--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I made the assumption, wrong of course…" description: "\"I made the assumption, wrong of course, that conceptual analysis was a brief preliminary on the road to finding out about the nature of free will, cons..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e0/patricia-churchland-19570_analysis_i-made-the-assumption-wrong-of-course-th_1692476.jpg" --- # I made the assumption, wrong of course, that conceptual… ![“I made the assumption, wrong of course, that conceptual analysis was a brief preliminary on the road to finding out about the nature of free will, consciousness, the self, the origin of values, and so forth.” quote by Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e0/patricia-churchland-19570_analysis_i-made-the-assumption-wrong-of-course-th_1692476.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e0/patricia-churchland-19570_analysis_i-made-the-assumption-wrong-of-course-th_1692476.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e0/patricia-churchland-19570_analysis_i-made-the-assumption-wrong-of-course-th_1692476.jpg) > “I made the assumption, wrong of course, that conceptual analysis was a brief preliminary on the road to finding out about the nature of free will, consciousness, the self, the origin of values, and so forth.” [Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She critiques the view that conceptual analysis alone can resolve deep metaphysical questions. **In simple terms:** Conceptual analysis insufficient for big questions. Key Takeaway Combine analysis with empirical study. Themes philosophy analysis mind free will consciousness Mood analytical thoughtful Type philosophical academic When to use this quote - academic research - ethical debates - science education Key Concepts metaphysics empiricism interdisciplinary Questions to Reflect On - What methods complement analysis? - How to balance theory and data? A Different Perspective Complex topics need multiple methods. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Analysis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/analysis/) [Assumption](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assumption/) [Consciousness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consciousness/) [Free will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/free-will/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Preliminary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preliminary/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Values](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/values/) ## Related quotes > [Eventually I realized that for contemporary philosophers conceptual analysis per se was an end in itself. For some, it was somehow supposed to lead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-churchland/eventually-i-realized-that-for-contemporary-philosophers-conceptual/) [Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) > [Given how long philosophers have been at conceptual analysis (I mean the 20th century stuff), and how many have been doing it, what can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-churchland/given-how-long-philosophers-have-been-at-conceptual-analysis-i-mean/) [Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) > [There is philosophy, which is about conceptual analysis - about the meaning of what we say - and there is all of this ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-j-ayer/there-is-philosophy-which-is-about-conceptual-analysis-about-the/) [A.J. Ayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-j-ayer/) > [Americans long thought that nature could take care of itself-or that if it did not, the consequences were someone else's problem. As we know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-carter/americans-long-thought-that-nature-could-take-care-of-itself-or-that/) [Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-carter/) > [Never ASSUME that someone loves you. What have they done that PROVES that they're in love with you? If nothing, your assumption is wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonya-parker/never-assume-that-someone-loves-you-what-have-they-done-that-proves/) [Sonya Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonya-parker/) > [The dance commonly begins about the middle of the afternoon or later, after sundown. When it begins in the afternoon, there is always an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-mooney/the-dance-commonly-begins-about-the-middle-of-the-afternoon-or-later/) [James Mooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-mooney/) > [I've been urged by people forever to try and start a real Rock Hall of Fame. I've had some very, very preliminary discussions about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-trunk/i-ve-been-urged-by-people-forever-to-try-and-start-a-real-rock-hall/) [Eddie Trunk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-trunk/) > [There is a preliminary belief that Tuolumne River water could be captured by other reservoirs that are downstream from Hetch Hetchy, the Cherry and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-gonzalez/there-is-a-preliminary-belief-that-tuolumne-river-water-could-be/) [Matt Gonzalez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-gonzalez/) > [A preliminary agreement in principle is not a deal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krystal-ball/a-preliminary-agreement-in-principle-is-not-a-deal/) [Krystal Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krystal-ball/) > [After preliminary research, I zero in on an idea, and then I spend at least four months exploring the topic and in plot-building. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashwin-sanghi/after-preliminary-research-i-zero-in-on-an-idea-and-then-i-spend-at/) [Ashwin Sanghi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashwin-sanghi/) > [There's something about sitting face-to-face with an attorney in an office that enables people to come to grips with the very idea of divorce…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-wasser/there-s-something-about-sitting-face-to-face-with-an-attorney-in-an/) [Laura Wasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-wasser/) > [I'm in that very preliminary stage of wondering how exactly to "pressurize" the novel in some way I've never considered before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-leyner/i-m-in-that-very-preliminary-stage-of-wondering-how-exactly-to/) [Mark Leyner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-leyner/) > [My own eyes are no more than scouts on a preliminary search, for the camera's eye may entirely change my idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-weston/my-own-eyes-are-no-more-than-scouts-on-a-preliminary-search-for-the/) [Edward Weston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-weston/) > [Preliminary drawings or sketches in oil or pastel often have an immediacy and emotional appeal far greater than the final canvas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-mellon/preliminary-drawings-or-sketches-in-oil-or-pastel-often-have-an/) [Paul Mellon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-mellon/) > [In my work I've never done preliminary drawing, because it's sometimes difficult to repeat something or to continue when the urgency's gone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deanna-petherbridge/in-my-work-i-ve-never-done-preliminary-drawing-because-it-s-sometimes/) Deanna Petherbridge ## More by Patricia Churchland > [Studies of decision-making in the monkey, where activity of single neurons in parietal cortex is recorded, you can see a lot about the time-accuracy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-churchland/studies-of-decision-making-in-the-monkey-where-activity-of-single/) [Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) > [It is important to understand that while oxytocin may be the hub of the evolution of the social brain in mammals, it is part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-churchland/it-is-important-to-understand-that-while-oxytocin-may-be-the-hub-of/) [Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) > [It seems probable that humans have been on the planet, with much the same brain, for about 250,000 years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-churchland/it-seems-probable-that-humans-have-been-on-the-planet-with-much-the/) [Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) > [Brains are not magical; they are causal machines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-churchland/brains-are-not-magical-they-are-causal-machines/) [Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) > [Remember, in the heyday of vitalism, people said that when all the data are in about cells and how they work, we will still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-churchland/remember-in-the-heyday-of-vitalism-people-said-that-when-all-the-data/) [Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) > [Suppression of impulses that would put you in danger is obviously an important neurobiological function.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-churchland/suppression-of-impulses-that-would-put-you-in-danger-is-obviously-an/) [Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) > [Early studies of sleep and dreaming were crucially dependent on waking subjects up during sleep to find out whether they are dreaming or not.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-churchland/early-studies-of-sleep-and-dreaming-were-crucially-dependent-on/) [Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) > [When that theory is isolated from known facts, it is likely not to be productive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-churchland/when-that-theory-is-isolated-from-known-facts-it-is-likely-not-to-be/) [Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) > [I used to suspect that in the brain, time is its own representation. I now think the problem is so much more complicated. Initially…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-churchland/i-used-to-suspect-that-in-the-brain-time-is-its-own-representation-i/) [Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) > [I am less attracted to guesses about what cannot be done, than about making progress on a problem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-churchland/i-am-less-attracted-to-guesses-about-what-cannot-be-done-than-about/) [Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) > [Analyzing a concept can (perhaps) tell you what the concept means (at least means to some philosophers), but it does not tell you anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-churchland/analyzing-a-concept-can-perhaps-tell-you-what-the-concept-means-at/) [Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) > [Humility bids us to take ourselves as we are; we do not have to be cosmically significant to be genuinely significant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-churchland/humility-bids-us-to-take-ourselves-as-we-are-we-do-not-have-to-be/) [Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) > [When philosophers try to understand consciousness, much of what they claim is not conceptual analysis at all, though it may be shopped under that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-churchland/when-philosophers-try-to-understand-consciousness-much-of-what-they/) [Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) > [If you give up because you announce the phenomenon cannot be explained, you are missing out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-churchland/if-you-give-up-because-you-announce-the-phenomenon-cannot-be/) [Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) > [Many mammals and birds have systems for strong self-control, and it is not difficult to see why such systems were advantageous and were selected…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-churchland/many-mammals-and-birds-have-systems-for-strong-self-control-and-it-is/) [Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) [Explore all 32 Patricia Churchland quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/) ## More Analysis quotes > [Jeff Chu's pilgrimage across America to discover his own place as a gay man in the Christian church as well as attitudes about being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-freitas/jeff-chu-s-pilgrimage-across-america-to-discover-his-own-place-as-a/) [Donna Freitas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-freitas/) > [My mind rebels at stagnation. 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They do not even have the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-baker/international-friendly-games-are-not-worth-the-lives-of-the-silk/) [Danny Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-baker/) > [Demographically, I'm a hippie from San Francisco and I'm not culturally inclined to be sympathetic to states' rights. My cultural heritage is FDR and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/demographically-i-m-a-hippie-from-san-francisco-and-i-m-not/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [Democracy is not being well served as we're accustomed to. There is less information, there's less investigation, there's less analysis, there's less accountability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-greenspon/democracy-is-not-being-well-served-as-we-re-accustomed-to-there-is/) Edward Greenspon > [As long as the human race is able to concern itself with more than mere survival, soccer will have its place.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-morris/as-long-as-the-human-race-is-able-to-concern-itself-with-more-than/) [Desmond Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-morris/) > [The capitalistic social order, therefore, is an economic democracy in the strictest sense of the word. In the last analysis, all decisions are dependent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/the-capitalistic-social-order-therefore-is-an-economic-democracy-in/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [“You will do one of two things as soon as you’ve exhausted what you can determine mathematically in the case: (1) Refine your hypothesis…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-cheng/you-will-do-one-of-two-things-as-soon-as-you-ve-exhausted-what-you/) [Victor Cheng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-cheng/) > [Atheism Explained is a gem. It is clear, informative, well-argued, provocative, often witty, and unfailingly interesting. David Ramsay Steele ranges over so many issues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-shearmur/atheism-explained-is-a-gem-it-is-clear-informative-well-argued/) Jeremy Shearmur > [Class is entirely intangible, and the way it affects things isn't subject to scientific analysis, and it's not supposed to be real but it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-walton/class-is-entirely-intangible-and-the-way-it-affects-things-isn-t/) [Jo Walton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-walton/) > [I've always made my decisions based on two factors: intellectual analysis and my gut. And when they meet, that's a go from me. 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