--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In place of science, the Eskimo has only…" description: "\"In place of science, the Eskimo has only magic to bridge the gap between what he can understand and what is not known. Without magic, his life would be..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/603/peter-farb-29582_bridges_in-place-of-science-the-eskimo-has-only_2402402.jpg" --- # In place of science, the Eskimo has only magic to bridge… ![“In place of science, the Eskimo has only magic to bridge the gap between what he can understand and what is not known. Without magic, his life would be one long panic.” quote by Peter Farb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/603/peter-farb-29582_bridges_in-place-of-science-the-eskimo-has-only_2402402.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/603/peter-farb-29582_bridges_in-place-of-science-the-eskimo-has-only_2402402.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/603/peter-farb-29582_bridges_in-place-of-science-the-eskimo-has-only_2402402.jpg) > “In place of science, the Eskimo has only magic to bridge the gap between what he can understand and what is not known. Without magic, his life would be one long panic.” [Peter Farb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-farb/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. It argues that without magical thinking, the Eskimo would face constant fear due to lack of explanatory tools. **In simple terms:** Without magic, Eskimo would live in panic. Key Takeaway Provide scientific explanations to reduce fear. Themes culture science magic Mood reflective inquisitive Type anthropological educational When to use this quote - education - cross‑cultural communication - mental health - risk perception Key Concepts anthropology epistemology Questions to Reflect On - How does science replace myth in modern life? - What alternatives exist to magic for understanding? A Different Perspective Some cultures may have other coping mechanisms. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bridges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bridges/) [Eskimo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eskimo/) [Magic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magic/) [Panic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/panic/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) ## Related quotes > [Marriage is simply an economic necessity, and so there are no elaborate courtship displays or marriage celebrations among the Eskimo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-farb/marriage-is-simply-an-economic-necessity-and-so-there-are-no/) [Peter Farb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-farb/) > [“What are you? From where did you come? I have never seen anything like you.” The Creator Raven looked at Man and was  ……](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eskimo-creation-myth/what-are-you-from-where-did-you-come-i-have-never-seen-anything-like/) Eskimo creation myth > [Never open a book with weather. 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And they compound over time, becoming harder and harder to bridge, making too many young men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/those-opportunity-gaps-begin-early-often-at-birth-and-they-compound/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) ## More by Peter Farb > [Despite the theories traditionally taught in high-school social studies, the truth is: the more primitive the society, the more leisured its way of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-farb/despite-the-theories-traditionally-taught-in-high-school-social/) [Peter Farb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-farb/) > [Men in all societies possess the biological equipment to remove their hats or shoes, but it is the birth within a particular culture that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-farb/men-in-all-societies-possess-the-biological-equipment-to-remove-their/) [Peter Farb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-farb/) > [A complex society is not necessarily more advanced than a simple one; it has just adapted to conditions in a more complicated way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-farb/a-complex-society-is-not-necessarily-more-advanced-than-a-simple-one/) [Peter Farb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-farb/) > [Speakers who have grown up in the American community unconsciously know its rules about taking turns in conversations-in the same way that they know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-farb/speakers-who-have-grown-up-in-the-american-community-unconsciously/) [Peter Farb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-farb/) > [An invention or new combination can be successful only if all if the elements necessary for the recombination are present in the culture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-farb/an-invention-or-new-combination-can-be-successful-only-if-all-if-the/) [Peter Farb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-farb/) > [Gestures and facial expressions do indeed communicate, as anyone can prove by turning off the sound on a television set and asking watchers to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-farb/gestures-and-facial-expressions-do-indeed-communicate-as-anyone-can/) [Peter Farb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-farb/) > [Letters to the editors of English and American newspapers often contain expressions of horror about the new terms that creep into the language, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-farb/letters-to-the-editors-of-english-and-american-newspapers-often/) [Peter Farb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-farb/) > [No child is capable of speech until he has heard other human beings speak, and even two infants reared together cannot develop a language…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-farb/no-child-is-capable-of-speech-until-he-has-heard-other-human-beings/) [Peter Farb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-farb/) > [Marriage is simply an economic necessity, and so there are no elaborate courtship displays or marriage celebrations among the Eskimo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-farb/marriage-is-simply-an-economic-necessity-and-so-there-are-no/) [Peter Farb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-farb/) > [Language does not stand still. 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They usually cannot specify exactly what is wrong, and very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-farb/native-speakers-of-a-language-know-intuitively-whether-a-sentence-is/) [Peter Farb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-farb/) > [The dictionary is a closed system in which someone interested in the meaning of a word can go around and around and end up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-farb/the-dictionary-is-a-closed-system-in-which-someone-interested-in-the/) [Peter Farb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-farb/) > [At every moment of his life the Shoshone must be careful to observe the complicated folkways of his group, to do reverence to superhuman…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-farb/at-every-moment-of-his-life-the-shoshone-must-be-careful-to-observe/) [Peter Farb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-farb/) > [Food to a large extent is what holds a society together, and eating is closely linked to deep spiritual experiences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-farb/food-to-a-large-extent-is-what-holds-a-society-together-and-eating-is/) [Peter Farb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-farb/) > [An inability to communicate has little to do with international friction-as is seen in the special ferocity of wars fought between people who speak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-farb/an-inability-to-communicate-has-little-to-do-with-international/) [Peter Farb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-farb/) [Explore all 18 Peter Farb quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-farb/) ## More Bridges quotes > [Poetry has, in a way, been my bridge to my acting career.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omari-hardwick/poetry-has-in-a-way-been-my-bridge-to-my-acting-career/) [Omari Hardwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omari-hardwick/) > [Nothing teaches great writing like the very best books do. 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You can then obtain the silence of a streetlight or a bridge; stop thinking; after that, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/when-you-walk-try-to-think-nothing-you-can-then-obtain-the-silence-of/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [By the time they were pulling into the parking lot of the A&P, the mood was fading, the moment gone. Amy could feel it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-strout/by-the-time-they-were-pulling-into-the-parking-lot-of-the-a-p-the/) [Elizabeth Strout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-strout/) > [Al Pacino and Jeff Bridges do it for me in a big way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-scanlon/al-pacino-and-jeff-bridges-do-it-for-me-in-a-big-way/) [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) > [Instead of building castles against your enemies, build bridges for them to come to you!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/instead-of-building-castles-against-your-enemies-build-bridges-for/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [Instead of finding himself in nerd heaven—where every nerd gets fifty-eight virgins to role-play with—he woke up in Robert Wood Johnson with two broken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junot-diaz/instead-of-finding-himself-in-nerd-heaven-where-every-nerd-gets-fifty/) [Junot Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junot-diaz/) > [Each person is an island unto himself, in a very real sense; and he can only build bridges to other islands if he is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-rogers/each-person-is-an-island-unto-himself-in-a-very-real-sense-and-he-can/) [Carl Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-rogers/) > [The real test of a bridge player isn’t in keeping out of trouble, but in escaping once he’s in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-sheinwold/the-real-test-of-a-bridge-player-isn-t-in-keeping-out-of-trouble-but/) [Alfred Sheinwold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-sheinwold/) > [The law ... allows rich as well as poor to sleep under bridges.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatole-france/the-law-allows-rich-as-well-as-poor-to-sleep-under-bridges/) [Anatole France](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatole-france/) > [Guys like Todd Bridges never overcame being a child star. 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