/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“To Generalize is to be an Idiot; To Particularize is the Alone Distinction of Merit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/to-generalize-is-to-be-an-idiot-to-particularize-is-the-alone/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [Perhaps it will be simplest to throw away the tags and generalize India with one all-comprehensive name, as the Land of Wonders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/perhaps-it-will-be-simplest-to-throw-away-the-tags-and-generalize/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [I hate to generalize because there are always so many exceptions to any rule.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gish-jen/i-hate-to-generalize-because-there-are-always-so-many-exceptions-to/) [Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) > [You can go back and try to generalize, but then you end up saying things that all editors say about everything that ever gets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorin-stein/you-can-go-back-and-try-to-generalize-but-then-you-end-up-saying/) [Lorin Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorin-stein/) > [To generalize is to be an idiot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/to-generalize-is-to-be-an-idiot/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [“When we generalize and judge people quickly without taking ample time, we've chosen a shortcut. It's superficial of us, and a lack of wisdom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/assegid-habtewold/when-we-generalize-and-judge-people-quickly-without-taking-ample-time/) [Assegid Habtewold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/assegid-habtewold/) ## 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 Generalize quotes > [“When we generalize and judge people quickly without taking ample time, we've chosen a shortcut. It's superficial of us, and a lack of wisdom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/assegid-habtewold/when-we-generalize-and-judge-people-quickly-without-taking-ample-time/) [Assegid Habtewold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/assegid-habtewold/) > [To generalize is to be an idiot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/to-generalize-is-to-be-an-idiot/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [You can go back and try to generalize, but then you end up saying things that all editors say about everything that ever gets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorin-stein/you-can-go-back-and-try-to-generalize-but-then-you-end-up-saying/) [Lorin Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorin-stein/) > [“To think is to forget differences, generalize, make abstractions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-harris/to-think-is-to-forget-differences-generalize-make-abstractions/) [Angela Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-harris/) > [I hate to generalize because there are always so many exceptions to any rule.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gish-jen/i-hate-to-generalize-because-there-are-always-so-many-exceptions-to/) [Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) > [Perhaps it will be simplest to throw away the tags and generalize India with one all-comprehensive name, as the Land of Wonders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/perhaps-it-will-be-simplest-to-throw-away-the-tags-and-generalize/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [“To Generalize is to be an Idiot; To Particularize is the Alone Distinction of Merit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/to-generalize-is-to-be-an-idiot-to-particularize-is-the-alone/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [“There was, for starters, the tendency of everyone who actually played the game to generalize wildly from his own experience. People always thought their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/there-was-for-starters-the-tendency-of-everyone-who-actually-played/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [I definitely don't generalize and put everybody in the same cup of water.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-hauser/i-definitely-don-t-generalize-and-put-everybody-in-the-same-cup-of/) [Cole Hauser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-hauser/) > [Our credulity is a part of the imperfection of our natures. It is inherent in us to desire to generalize, when we ought, on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-bonaparte/our-credulity-is-a-part-of-the-imperfection-of-our-natures-it-is/) [Napoleon Bonaparte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-bonaparte/) > [I want to be very careful about judging and how much to generalize about the use of media being pathological. For some people, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-rheingold/i-want-to-be-very-careful-about-judging-and-how-much-to-generalize/) [Howard Rheingold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-rheingold/) > [If the United States has to accept the U.N. resolutions, we have to generalize it across the board. We can't just pick and choose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-waleed-bin-talal/if-the-united-states-has-to-accept-the-u-n-resolutions-we-have-to/) [Al-Waleed bin Talal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-waleed-bin-talal/) > [When I made TV shows, people called them regressive. Clearly, everyone wants to generalize everything, but I like to choose a middle path.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ekta-kapoor/when-i-made-tv-shows-people-called-them-regressive-clearly-everyone/) [Ekta Kapoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ekta-kapoor/) > [Avoid context and specifics; generalize and keep repeating the generalization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-schwartz/avoid-context-and-specifics-generalize-and-keep-repeating-the/) [Jack Schwartz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-schwartz/) > [I don't know anybody who walks through life all the time in the doldrums, constantly serious and morose. But that's become what we generalize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bomer/i-don-t-know-anybody-who-walks-through-life-all-the-time-in-the/) [Matt Bomer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bomer/) [Browse all 42 Generalize quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generalize/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“To think is to ignore the differences, to generalize, to abstract.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jorge Luis Borges" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/to-think-is-to-ignore-the-differences-to-generalize-to-abstract/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Generalize" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/to-think-is-to-ignore-the-differences-to-generalize-to-abstract/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a81/jorge-luis-borges-275_generalize_to-think-is-to-ignore-the-differences-to_2597882.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a81/jorge-luis-borges-275_generalize_to-think-is-to-ignore-the-differences-to_2597882.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a81/jorge-luis-borges-275_generalize_to-think-is-to-ignore-the-differences-to_2597882.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“To think is to ignore the differences, to generalize, to abstract.” — 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": "“To think is to ignore the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/to-think-is-to-ignore-the-differences-to-generalize-to-abstract/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/to-think-is-to-ignore-the-differences-to-generalize-to-abstract/#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 } } ] } ```