--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If I have seen further than others, it is…" description: "\"If I have seen further than others, it is because I am surrounded by dwarfs.\" — Murray Gell-Mann" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1e/murray-gell-mann-12560_dwarfs_if-i-have-seen-further-than-others-it-is_564061.jpg" --- # If I have seen further than others, it is because I am… ![“If I have seen further than others, it is because I am surrounded by dwarfs.” quote by Murray Gell-Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1e/murray-gell-mann-12560_dwarfs_if-i-have-seen-further-than-others-it-is_564061.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1e/murray-gell-mann-12560_dwarfs_if-i-have-seen-further-than-others-it-is_564061.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1e/murray-gell-mann-12560_dwarfs_if-i-have-seen-further-than-others-it-is_564061.jpg) > “If I have seen further than others, it is because I am surrounded by dwarfs.” [Murray Gell-Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. I attribute my insights to the people around me, not to personal brilliance alone. **In simple terms:** Surroundings shape achievement. Key Takeaway Seek supportive collaborators. Themes humility collaboration recognition Mood grateful reflective Type acknowledgment inspirational When to use this quote - research teams - creative projects - leadership - learning environments Key Concepts social influence mentorship collective intelligence Questions to Reflect On - How do you credit those who help you? - What can you do to support others? A Different Perspective Success may still depend on individual effort and talent. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dwarfs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dwarfs/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Quip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quip/) [Seen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seen/) [Seen Surrounded](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seen-surrounded-1266477/) [Surrounded](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/surrounded/) [Surrounded Dwarfs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/surrounded-dwarfs-4669610/) ## Related quotes > [As no darkness can be seen by anyone surrounded by light, so no trivialities can capture the attention of anyone who has his eyes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-of-nyssa/as-no-darkness-can-be-seen-by-anyone-surrounded-by-light-so-no/) [Gregory of Nyssa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-of-nyssa/) > [“The heart has its reasons which reason knows not.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/the-heart-has-its-reasons-which-reason-knows-not/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [When someone abuses me I can defend myself, but against praise I am defenceless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/when-someone-abuses-me-i-can-defend-myself-but-against-praise-i-am/) [Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/) > [“Louella remarked that when foreign nations had intercourse with this country they knew they had been intercoursed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-woodford/louella-remarked-that-when-foreign-nations-had-intercourse-with-this/) [Jack Woodford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-woodford/) > [Statistics: The only science that enables different experts using the same figures to draw different conclusions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-esar/statistics-the-only-science-that-enables-different-experts-using-the/) [Evan Esar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-esar/) > [Radical transparency has an enormous impact on our personal lives. We can no longer share thoughts, quips, photos or personal opinions anywhere on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mainwaring/radical-transparency-has-an-enormous-impact-on-our-personal-lives-we/) [Simon Mainwaring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mainwaring/) > [“Ideally, what should be said to every child, repeatedly, throughout his or her school life is something like this: 'You are in the process…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/ideally-what-should-be-said-to-every-child-repeatedly-throughout-his/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [Some libs took offense at my David Broder quip earlier. In my own defense, I was taught in college it's OK to disrespect dead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-taranto/some-libs-took-offense-at-my-david-broder-quip-earlier-in-my-own/) [James Taranto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-taranto/) > [I like quips. I like whiffs of cynicism and I think they can be witty. But I don't really know where wittiness is constructive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-mcconaughey/i-like-quips-i-like-whiffs-of-cynicism-and-i-think-they-can-be-witty/) [Matthew McConaughey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-mcconaughey/) > [“Well, She's (She-Hulk) quippy. I'm quippy. When we get together, we quip. And, quipwise, I think that makes me a better quipper. -Spiderman”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-slott/well-she-s-she-hulk-quippy-i-m-quippy-when-we-get-together-we-quip/) [Dan Slott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-slott/) > [Because I am about to be devoured by poodles," I quip. "Remember me always, my love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-black/because-i-am-about-to-be-devoured-by-poodles-i-quip-remember-me/) [Holly Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-black/) > [Can you nominate in order now the degrees of the lie? I will name you the degrees. The first, the Retort Courteous; the second,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/can-you-nominate-in-order-now-the-degrees-of-the-lie-i-will-name-you/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Nothing you can't spell will ever work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-rogers/nothing-you-can-t-spell-will-ever-work/) [Will Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-rogers/) > [“But you've never drunk fresh blood. Have you?" Simon raised his eyebrows in response. "Well, aside from mine, of course," Jace said. "And I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/but-you-ve-never-drunk-fresh-blood-have-you-simon-raised-his-eyebrows/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [COLD. Healthier than heat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/cold-healthier-than-heat/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) ## More by Murray Gell-Mann > [Of course the word chaos is used in rather a vague sense by a lot of writers, but in physics it means a particular…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/of-course-the-word-chaos-is-used-in-rather-a-vague-sense-by-a-lot-of/) [Murray Gell-Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/) > [ My colleagues in elementary particle theory in many lands \[and I\] are driven by the usual insatiable curiosity of the scientist, and our work… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/my-colleagues-in-elementary-particle-theory-in-many-lands-and-i-are/) [Murray Gell-Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/) > [Think how hard physics would be if particles could think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/think-how-hard-physics-would-be-if-particles-could-think/) [Murray Gell-Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/) > [Sustainability is living on nature's income rather than living on its capital.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/sustainability-is-living-on-nature-s-income-rather-than-living-on-its/) [Murray Gell-Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/) > [But when researchers at Bell Labs discovered that static tends to come from particular places in the sky, the whole field of radio astronomy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/but-when-researchers-at-bell-labs-discovered-that-static-tends-to/) [Murray Gell-Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/) > [I am frequently astonished that it so often results in correct predictions of experimental results.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/i-am-frequently-astonished-that-it-so-often-results-in-correct/) [Murray Gell-Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/) > [Superstitions typically involve seeing order where in fact there is none, and denial amounts to rejecting evidence of regularities, sometimes even ones that are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/superstitions-typically-involve-seeing-order-where-in-fact-there-is/) [Murray Gell-Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/) > [I thought of killing myself but soon decided that I could always try MIT and then kill myself later if it was that bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/i-thought-of-killing-myself-but-soon-decided-that-i-could-always-try/) [Murray Gell-Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/) > [In fact any experiment that measures a quantum effect is one in which the quantum effect is aligned with the behavior of some heavy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/in-fact-any-experiment-that-measures-a-quantum-effect-is-one-in-which/) [Murray Gell-Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/) > [So the old Copenhagen interpretation needs to be generalized, needs to be replaced by something that can be used for the whole universe, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/so-the-old-copenhagen-interpretation-needs-to-be-generalized-needs-to/) [Murray Gell-Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/) > [Enthusiasm is followed by disappointment and even depression, and then by renewed enthusiasm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/enthusiasm-is-followed-by-disappointment-and-even-depression-and-then/) [Murray Gell-Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/) > [If we look at the way the universe behaves, quantum mechanics gives us fundamental, unavoidable indeterminacy, so that alternative histories of the universe can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/if-we-look-at-the-way-the-universe-behaves-quantum-mechanics-gives-us/) [Murray Gell-Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/) > [Now, what that means is that there is fundamental indeterminacy from quantum mechanics, but besides that there are other sources of effective indeterminacy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/now-what-that-means-is-that-there-is-fundamental-indeterminacy-from/) [Murray Gell-Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/) > [Just because things get a little dingy at the subatomic level doesn't mean all bets are off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/just-because-things-get-a-little-dingy-at-the-subatomic-level-doesn-t/) [Murray Gell-Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/) > [While many questions about quantum mechanics are still not fully resolved, there is no point in introducing needless mystification where in fact no problem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/while-many-questions-about-quantum-mechanics-are-still-not-fully/) [Murray Gell-Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/) [Explore all 54 Murray Gell-Mann quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/) ## More Dwarfs quotes > [He had quite liked the dwarfs. He often had no idea what they were talking about, but for a group of homicidal, class-obsessed small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/he-had-quite-liked-the-dwarfs-he-often-had-no-idea-what-they-were/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [A dwarf can stand on a mountain, he's no taller.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/a-dwarf-can-stand-on-a-mountain-he-s-no-taller/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [For it is a mad world and it will get madder if we allow the minorities, be they dwarf or giant, orangutan or dolphin,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/for-it-is-a-mad-world-and-it-will-get-madder-if-we-allow-the/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [I do not doubt but the majest and beauty of the world are latent in any iota of the world; I do not doubt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/i-do-not-doubt-but-the-majest-and-beauty-of-the-world-are-latent-in/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [“Did I offend you?” Lannister said. “Sorry. Dwarfs don’t have to be tactful. Generations of capering fools in motley have won me the right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/did-i-offend-you-lannister-said-sorry-dwarfs-don-t-have-to-be-tactful/) [George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/) > [Art is gushing hot bile on the fields and harvesting the looks of nasty dwarfs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-brus/art-is-gushing-hot-bile-on-the-fields-and-harvesting-the-looks-of/) [Gunter Brus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-brus/) > [As long as our people quote English standards they dwarf their own proportions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/as-long-as-our-people-quote-english-standards-they-dwarf-their-own/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Being a famous writer is a little like being a tall dwarf. You're on the edge of normality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/being-a-famous-writer-is-a-little-like-being-a-tall-dwarf-you-re-on/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“You're our honorary sixth member with mysterious abilities and visions of the future. The Snow White to our motley group of dwarfs. Plus, you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-rowen/you-re-our-honorary-sixth-member-with-mysterious-abilities-and/) [Michelle Rowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-rowen/) > [“They are ruby-colored, aren’t they?” he said. “Well, they’re red,” said Magrat. “Is red all right?” “They’ve got to be red.” All the other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/they-are-ruby-colored-aren-t-they-he-said-well-they-re-red-said/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [Worry is a mean-faced dwarf who beats on your heart like a kettledrum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-brockmeier/worry-is-a-mean-faced-dwarf-who-beats-on-your-heart-like-a-kettledrum/) [Kevin Brockmeier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-brockmeier/) > [Some are dinning in our ears that we Americans, and moderns generally, are intellectual dwarfs compared with the ancients, or eventhe Elizabethan men. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/some-are-dinning-in-our-ears-that-we-americans-and-moderns-generally/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [We are like dwarfs sitting on the shoulders of giants. We see more, and things that are more distant, than they did, not because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-salisbury/we-are-like-dwarfs-sitting-on-the-shoulders-of-giants-we-see-more-and/) [John of Salisbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-salisbury/) > ["Another name? Oh, certainly. And when the Faceless Men come to kill me, I'll say, 'No, you have the wrong man, I'm a different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin-2/another-name-oh-certainly-and-when-the-faceless-men-come-to-kill-me-i/) [George R. R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin-2/) > [Whether we're talking about what the role of the government is, what you think of the United Nations, political leaders or how to respond…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-c-dawson/whether-we-re-talking-about-what-the-role-of-the-government-is-what/) [Michael C Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-c-dawson/) [Browse all 145 Dwarfs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dwarfs/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If I have seen further than others, it is because I am surrounded by dwarfs.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Murray Gell-Mann" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/if-i-have-seen-further-than-others-it-is-because-i-am-surrounded-by/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Dwarfs" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/if-i-have-seen-further-than-others-it-is-because-i-am-surrounded-by/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1e/murray-gell-mann-12560_dwarfs_if-i-have-seen-further-than-others-it-is_564061.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1e/murray-gell-mann-12560_dwarfs_if-i-have-seen-further-than-others-it-is_564061.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1e/murray-gell-mann-12560_dwarfs_if-i-have-seen-further-than-others-it-is_564061.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If I have seen further than others, it is because I am surrounded by dwarfs.” — Murray Gell-Mann", "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": "Murray Gell-Mann", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-gell-mann/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If I have seen further than...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/if-i-have-seen-further-than-others-it-is-because-i-am-surrounded-by/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-gell-mann/if-i-have-seen-further-than-others-it-is-because-i-am-surrounded-by/#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 } } ] } ```