--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Cognition is not fighting, but once…" description: "\"Cognition is not fighting, but once someone knows a lot, he will have much to fight for, so much that he will be called a relativist because of it.\" — ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e6/karel-capek-8739_cognition_cognition-is-not-fighting-but-once-someo_2652399.jpg" --- # Cognition is not fighting, but once someone knows a lot… ![“Cognition is not fighting, but once someone knows a lot, he will have much to fight for, so much that he will be called a relativist because of it.” quote by Karel Capek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e6/karel-capek-8739_cognition_cognition-is-not-fighting-but-once-someo_2652399.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e6/karel-capek-8739_cognition_cognition-is-not-fighting-but-once-someo_2652399.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e6/karel-capek-8739_cognition_cognition-is-not-fighting-but-once-someo_2652399.jpg) > “Cognition is not fighting, but once someone knows a lot, he will have much to fight for, so much that he will be called a relativist because of it.” [Karel Capek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Knowledge breeds conflict, leading to relativistic labeling; intellectuals may be seen as opponents. **In simple terms:** Knowledge can cause conflict and relativist accusations. Key Takeaway Balance knowledge with humility and dialogue. Themes philosophy conflict relativism Mood thoughtful critical Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - academic debate - public policy - media framing - education curricula Key Concepts intellectual discourse social perception Questions to Reflect On - How can scholars make ideas accessible? - When does expertise become a barrier? A Different Perspective Intellectualism may be dismissed as elitism. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Called Relativist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/called-relativist-2360253/) [Cognition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cognition/) [Cognition Fighting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cognition-fighting-2360252/) [Fighting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fighting/) [Fighting Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fighting-knows-2360254/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Knows Lot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows-lot-302098/) [Physics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/physics/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) ## Related quotes > [Relativism is neither a method of fighting, nor a method of creating, for both of these are uncompromising and at times even ruthless; rather,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/relativism-is-neither-a-method-of-fighting-nor-a-method-of-creating/) [Karel Capek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) > [“The One who knows, knows a lot.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baba/the-one-who-knows-knows-a-lot/) [Baba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baba/) > [Every writer knows a lot more about their characters and story than actually makes it onto the page.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/every-writer-knows-a-lot-more-about-their-characters-and-story-than/) [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) > [An educated person, I think, is one who not only knows a lot, but knows how to do a lot of things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/an-educated-person-i-think-is-one-who-not-only-knows-a-lot-but-knows/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/) > [Barack Obama knows a lot about a lot of things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-chait/barack-obama-knows-a-lot-about-a-lot-of-things/) [Jonathan Chait](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-chait/) > [Everyone knows a lot about me without actually knowing me at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-lee/everyone-knows-a-lot-about-me-without-actually-knowing-me-at-all/) [Amy Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-lee/) > [“See, I thinked, Meronym knows a lot 'bout Smart an' life but Valleysmen know more 'bout death.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mitchell/see-i-thinked-meronym-knows-a-lot-bout-smart-an-life-but-valleysmen/) [David Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mitchell/) > [A 10-year-old knows a lot. If you think she or he isn't noticing the world around them, you're missing a lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-woodson/a-10-year-old-knows-a-lot-if-you-think-she-or-he-isn-t-noticing-the/) [Jacqueline Woodson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-woodson/) > [You've gotta have somebody to trust, that knows a lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/you-ve-gotta-have-somebody-to-trust-that-knows-a-lot/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [An educated man is one who knows a lot and says nothing about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gracie-fields/an-educated-man-is-one-who-knows-a-lot-and-says-nothing-about-it/) [Gracie Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gracie-fields/) > [An expert is someone who knows a lot about the past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hopkins/an-expert-is-someone-who-knows-a-lot-about-the-past/) [Tom Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hopkins/) > [My dad teaches me. He teaches me everything. He's been acting for over 30 years, so he knows a lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kodi-smit-mcphee/my-dad-teaches-me-he-teaches-me-everything-he-s-been-acting-for-over/) [Kodi Smit-McPhee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kodi-smit-mcphee/) > [“The "I" in the poem is not you but someone who knows a lot about you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-bell/the-i-in-the-poem-is-not-you-but-someone-who-knows-a-lot-about-you/) [Marvin Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-bell/) > [“The brain works in a holistic, cooperative way that makes our basest desire or most abject fear as expressive of who we are as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-amerland/the-brain-works-in-a-holistic-cooperative-way-that-makes-our-basest/) [David Amerland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-amerland/) > [Many humanists have argued that happiness involves a combination of hedonism and creative moral development; that an exuberant life fuses excellence and enjoyment, meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kurtz/many-humanists-have-argued-that-happiness-involves-a-combination-of/) [Paul Kurtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kurtz/) ## More by Karel Capek > [Great God of the Ants, thou hast granted victory to thy servants. I appoint thee honorary Colonel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/great-god-of-the-ants-thou-hast-granted-victory-to-thy-servants-i/) [Karel Capek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) > [We´re two, two for everything, for love, life, for a fight and pain, for hours of happiness. Two for wins and losses, for life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/we-re-two-two-for-everything-for-love-life-for-a-fight-and-pain-for/) [Karel Capek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) > [I've found a place that would amaze you. People used to live there, but now it's all overgrown and no one goes there. Absolutely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/i-ve-found-a-place-that-would-amaze-you-people-used-to-live-there-but/) [Karel Capek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) > [“His life was now the life of a collector, and that gave it meaning. Evening after evening he would count and arrange his cuttings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/his-life-was-now-the-life-of-a-collector-and-that-gave-it-meaning/) [Karel Čapek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) > [“So you see. If only the Newts were fighting-men, then perhaps something might be done; but men against men - that, my friend, can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/so-you-see-if-only-the-newts-were-fighting-men-then-perhaps-something/) [Karel Čapek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) > [“Nobody can hate man more than man.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/nobody-can-hate-man-more-than-man/) [Karel Čapek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) > [People should be a little loony, Helena. That's the best thing about them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/people-should-be-a-little-loony-helena-that-s-the-best-thing-about/) [Karel Capek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) > [The sole perfection which modern civilization attains is a mechanical one; machines are splendid and flawless, but the life which serves them or is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/the-sole-perfection-which-modern-civilization-attains-is-a-mechanical/) [Karel Capek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) > [“It is a well–known fact that the greater a man is the less he has on his door–plate.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/it-is-a-well-known-fact-that-the-greater-a-man-is-the-less-he-has-on/) [Karel Čapek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) > [Relativism is neither a method of fighting, nor a method of creating, for both of these are uncompromising and at times even ruthless; rather,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/relativism-is-neither-a-method-of-fighting-nor-a-method-of-creating/) [Karel Capek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) > [If one must fight or create, it is necessary that this be preceded by the broadest possible knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/if-one-must-fight-or-create-it-is-necessary-that-this-be-preceded-by/) [Karel Capek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) > [“Well people are just one species too, aren't they. And it's never stopped them fighting with each other; all the same species and think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/well-people-are-just-one-species-too-aren-t-they-and-it-s-never/) [Karel Čapek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) > [“I had written the sentence, 'You mustn't think that the evolution that gave rise to us was the only evolutionary possibility on this planet.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/i-had-written-the-sentence-you-mustn-t-think-that-the-evolution-that/) [Karel Capek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) > [It's not possible to search for God using the methods of a detective... There is no way. You can only wait till God's axe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/it-s-not-possible-to-search-for-god-using-the-methods-of-a-detective/) [Karel Capek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) > [“It is a foible of our human nature that when we have an extremely unpleasant experience, it gives us a peculiar satisfaction if it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/it-is-a-foible-of-our-human-nature-that-when-we-have-an-extremely/) [Karel Čapek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) [Explore all 67 Karel Capek quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) ## More Cognition quotes > [Many humanists have argued that happiness involves a combination of hedonism and creative moral development; that an exuberant life fuses excellence and enjoyment, meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kurtz/many-humanists-have-argued-that-happiness-involves-a-combination-of/) [Paul Kurtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kurtz/) > [“The brain works in a holistic, cooperative way that makes our basest desire or most abject fear as expressive of who we are as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-amerland/the-brain-works-in-a-holistic-cooperative-way-that-makes-our-basest/) [David Amerland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-amerland/) > [“In order to decide, judge; in order to judge, reason; in order to reason, decide (what to reason about).”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-johnson-laird/in-order-to-decide-judge-in-order-to-judge-reason-in-order-to-reason/) [Philip Johnson-Laird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-johnson-laird/) > [“The obvious cure for the tragic shortcomings of human intuition in a high-tech world is education. And this offers priorities for educational policy: to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pinker/the-obvious-cure-for-the-tragic-shortcomings-of-human-intuition-in-a/) [Steven Pinker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pinker/) > [“Reality is not a thought experiment.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-amerland/reality-is-not-a-thought-experiment/) [David Amerland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-amerland/) > [ “\[Mood allocates\] investments of time, effort, resources, and risk taking to maximize Darwinian fitness in situations of varying propitiousness. High and low moods adjust… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randolph-m-nesse/mood-allocates-investments-of-time-effort-resources-and-risk-taking/) [Randolph M. Nesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randolph-m-nesse/) > [In the early days the Cubism' method of grasping an object was to go round and round it. The Futurists declared that one had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gino-severini/in-the-early-days-the-cubism-method-of-grasping-an-object-was-to-go/) [Gino Severini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gino-severini/) > [Faith is the commitment of one's consciousness to beliefs for which one has no sensory evidence or rational proof. When man rejects reason as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-branden/faith-is-the-commitment-of-one-s-consciousness-to-beliefs-for-which/) [Nathaniel Branden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-branden/) > [The arts make vivid the fact that words do not, in their literal form or number, exhaust what we can know. The limits of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliot-w-eisner/the-arts-make-vivid-the-fact-that-words-do-not-in-their-literal-form/) [Elliot W. Eisner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliot-w-eisner/) > [“In order to build a truly wise society devoid of any kind of existential crisis, it is imperative that the individuals foster a healthy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/in-order-to-build-a-truly-wise-society-devoid-of-any-kind-of/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [I worry that the level of interrupt, the sort of overwhelming rapidity of information — and especially of stressful information — is in fact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schmidt/i-worry-that-the-level-of-interrupt-the-sort-of-overwhelming-rapidity/) [Eric Schmidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schmidt/) > [The emergence of a unified cognitive moment relies on the coordination of scattered mosaics of functionally specialized brain regions. Here we review the mechanisms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francisco-varela/the-emergence-of-a-unified-cognitive-moment-relies-on-the/) [Francisco Varela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francisco-varela/) > [“The moment you establish a line of communication between two points, you subtly change both. That is also true for the way the brain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-amerland/the-moment-you-establish-a-line-of-communication-between-two-points/) [David Amerland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-amerland/) > [Faculty Psychology is getting to be respectable again after centuries of hanging around with phrenologists and other dubious types. By faculty psychology I mean,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/faculty-psychology-is-getting-to-be-respectable-again-after-centuries/) [Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/) > [Relativism is neither a method of fighting, nor a method of creating, for both of these are uncompromising and at times even ruthless; rather,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/relativism-is-neither-a-method-of-fighting-nor-a-method-of-creating/) [Karel Capek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/) [Browse all 139 Cognition quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cognition/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Cognition is not fighting, but once someone knows a lot, he will have much to fight for, so much that he will be called a relativist because of it.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Karel Capek" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/cognition-is-not-fighting-but-once-someone-knows-a-lot-he-will-have/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cognition" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/cognition-is-not-fighting-but-once-someone-knows-a-lot-he-will-have/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e6/karel-capek-8739_cognition_cognition-is-not-fighting-but-once-someo_2652399.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e6/karel-capek-8739_cognition_cognition-is-not-fighting-but-once-someo_2652399.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e6/karel-capek-8739_cognition_cognition-is-not-fighting-but-once-someo_2652399.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Cognition is not fighting, but once someone knows a lot, he will have much to fight for, so much that he…” — Karel Capek", "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": "Karel Capek", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karel-capek/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Cognition is not fighting, but once...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/cognition-is-not-fighting-but-once-someone-knows-a-lot-he-will-have/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karel-capek/cognition-is-not-fighting-but-once-someone-knows-a-lot-he-will-have/#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 } } ] } ```