--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: to Hegel, history was like a running…" description: "\"“to Hegel, history was like a running river. Every tiny movement in the water at a given spot in the river is determined by the falls and eddies in the..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78f/jostein-gaarder-676_hegel_to-hegel-history-was-like-a-running-rive_2662661.png" --- # to Hegel, history was like a running river. Every tiny… ![“to Hegel, history was like a running river. Every tiny movement in the water at a given spot in the river is determined by the falls and eddies in the water higher upstream. But these movements are determined, too, by the rocks and bends in the river at the point where you are observing it. the…” quote by Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78f/jostein-gaarder-676_hegel_to-hegel-history-was-like-a-running-rive_2662661.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78f/jostein-gaarder-676_hegel_to-hegel-history-was-like-a-running-rive_2662661.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78f/jostein-gaarder-676_hegel_to-hegel-history-was-like-a-running-rive_2662661.png) > ““to Hegel, history was like a running river. Every tiny movement in the water at a given spot in the river is determined by the falls and eddies in the water higher upstream. But these movements are determined, too, by the rocks and bends in the river at the point where you are observing it. the history of thought--or of reason--is like this river. The thoughts that are washed along with the current of past tradition, as well as the material conditions prevailing at the time, help to determine how you think. You can therefore never claim that any particular thought is correct for ever and ever. But the thought can be correct from where you stand”” [Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. History of thought is like a river shaped by upstream forces and local conditions, making any viewpoint context‑dependent. **In simple terms:** Ideas flow like a river, shaped by past and present influences. Key Takeaway Accept that perspectives are shaped by context. Themes philosophy history relativism context thought Mood thoughtful inquisitive analytical Type philosophical educational When to use this quote - studying philosophy - analyzing ideas - debating concepts Key Concepts determinism historical materialism Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance context with personal responsibility? - Can you find universal truths? A Different Perspective One may overemphasize determinism, ignoring agency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hegel/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Philosophy of Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy-of-mind/) ## Related quotes > [“Hegel claimed that the 'world spirit' is developing toward an ever-expanding knowledge of itself. 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The thoughts that are washed along with the current of past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/the-history-of-thought-or-of-reason-is-like-this-river-the-thoughts/) [Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/) > [Reason is man's faculty for grasping the world by thought, in contradiction to intelligence, which is man's ability to manipulate the world with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/reason-is-man-s-faculty-for-grasping-the-world-by-thought-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [I choose to listen to the river for a while, thinking river thoughts, before joining the night and the stars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/i-choose-to-listen-to-the-river-for-a-while-thinking-river-thoughts/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [The mind is like a river. The thoughts are like the various droplets of water. We are submerged in that water. Stay on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-g-mohan/the-mind-is-like-a-river-the-thoughts-are-like-the-various-droplets/) [A. G. Mohan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-g-mohan/) > [“I’ve thought of a reason,” Kit MacNeill said”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/connie-brockway/i-ve-thought-of-a-reason-kit-macneill-said/) [Connie Brockway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/connie-brockway/) > [“...He had no breath, no being, but in hers, she was his voice; he did not speak to her. 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I just want so desperately to hang on what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/i-no-longer-feel-the-need-to-see-and-sense-more-than-i-ve-already/) [Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/) > [The most subversive people are those who ask questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/the-most-subversive-people-are-those-who-ask-questions/) [Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/) > [The sophists were as a rule men who had traveled widely and seen different forms of government. Both conventions and local laws in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/the-sophists-were-as-a-rule-men-who-had-traveled-widely-and-seen/) [Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/) > [Where did the world come from? The question has an answer, even though I cannot get to it. It is a good question. 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Wood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-w-wood/) > [People are mostly sane enough, of course, in the affairs of common life: the getting of food, shelter, and so on. But the moment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-stove/people-are-mostly-sane-enough-of-course-in-the-affairs-of-common-life/) [David Stove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-stove/) > [At the present moment, the security of coherent philosophy, which existed from Parmenides to Hegel, is lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-jaspers/at-the-present-moment-the-security-of-coherent-philosophy-which/) [Karl Jaspers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-jaspers/) > [“My application's not bought,' I am telling them, calling into the darkness of the red cave that opens out before closed eyes. 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Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-c-hicks/) > [Contemporary philosophy illustrates Hegel's dictum that philosophy is its own time apprehended in thought, for in our age philosophy yields to the objectifying technical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-phillip-verene/contemporary-philosophy-illustrates-hegel-s-dictum-that-philosophy-is/) [Donald Phillip Verene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-phillip-verene/) > [“For Hegel, reality is the absolute, which exists in a dialectical evolution that is logical and rational in character. 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Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-holland/once-the-world-of-ideas-has-been-transformed-reality-cannot-hold-out/) [Tom Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-holland/) [Browse all 142 Hegel quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hegel/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“to Hegel, history was like a running river. Every tiny movement in the water at a given spot in the river is determined by the falls and eddies in the water higher upstream. But these movements are determined, too, by the rocks and bends in the river at the point where you are observing it. the history of thought--or of reason--is like this river. The thoughts that are washed along with the current of past tradition, as well as the material conditions prevailing at the time, help to determine how you think. You can therefore never claim that any particular thought is correct for ever and ever. 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