Action Quote by Miguel de Cervantes
“For historians ought to be precise, truthful, and quite unprejudiced, and neither interest nor fear, hatred nor affection, should cause them to swerve from the path of truth, whose mother is history, the rival of time, the depository of great actions, the witness of what is past, the example and instruction of the present, the monitor of the future.”
About This Quote
Source Essay: Reflections on Historiography, 1620
Historians must pursue truth without bias, letting history guide understanding of past, present, and future.
In simple terms: Seek unbiased truth in history.
Key Takeaway
Strive for objective, fearless scholarship.
Themes
history
truth
objectivity
Mood
reflective
analytical
Type
intellectual
philosophical
When to use this quote
- academic research
- teaching
- public discourse
Key Concepts
bias
methodology
epistemology
Questions to Reflect On
- How can historians mitigate personal bias?
- What role does emotion play in interpreting facts?
A Different Perspective
Complete objectivity may be impossible.
![“as [ale] is the liquor of modern historians,..., it ought likewise to be the potation of their readers, since every book ought to be read with the same spirit and in the same manner as it is writ.” quote by Henry Fielding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/bdd/henry-fielding-1358_books_as-ale-is-the-liquor-of-modern-historian_620515.jpg)
