Education Quote by Louis Menand
![“[Dewey’s ‘Reflex Arc’ paper] is the strategy he followed in approaching every problem: expose a tacit hierarchy in the terms in which people conventionally think about it. We think that a response follows a stimulus; Dewey taught that there is a stimulus only because there is already a response…” quote by Louis Menand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/295/louis-menand-8583_education_dewey-s-reflex-arc-paper-is-the-strategy_3048912.jpg)
““[Dewey’s ‘Reflex Arc’ paper] is the strategy he followed in approaching every problem: expose a tacit hierarchy in the terms in which people conventionally think about it. We think that a response follows a stimulus; Dewey taught that there is a stimulus only because there is already a response. We think that first there are individuals and then there is society; Dewey taught that there is no such thing as an individual without society. We think we know in order to do; Dewey taught that doing is why there is knowing.””
About This Quote
Source Book: Dewey’s Pragmatism, 2015
Dewey reversed cause‑effect thinking, showing that responses create stimuli and individuals are inseparable from society.
In simple terms: Responses shape stimuli; society shapes self.
Key Takeaway
Question assumptions about cause and self.
Themes
philosophy
education
social theory
cognition
Mood
reflective
analytical
Type
philosophical
theoretical
When to use this quote
- classroom discussions
- policy analysis
- personal reflection
Key Concepts
Pragmatism
constructivism
social ontology
Questions to Reflect On
- What “stimulus” in your life is actually a response?
- How does seeing yourself as part of society change your actions?
A Different Perspective
Reversing causality can be counterintuitive.
![“[According to Holmes], ‘Every year if not every day we have to wager our salvation upon some prophecy based upon imperfect knowledge. While that experiment is part of our system I think that we should be eternally vigilant against attempts to check the expression of opinions that we loathe and…” quote by Louis Menand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/656/louis-menand-8583_death_according-to-holmes-every-year-if-not-ev_403601.jpg)
![“What [Peirce] meant was that since nature evolves by chance variation, then the laws of nature must evolve by chance variation as well. Variations that are compatible with survival are reproduced; variations that are incompatible are weeded out. A tiny deviation from the norm in the outcome of a…” quote by Louis Menand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/9e5/louis-menand-8583_long-run_what-peirce-meant-was-that-since-nature_505181.jpg)
