--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We can learn what we did not know. We are…" description: "\"We can learn what we did not know. We are not only good at destroying the Old World, we are also good at building the new.\" — Mao Zedong" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a02/mao-zedong-1123_building_we-can-learn-what-we-did-not-know-we-are_1693769.jpg" --- # We can learn what we did not know. We are not only good at… ![“We can learn what we did not know. We are not only good at destroying the Old World, we are also good at building the new.” quote by Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a02/mao-zedong-1123_building_we-can-learn-what-we-did-not-know-we-are_1693769.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a02/mao-zedong-1123_building_we-can-learn-what-we-did-not-know-we-are_1693769.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a02/mao-zedong-1123_building_we-can-learn-what-we-did-not-know-we-are_1693769.jpg) > “We can learn what we did not know. We are not only good at destroying the Old World, we are also good at building the new.” [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Humanity can both destroy old structures and create new ones, learning from past ignorance. **In simple terms:** We can learn and build anew. Key Takeaway Embrace learning and creation. Themes progress innovation history Mood optimistic critical Type philosophical political When to use this quote - urban planning - technology development - educational reform Key Concepts social change constructive destruction Questions to Reflect On - What old ideas must be unlearned? - How can we ensure new creations serve all? A Different Perspective New systems may repeat old mistakes. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Building](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/building/) [Destroying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destroying/) [Know](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know/) [Know Good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-good-277749/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Learn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learn/) [Old world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-world/) [Study](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/study/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [World Good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world-good-381638/) ## Related quotes > [“Wouldn’t this old world be better If the folks we meet would say: ‘I know something good about you,’ And then treat us that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-eldon-tanner/wouldn-t-this-old-world-be-better-if-the-folks-we-meet-would-say-i/) [N. Eldon Tanner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-eldon-tanner/) > [Where does our investigation get its importance from, since it seems only to destroy everything interesting, that is, all that is great and important?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-wittgenstein/where-does-our-investigation-get-its-importance-from-since-it-seems/) [Ludwig Wittgenstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-wittgenstein/) > [“I believe that love is better than hate. And that there is more nobility in building a chicken coop than in destroying a cathedral.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-believe-that-love-is-better-than-hate-and-that-there-is-more/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Complacency is the enemy of study.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/complacency-is-the-enemy-of-study/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [It is necessary to master Marxist theory and apply it, master it for the sole purpose of applying it. If you can apply the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/it-is-necessary-to-master-marxist-theory-and-apply-it-master-it-for/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [We must learn to do economic work from all who know how, no matter who they are. We must esteem them as teachers, learning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/we-must-learn-to-do-economic-work-from-all-who-know-how-no-matter-who/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [My city and state are Rome. But as a human being? The world. So for me, "good" can only mean what's good for both…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/my-city-and-state-are-rome-but-as-a-human-being-the-world-so-for-me/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [Knowledge is generally considered a good thing; so, presumably, knowing more about how the U.S. thinks and operates around the world is also good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/knowledge-is-generally-considered-a-good-thing-so-presumably-knowing/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“There are things so awful in this world that the good-hearted people, may Allah bless them all, have absolutely no idea of. And that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-shafak/there-are-things-so-awful-in-this-world-that-the-good-hearted-people/) [Elif Shafak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-shafak/) > [I know there is one kind of cinema that exists in the world, that is good or bad cinema.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raj-kapoor/i-know-there-is-one-kind-of-cinema-that-exists-in-the-world-that-is/) [Raj Kapoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raj-kapoor/) > [“We forget that we humans are animals, inextricably connected to the world and everything in it. In the rush to bring GMO food to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-eade/we-forget-that-we-humans-are-animals-inextricably-connected-to-the/) [Kenneth Eade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-eade/) > [There is nothing in this world that is good nor bad but thinking makes it so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendan-hunt/there-is-nothing-in-this-world-that-is-good-nor-bad-but-thinking/) [Brendan Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendan-hunt/) > [Everywhere in the world, you find good things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-reno/everywhere-in-the-world-you-find-good-things/) [Jean Reno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-reno/) > [“nothing is arbitrary in this whole world, there is a good reason behind each and everything…”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-kumar/nothing-is-arbitrary-in-this-whole-world-there-is-a-good-reason/) [Nikhil Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-kumar/) > [“..the world seems full of good men--even if there are monsters in it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bram-stoker/the-world-seems-full-of-good-men-even-if-there-are-monsters-in-it/) [Bram Stoker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bram-stoker/) ## More by Mao Zedong > [Firstly, do not fear hardship, and secondly, do not fear death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/firstly-do-not-fear-hardship-and-secondly-do-not-fear-death/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [The most effective method of propaganda directed at the enemy forces is to release captured soldiers and give the wounded medical treatment... Whenever soldiers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/the-most-effective-method-of-propaganda-directed-at-the-enemy-forces/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [We must learn to do economic work from all who know how, no matter who they are. We must esteem them as teachers, learning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/we-must-learn-to-do-economic-work-from-all-who-know-how-no-matter-who/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [A revolution is not a dinner party, or writing an essay, or painting a picture, or doing embroidery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/a-revolution-is-not-a-dinner-party-or-writing-an-essay-or-painting-a/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [At the beginning of anything out of the ordinary, the mass of the people always dislike it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/at-the-beginning-of-anything-out-of-the-ordinary-the-mass-of-the/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [Winds flap the sail, tortoise and snake are silent, a great plan looms. A bridge will fly over this moat dug by heaven and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/winds-flap-the-sail-tortoise-and-snake-are-silent-a-great-plan-looms/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [Let a hundred flowers bloom, let a hundred schools of thought contend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/let-a-hundred-flowers-bloom-let-a-hundred-schools-of-thought-contend/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [ In the struggle to defend the legacy of Leninism . . . \[Stalin\] proved himself to be an outstanding Marxist-Leninist fighter. . . .… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/in-the-struggle-to-defend-the-legacy-of-leninism-stalin-proved/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [New things have to experience difficulties and setbacks as they grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/new-things-have-to-experience-difficulties-and-setbacks-as-they-grow/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [It is necessary to master Marxist theory and apply it, master it for the sole purpose of applying it. If you can apply the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/it-is-necessary-to-master-marxist-theory-and-apply-it-master-it-for/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [It is a very good thing, and a significant one too, to exterminate the bourgeoisie and capitalism in China.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/it-is-a-very-good-thing-and-a-significant-one-too-to-exterminate-the/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [Return to Shaoshan I regret the passing, the dying, of the vague dream: my native orchards thirty-two years ago. Yet red banners roused the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/return-to-shaoshan-i-regret-the-passing-the-dying-of-the-vague-dream/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [We should go to the masses and learn from them, synthesize their experience into better, articulated principles and methods, then do propaganda among the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/we-should-go-to-the-masses-and-learn-from-them-synthesize-their/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [Complacency is the enemy of study.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/complacency-is-the-enemy-of-study/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [Women hold up half the sky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/women-hold-up-half-the-sky/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) [Explore all 287 Mao Zedong quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) ## More Building quotes > [You, of Canada, are building a magnificent record of achievement. My country rejoices in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/you-of-canada-are-building-a-magnificent-record-of-achievement-my/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [One of the things the United States does well is building coalitions. What the U.S. knows is that if you don't have a coalition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shimon-peres/one-of-the-things-the-united-states-does-well-is-building-coalitions/) [Shimon Peres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shimon-peres/) > [Surely, if Mother Nature had been consulted, she would never have consented to building a city in New Orleans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mortimer-zuckerman/surely-if-mother-nature-had-been-consulted-she-would-never-have/) [Mortimer Zuckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mortimer-zuckerman/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Peace is an ongoing process. It begins with the first step and it does not end. We, all of us alive today, are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-krieger/peace-is-an-ongoing-process-it-begins-with-the-first-step-and-it-does/) [David Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-krieger/) > [I've done so many other projects where you're in a room with a reader and you're acting your lines out: 'We have to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cummings/i-ve-done-so-many-other-projects-where-you-re-in-a-room-with-a-reader/) [Jim Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cummings/) > [Absolutely, you can improve and become better at toughness. It's a talent, but it can be acquired, too. I think of it like building…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-harbaugh/absolutely-you-can-improve-and-become-better-at-toughness-it-s-a/) [Jim Harbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-harbaugh/) > [ T\]he church is not a place. It's not a building. It's not a preaching point. It's not a spiritual service provider. It's a people… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/t-he-church-is-not-a-place-it-s-not-a-building-it-s-not-a-preaching/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) > [I'd like to play Ian Paisley, actually. I'd need building up, though he's very frail now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liam-neeson/i-d-like-to-play-ian-paisley-actually-i-d-need-building-up-though-he/) [Liam Neeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liam-neeson/) > [Death is but an aspect of life, and the destruction of one material form is but a prelude to building up of another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/death-is-but-an-aspect-of-life-and-the-destruction-of-one-material/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Some architects have a preconceived notion of what a building should be](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-w-fentress/some-architects-have-a-preconceived-notion-of-what-a-building-should/) [Curtis W. Fentress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-w-fentress/) > [As for the forces, electromagnetism and gravity we experience in everyday life. But the weak and strong forces are beyond our ordinary experience. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-witten/as-for-the-forces-electromagnetism-and-gravity-we-experience-in/) [Edward Witten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-witten/) > [I'm 30. I'm about to hit my prime now. I need to act and keep building.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dillian-whyte/i-m-30-i-m-about-to-hit-my-prime-now-i-need-to-act-and-keep-building/) [Dillian Whyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dillian-whyte/) > [The essential functions of the mind consist in understanding and in inventing, in other words, in building up structures by structuring reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-piaget/the-essential-functions-of-the-mind-consist-in-understanding-and-in/) [Jean Piaget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-piaget/) > [Practically every time I speak up at a school conference, a political event, or my apartment building association's annual meeting, I'm met with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pamela-druckerman/practically-every-time-i-speak-up-at-a-school-conference-a-political/) [Pamela Druckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pamela-druckerman/) [Browse all 5,974 Building quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/building/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We can learn what we did not know. 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