--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Man, some modern philosophers tell us, is…" description: "\"Man, some modern philosophers tell us, is alienated from his world: he is a stranger and afraid in a world he never made. Perhaps he is; yet so are ani..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/74f/karl-popper-2167_alienated_man-some-modern-philosophers-tell-us-is_544282.jpg" --- # Man, some modern philosophers tell us, is alienated from… ![“Man, some modern philosophers tell us, is alienated from his world: he is a stranger and afraid in a world he never made. Perhaps he is; yet so are animals, and even plants. They too were born, long ago, into a physico-chemical world, a world they never made.” quote by Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/74f/karl-popper-2167_alienated_man-some-modern-philosophers-tell-us-is_544282.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/74f/karl-popper-2167_alienated_man-some-modern-philosophers-tell-us-is_544282.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/74f/karl-popper-2167_alienated_man-some-modern-philosophers-tell-us-is_544282.jpg) > “Man, some modern philosophers tell us, is alienated from his world: he is a stranger and afraid in a world he never made. Perhaps he is; yet so are animals, and even plants. They too were born, long ago, into a physico-chemical world, a world they never made.” [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Humans feel estranged from a world they did not create, similar to animals and plants, highlighting existential alienation. **In simple terms:** We feel like strangers in a world we didn't make. Key Takeaway Recognize shared alienation and seek connection. Themes existentialism philosophy environment identity Mood contemplative melancholic Type philosophical reflective When to use this quote - urban life - environmental activism - personal reflection - education - therapy Key Concepts alienation cosmology anthropology Questions to Reflect On - How does recognizing shared alienation affect your sense of belonging? - What actions can reduce feeling like a stranger? A Different Perspective The feeling may be mitigated by community and purpose, not just acceptance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Birth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birth/) [Long ago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-ago/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Philosopher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosopher/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Plant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plant/) [Stranger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stranger/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [I'm alienated from this world because its weird and I don't want to be a part of it. I want to be part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-reilly/i-m-alienated-from-this-world-because-its-weird-and-i-don-t-want-to/) [John C. Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-reilly/) > [Anytime you see a Hungarian, kick him. He'll know why. Any two philosophers can tell each other all they know in two hours.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/anytime-you-see-a-hungarian-kick-him-he-ll-know-why-any-two/) [Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/) > [I do not need the musing of the philosophers to tell me what I am doing. It would be more interesting to let me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-bourgeois/i-do-not-need-the-musing-of-the-philosophers-to-tell-me-what-i-am/) [Louise Bourgeois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-bourgeois/) > [Maybe there's a sense that technology isn't necessarily the answer to a lot of our problems. Fantasy offers readers a less radically alienated world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/maybe-there-s-a-sense-that-technology-isn-t-necessarily-the-answer-to/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [“A person is nothing but his image. Philosophers can tell us that it doesn't matter what the world thinks of us, that nothing matters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/a-person-is-nothing-but-his-image-philosophers-can-tell-us-that-it/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Perhaps a creature of so much ingenuity and deep memory is almost bound to grow alienated from his world, his fellows, and the objects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/perhaps-a-creature-of-so-much-ingenuity-and-deep-memory-is-almost/) [Loren Eiseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/) > [Any two philosophers can tell each other all they know in two hours.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/any-two-philosophers-can-tell-each-other-all-they-know-in-two-hours/) [Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/) > [“When the subjects are not "in flow" theyencountertheworld as resistant, as blocking rather than enabling an action. Unhappy subjects hence feel alienated from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-the-subjects-are-not-in-flow-theyencountertheworld-as-resistant/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In the world I am Always a stranger I do not understand its language It does not understand my silence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bei-dao/in-the-world-i-am-always-a-stranger-i-do-not-understand-its-language/) [Bei Dao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bei-dao/) > [“Live in this world as if you are a stranger or a wayfarer”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prophet-muhammad-salla-allahu-alaihi-wasallam/live-in-this-world-as-if-you-are-a-stranger-or-a-wayfarer/) Prophet Muhammad Salla-Allahu alaihi wasallam > [As we grow older, the world becomes stranger, the pattern more complicated of dead and living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/as-we-grow-older-the-world-becomes-stranger-the-pattern-more/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [“the world is much stranger than we know or can say. And I know how you think, or how you like to think, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/the-world-is-much-stranger-than-we-know-or-can-say-and-i-know-how-you/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [Home is where one starts from. As we grow older The world becomes stranger, the pattern more complicatied Of dead and living, Not the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/home-is-where-one-starts-from-as-we-grow-older-the-world-becomes/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [Be in this world as if you were a stranger or a wayfarer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prophet-muhammad/be-in-this-world-as-if-you-were-a-stranger-or-a-wayfarer/) [Prophet Muhammad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prophet-muhammad/) > [Women are afraid in a world in which almost half the population bears the guise of the predator, in which no factor - age,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-french/women-are-afraid-in-a-world-in-which-almost-half-the-population-bears/) [Marilyn French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-french/) ## More by Karl Popper > [Science is not a system of certain, or -established, statements; nor is it a system which steadily advances towards a state of finality... And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/science-is-not-a-system-of-certain-or-established-statements-nor-is/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [“As indicated by our example, methodological nominalism is nowadays fairly generally accepted in the natural sciences. The problems of the social sciences, on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/as-indicated-by-our-example-methodological-nominalism-is-nowadays/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [Science is perhaps the only human activity in which errors are systematically criticized and, in time, corrected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/science-is-perhaps-the-only-human-activity-in-which-errors-are/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [A system is empirical or scientific only if it is capable of being tested by experience. These considerations suggest that not the verifiability but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/a-system-is-empirical-or-scientific-only-if-it-is-capable-of-being/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [Bold ideas, unjustified anticipations, and speculative thought, are our only means for interpreting nature: our only organon, our only instrument, for grasping her. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/bold-ideas-unjustified-anticipations-and-speculative-thought-are-our/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [ \[The aim of science is\] to explain what so far has taken to be an explicans, such as a law of nature. The task… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/the-aim-of-science-is-to-explain-what-so-far-has-taken-to-be-an/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [There can be no ultimate statements science: there can be no statements in science which can not be tested, and therefore none which cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/there-can-be-no-ultimate-statements-science-there-can-be-no/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [Evolution is not a fact. Evolution doesn't even qualify as a theory or as a hypothesis. It is a metaphysical research program, and it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/evolution-is-not-a-fact-evolution-doesn-t-even-qualify-as-a-theory-or/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [I am opposed to looking upon logic as a kind of game. ... One might think that it is a matter of choice or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/i-am-opposed-to-looking-upon-logic-as-a-kind-of-game-one-might-think/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [The history of science, like the history of all human ideas, is a history of irresponsible dreams, of obstinacy, and of error.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/the-history-of-science-like-the-history-of-all-human-ideas-is-a/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [Good tests kill flawed theories; we remain alive to guess again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/good-tests-kill-flawed-theories-we-remain-alive-to-guess-again/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [There is no pure, disinterested, theory-free observation,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/there-is-no-pure-disinterested-theory-free-observation/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [We have the right not to tolerate the intolerant. We should tolerate even them whenever we can do so without running a great risk;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/we-have-the-right-not-to-tolerate-the-intolerant-we-should-tolerate/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [Better our hypotheses die for our errors than ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/better-our-hypotheses-die-for-our-errors-than-ourselves/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [“Every time we proceed to explain some conjectural law or theory by a new conjectural theory of a higher degree of universality, we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/every-time-we-proceed-to-explain-some-conjectural-law-or-theory-by-a/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) [Explore all 181 Karl Popper quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) ## More Alienated quotes > [I alienated myself from the academic world almost entirely because it's a left-wing world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/i-alienated-myself-from-the-academic-world-almost-entirely-because-it/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [It took me a long time to realize that being alienated and not fitting in is not only OK, it's good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-took-me-a-long-time-to-realize-that-being-alienated-and-not/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“A consequence of this alienation of humans from their own nature is that they are also alienated from each other. Productive activity becomes ‘activity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/a-consequence-of-this-alienation-of-humans-from-their-own-nature-is/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [I've put out a lot of stuff that just confused and alienated people: a huge chunk of songs that were verbal and musical challenges…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-barlow/i-ve-put-out-a-lot-of-stuff-that-just-confused-and-alienated-people-a/) [Lou Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-barlow/) > [“Of course I alienate myself from society. It's the only way I know of not being constantly reminded of all the ways I'm alienated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-ferris/of-course-i-alienate-myself-from-society-it-s-the-only-way-i-know-of/) [Joshua Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-ferris/) > [Almost every truly creative being alienated & expatriated in his own country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/almost-every-truly-creative-being-alienated-expatriated-in-his-own/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [“The alienated audiences was one that was aware of the performance as an arbitrary construction of the real, of the difference between players and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fiske/the-alienated-audiences-was-one-that-was-aware-of-the-performance-as/) [John Fiske](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fiske/) > [I had no work after 'Gangster' for two years, and my sister Rangoli met with an accident that destroyed her looks. My struggle with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kangna-ranaut/i-had-no-work-after-gangster-for-two-years-and-my-sister-rangoli-met/) [Kangna Ranaut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kangna-ranaut/) > [I've always felt alienated. I realized that I've been terrified my entire life. So I can identify that fear which drives so many of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-selby-jr/i-ve-always-felt-alienated-i-realized-that-i-ve-been-terrified-my/) [Hubert Selby, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-selby-jr/) > [I think I felt pretty alienated, being bigger, being mixed race, being of lower socioeconomic standing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paloma-elsesser/i-think-i-felt-pretty-alienated-being-bigger-being-mixed-race-being/) [Paloma Elsesser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paloma-elsesser/) > [“Indeed, a great deal of pathological drug use is driven by unmet social needs, by being alienated and having difficulty connecting with others. The”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hart/indeed-a-great-deal-of-pathological-drug-use-is-driven-by-unmet/) [Carl Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hart/) > [I think a lot of us feel, when we look at the Dow Jones plunging, alienated - you do feel as if we're in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/i-think-a-lot-of-us-feel-when-we-look-at-the-dow-jones-plunging/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [“He never cared too much for parties or people, but misanthropy could easily be cured by several alcoholic drinks.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-j-rice/he-never-cared-too-much-for-parties-or-people-but-misanthropy-could/) [Daniel J. Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-j-rice/) > [When you stop to think about it, so many films today where we don't have that kind of contact are films about alienation. About…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmer-bernstein/when-you-stop-to-think-about-it-so-many-films-today-where-we-don-t/) [Elmer Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmer-bernstein/) > [“I was not descending in a plane, coming Home. I was watching an alien world as it ascended towards me - and one that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-wood/i-was-not-descending-in-a-plane-coming-home-i-was-watching-an-alien/) [Jake Wood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-wood/) Browse all 78 Alienated quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Man, some modern philosophers tell us, is alienated from his world: he is a stranger and afraid in a world he never made. Perhaps he is; yet so are animals, and even plants. 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