--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The need is not really for more brains…" description: "\"The need is not really for more brains, the need is now for a gentler, a more tolerant people than those who won for us against the ice, the tiger and ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/808/loren-eiseley-3848_allegiance_the-need-is-not-really-for-more-brains-t_471023.jpg" --- # The need is not really for more brains, the need is now… ![“The need is not really for more brains, the need is now for a gentler, a more tolerant people than those who won for us against the ice, the tiger and the bear. The hand that hefted the ax, out of some old blind allegiance to the past fondles the machine gun as lovingly. It is a habit man will…” quote by Loren Eiseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/808/loren-eiseley-3848_allegiance_the-need-is-not-really-for-more-brains-t_471023.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/808/loren-eiseley-3848_allegiance_the-need-is-not-really-for-more-brains-t_471023.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/808/loren-eiseley-3848_allegiance_the-need-is-not-really-for-more-brains-t_471023.jpg) > “The need is not really for more brains, the need is now for a gentler, a more tolerant people than those who won for us against the ice, the tiger and the bear. The hand that hefted the ax, out of some old blind allegiance to the past fondles the machine gun as lovingly. It is a habit man will have to break to survive, but the roots go very deep.” [Loren Eiseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He warns that humanity’s habit of violence, rooted in past allegiances, must be broken for survival, despite deep cultural roots. **In simple terms:** Violence is a deep habit to break. Key Takeaway Work to change violent norms. Themes violence culture change Mood somber hopeful Type sociological inspirational When to use this quote - education reform - conflict resolution - peacebuilding - cultural healing Key Concepts habitual aggression historical trauma Questions to Reflect On - What habits sustain violence today? - How can societies unlearn aggression? A Different Perspective Changing deep habits is hard. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Allegiance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/allegiance/) [Bears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bears/) [Blind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blind/) [Brain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brain/) [Computers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computers/) [Gun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gun/) [Habit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habit/) [Ice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ice/) [Machine gun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/machine-gun/) [Machines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/machines/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Roots](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/roots/) [Tigers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tigers/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [For the most part our grassroots members are serious, nice, tolerant people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-maude/for-the-most-part-our-grassroots-members-are-serious-nice-tolerant/) [Francis Maude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-maude/) > [We should be tolerant to people who are tolerant to us. We should be intolerant to people who are intolerant to us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geert-wilders/we-should-be-tolerant-to-people-who-are-tolerant-to-us-we-should-be/) [Geert Wilders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geert-wilders/) > [“Truly tolerant people are hard to offend.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-m-esolen/truly-tolerant-people-are-hard-to-offend/) [Anthony M. Esolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-m-esolen/) > [“They were tolerant of what most people in town would think of as moral lapses in each other, but quite intolerant of departures in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-munro/they-were-tolerant-of-what-most-people-in-town-would-think-of-as/) [Alice Munro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-munro/) > [I think that we ought to be a tolerant nation. I think we ought to be tolerant people. But we shouldn't set up special…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-thompson/i-think-that-we-ought-to-be-a-tolerant-nation-i-think-we-ought-to-be/) [Fred Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-thompson/) > [If our goal is to be tolerant of people who are different than we are, then we really are aiming quite low. Traffic jams…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glennon-melton/if-our-goal-is-to-be-tolerant-of-people-who-are-different-than-we-are/) [Glennon Melton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glennon-melton/) > [I want to be tolerant of other people's beliefs. I have wonderful friends who are religious, and I don't want to say that they're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-meyer/i-want-to-be-tolerant-of-other-people-s-beliefs-i-have-wonderful/) [George Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-meyer/) > [I have a reputation worldwide of being tolerant of all people and their views. I'm too well-educated to criticize a certain religion or group…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-h-schuller/i-have-a-reputation-worldwide-of-being-tolerant-of-all-people-and/) [Robert H. Schuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-h-schuller/) > [I feel like sometimes we have to be a little less inclusive and tolerant if other people's opinions could lead to the destruction of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moby/i-feel-like-sometimes-we-have-to-be-a-little-less-inclusive-and/) [Moby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moby/) > [A funny thing about tolerant people? They're really only tolerant when you agree with them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-gutfeld/a-funny-thing-about-tolerant-people-they-re-really-only-tolerant-when/) [Greg Gutfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-gutfeld/) > [One of the things I've learned by working on the 'Walking Dead' and other TV shows is to be more tolerant of other people's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-mazzara/one-of-the-things-i-ve-learned-by-working-on-the-walking-dead-and/) [Glen Mazzara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-mazzara/) > [Even tolerant people have a limit, so be careful how far you push them for you may not realize it until its too late.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/even-tolerant-people-have-a-limit-so-be-careful-how-far-you-push-them/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sometimes too much tolerance can kill you. If you are tolerant of people poisoning themselves to death they will drag you down. They will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-nugent/sometimes-too-much-tolerance-can-kill-you-if-you-are-tolerant-of/) [Ted Nugent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-nugent/) > [It did not come naturally; in fact, it would be difficult to conceive of any more dogmatic and less tolerant people than the first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-harris/it-did-not-come-naturally-in-fact-it-would-be-difficult-to-conceive/) [Paul Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-harris/) > [I was raised with this idea that we're supposed to be tolerant of other people's opinions, but then what happens if other people's opinions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moby/i-was-raised-with-this-idea-that-we-re-supposed-to-be-tolerant-of/) [Moby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moby/) ## More by Loren Eiseley > [“Taking a final pleasure in what the wind can neither proclaim nor destroy, I am a student of nightfall, I claim no other profession.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/taking-a-final-pleasure-in-what-the-wind-can-neither-proclaim-nor/) [Loren Eiseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/) > [We are one of many appearances of the thing called Life; we are not its perfect image, for it has no perfect image except…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/we-are-one-of-many-appearances-of-the-thing-called-life-we-are-not/) [Loren Eiseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/) > [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/) > [“The best way to be resurrected is to be forgotten.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/the-best-way-to-be-resurrected-is-to-be-forgotten/) [Loren Eiseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/) > [To have dragons one must have change; that is the first principle of dragon lore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/to-have-dragons-one-must-have-change-that-is-the-first-principle-of/) [Loren Eiseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/) > [It is frequently the tragedy of the great artist, as it is of the great scientist, that he frightens the ordinary man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/it-is-frequently-the-tragedy-of-the-great-artist-as-it-is-of-the/) [Loren Eiseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/) > [Every time we walk along a beach some ancient urge disturbs us so that we find ourselves shedding shoes and garments or scavenging among…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/every-time-we-walk-along-a-beach-some-ancient-urge-disturbs-us-so/) [Loren Eiseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/) > [The future is neither ahead nor behind, on one side or another. Nor is it dark or light. It is contained within ourselves; its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/the-future-is-neither-ahead-nor-behind-on-one-side-or-another-nor-is/) [Loren Eiseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/) > [Out of the choked Devonian waters emerged sight and sound and the music that rolls invisible through the composer's brain. They are there still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/out-of-the-choked-devonian-waters-emerged-sight-and-sound-and-the/) [Loren Eiseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/) > [One could not pluck a flower without troubling a star.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/one-could-not-pluck-a-flower-without-troubling-a-star/) [Loren Eiseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/) > [“I once saw, on a flower pot in my own living room, the efforts of a field mouse to build a remembered field. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/i-once-saw-on-a-flower-pot-in-my-own-living-room-the-efforts-of-a/) [Loren Eiseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/) > [Lights come and go in the night sky. Men, troubled at last by the things they build, may toss in their sleep and dream…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/lights-come-and-go-in-the-night-sky-men-troubled-at-last-by-the/) [Loren Eiseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/) > [The secret, if one may paraphrase a savage vocabulary, lies in the egg of night.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/the-secret-if-one-may-paraphrase-a-savage-vocabulary-lies-in-the-egg/) [Loren Eiseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/) > [Without the gift of flowers and the infinite diversity of their fruits, man and bird, if they had continued to exist at all, would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/without-the-gift-of-flowers-and-the-infinite-diversity-of-their/) [Loren Eiseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/) > [“Black magic, the magic of the primeval chaos, blots out or transmogrifies the true form of things. At the stroke of twelve the princess…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/black-magic-the-magic-of-the-primeval-chaos-blots-out-or/) [Loren Eiseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/) [Explore all 121 Loren Eiseley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/) ## More Allegiance quotes > [“Maybe it begins the day you pledge allegiance, face the flag and suddenly clutch your left clavicle because you find a tender puff of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-johnson/maybe-it-begins-the-day-you-pledge-allegiance-face-the-flag-and/) [Marilyn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-johnson/) > [I was under the influence of the early modern masters, Fitzgerald and Steinbeck and Hemingway, especially, when I was a kid. I reacted against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-stone/i-was-under-the-influence-of-the-early-modern-masters-fitzgerald-and/) [Robert Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-stone/) > [“The Pledge of Allegiance says 'liberty and justice for all'. Which part of 'all' don't you understand?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-schroeder/the-pledge-of-allegiance-says-liberty-and-justice-for-all-which-part/) Pat Schroeder > [They're counting on your patriotism to distract you from their plunder. They're counting on you to be standing at attention with your hand over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-moyers/they-re-counting-on-your-patriotism-to-distract-you-from-their/) [Bill Moyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-moyers/) > [There is a congratulatory culture in the Gulf. From birth onwards, there is a culture of giving people trophies as markers of achievement for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayshay/there-is-a-congratulatory-culture-in-the-gulf-from-birth-onwards/) Ayshay > [“We may give our human loves the unconditional allegiance which we owe only to God. Then they become gods: then they become demons. Then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/we-may-give-our-human-loves-the-unconditional-allegiance-which-we-owe/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [In my imaginary utopian world there would be a greater allegiance between music writers and musicians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-haines/in-my-imaginary-utopian-world-there-would-be-a-greater-allegiance/) [Emily Haines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-haines/) > [“I pledge allegiance to the flag of the great Republic of America, to our Elector Primo, to our glorious states, to unity against the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-lu/i-pledge-allegiance-to-the-flag-of-the-great-republic-of-america-to/) [Marie Lu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-lu/) > [Let's do more than say the 'Pledge of Allegiance.' Let us live it!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emanuel-cleaver/let-s-do-more-than-say-the-pledge-of-allegiance-let-us-live-it/) [Emanuel Cleaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emanuel-cleaver/) > [All of us ... should remember that no amount of flag-waving, pledging allegiance, or fervent singing of the national anthem is evidence that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-roosevelt/all-of-us-should-remember-that-no-amount-of-flag-waving-pledging/) [Eleanor Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-roosevelt/) > [“We're not to do everything man tells us to do. We are to obey the Lord Jesus Christ, and our allegiance to the state…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-c-morecraft-iii/we-re-not-to-do-everything-man-tells-us-to-do-we-are-to-obey-the-lord/) [Joseph C. Morecraft III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-c-morecraft-iii/) > [Behind the ostensible government sits enthroned an invisible government owing no allegiance and acknowledging no responsibility to the people. To destroy this invisible government,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/behind-the-ostensible-government-sits-enthroned-an-invisible/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [“I would find no value in the allegiance of a fool ready to give himself up to any old hag of Black Imagination who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-beddor/i-would-find-no-value-in-the-allegiance-of-a-fool-ready-to-give/) [Frank Beddor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-beddor/) > [Allegiance, after all, has to work two ways; and one can grow weary of an allegiance which is not reciprocal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/allegiance-after-all-has-to-work-two-ways-and-one-can-grow-weary-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I think it is right for Canadians to be asked to show their faces when they're taking the oath. On revocation of citizenship, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-alexander/i-think-it-is-right-for-canadians-to-be-asked-to-show-their-faces/) [Chris Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-alexander/) [Browse all 409 Allegiance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/allegiance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The need is not really for more brains, the need is now for a gentler, a more tolerant people than those who won for us against the ice, the tiger and the bear. The hand that hefted the ax, out of some old blind allegiance to the past fondles the machine gun as lovingly. It is a habit man will have to break to survive, but the roots go very deep.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Loren Eiseley" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/the-need-is-not-really-for-more-brains-the-need-is-now-for-a-gentler/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Allegiance" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/the-need-is-not-really-for-more-brains-the-need-is-now-for-a-gentler/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/808/loren-eiseley-3848_allegiance_the-need-is-not-really-for-more-brains-t_471023.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/808/loren-eiseley-3848_allegiance_the-need-is-not-really-for-more-brains-t_471023.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/808/loren-eiseley-3848_allegiance_the-need-is-not-really-for-more-brains-t_471023.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The need is not really for more brains, the need is now for a gentler, a more tolerant people than those who…” — Loren Eiseley", "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": "Loren Eiseley", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The need is not really for...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/the-need-is-not-really-for-more-brains-the-need-is-now-for-a-gentler/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/the-need-is-not-really-for-more-brains-the-need-is-now-for-a-gentler/#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 } } ] } ```