--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The first step in learning is the…" description: "\"The first step in learning is the destruction of human conceit.\" — Plato" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/323/plato-103_conceit_the-first-step-in-learning-is-the-destru_837439.jpg" --- # The first step in learning is the destruction of human… ![“The first step in learning is the destruction of human conceit.” quote by Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/323/plato-103_conceit_the-first-step-in-learning-is-the-destru_837439.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/323/plato-103_conceit_the-first-step-in-learning-is-the-destru_837439.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/323/plato-103_conceit_the-first-step-in-learning-is-the-destru_837439.jpg) > “The first step in learning is the destruction of human conceit.” [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Learning begins by abandoning arrogance and acknowledging one’s ignorance. **In simple terms:** Humility is the first step to knowledge. Key Takeaway Cultivate humility to open the mind to true learning. Themes education humility self‑awareness philosophy Mood reflective inquisitive Type philosophical educational When to use this quote - classroom teaching - self‑study - mentorship programs Key Concepts Socratic method epistemology intellectual modesty Questions to Reflect On - What beliefs do you cling to that limit learning? - How can you practice intellectual humility daily? A Different Perspective Pride can still hinder curiosity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conceit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conceit/) [Destruction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destruction/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [First step](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/first-step/) [First steps](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/first-steps/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Nature of man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-man/) ## Related quotes > [The belief that we can manage the Earth and improve on Nature is probably the ultimate expression of human conceit, but it has deep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rene-dubos/the-belief-that-we-can-manage-the-earth-and-improve-on-nature-is/) [Rene Dubos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rene-dubos/) > [Every type of destruction that human philosophy, human science, human reason, human art, human cunning, human force, and human brutality could bring to bear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-a-torrey/every-type-of-destruction-that-human-philosophy-human-science-human/) [R. A. Torrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-a-torrey/) > [All that happens is that the destruction of human beings - unless they're Americans - is called collateral damage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-pinter/all-that-happens-is-that-the-destruction-of-human-beings-unless-they/) [Harold Pinter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-pinter/) > [“Socialism of any type leads to a total destruction of the human spirit and to a leveling of mankind into death.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-solzhenitsyn/socialism-of-any-type-leads-to-a-total-destruction-of-the-human/) [Alexander Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-solzhenitsyn/) > [“The complete destruction of the human race is fairly amusing, obviously, particularly if it's going to happen through overpopulation and technology, the only two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-bazell/the-complete-destruction-of-the-human-race-is-fairly-amusing/) [Josh Bazell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-bazell/) > [So much destruction in modern war takes place miles and miles away from the source of the destruction, the human being who has caused…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-dickey/so-much-destruction-in-modern-war-takes-place-miles-and-miles-away/) [James Dickey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-dickey/) > [Socialism of any type leads to a total destruction of the human spirit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/socialism-of-any-type-leads-to-a-total-destruction-of-the-human-spirit/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [White males are the most responsible for the destruction of human life and environment on the planet today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-morgan/white-males-are-the-most-responsible-for-the-destruction-of-human/) [Robin Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-morgan/) > [I can turn an idea into a business before you know it's going to be important. My first step will blow by you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-cuban/i-can-turn-an-idea-into-a-business-before-you-know-it-s-going-to-be/) [Mark Cuban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-cuban/) > [The first step toward maintaining autonomy in any programmed environment is to be aware that there's programming going on. It's as simple as understanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-rushkoff/the-first-step-toward-maintaining-autonomy-in-any-programmed/) [Douglas Rushkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-rushkoff/) > [How do you turn the invisible into the visible? The first step is to define your dream precisely; the only limit to what you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robbins/how-do-you-turn-the-invisible-into-the-visible-the-first-step-is-to/) [Tony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robbins/) > [“Women create an idealized, hopeful vision for the future to inspire other women. Fiction and fantasy are the crucial first steps to changing the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-rodale/women-create-an-idealized-hopeful-vision-for-the-future-to-inspire/) [Maya Rodale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-rodale/) > [The cultural integration of psychedelics won't happen overnight, and the question of young people is perhaps the most difficult involved. The first step is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-doblin/the-cultural-integration-of-psychedelics-won-t-happen-overnight-and/) [Rick Doblin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-doblin/) > [“I remember wondering, within a year or two of taking my first steps, why only men sat to drink tea and converse, and why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-hill/i-remember-wondering-within-a-year-or-two-of-taking-my-first-steps/) [Lawrence Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-hill/) > [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/) ## More by Plato > [Each man is capable of doing one thing well. If he attempts several, he will fail to achieve distinction in any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/each-man-is-capable-of-doing-one-thing-well-if-he-attempts-several-he/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [You may be sure, dear Crito, that inaccurate language is not only in itself a mistake: it implants evil in men's souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/you-may-be-sure-dear-crito-that-inaccurate-language-is-not-only-in/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“If men learn this, it will implant forgetfulness in their souls; they will cease to exercise memory because they rely on that which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/if-men-learn-this-it-will-implant-forgetfulness-in-their-souls-they/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Knowledge which is acquired under compulsion obtains no hold on the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/knowledge-which-is-acquired-under-compulsion-obtains-no-hold-on-the/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [I do not think it is permitted that a better man be harmed by a worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/i-do-not-think-it-is-permitted-that-a-better-man-be-harmed-by-a-worse/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Any city, however small, is in fact divided into two, one the city of the poor, the other of the rich; these are at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/any-city-however-small-is-in-fact-divided-into-two-one-the-city-of/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [When men speak ill of thee, live so as nobody may believe them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/when-men-speak-ill-of-thee-live-so-as-nobody-may-believe-them/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“The love of man to woman is a thing common and of course, and at first partakes more of instinct and passion than of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-love-of-man-to-woman-is-a-thing-common-and-of-course-and-at-first/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Strange times are these in which we live when old and young are taught in falsehood's school, and the one man that dares to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/strange-times-are-these-in-which-we-live-when-old-and-young-are/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“He was a wise man who invented God.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/he-was-a-wise-man-who-invented-god/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [For let me tell you, that the more the pleasures of the body fade away, the greater to me is the pleasure and charm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/for-let-me-tell-you-that-the-more-the-pleasures-of-the-body-fade-away/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“What shall we say about those spectators, then, who can see a plurality of beautiful things, but not beauty itself, and who are incapable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/what-shall-we-say-about-those-spectators-then-who-can-see-a-plurality/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Geometry existed before creation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/geometry-existed-before-creation/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [When men speak ill of thee, live so that nobody will believe them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/when-men-speak-ill-of-thee-live-so-that-nobody-will-believe-them/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [We must, if we are to be consistent, and if we re to have a real pedigree herd, mate the best of our men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/we-must-if-we-are-to-be-consistent-and-if-we-re-to-have-a-real/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) [Explore all 1,278 Plato quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) ## More Conceit quotes > [“A session of boasting won't attract any real friends.  It will set you up on a pedestal, however, making you a clearer target.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/a-session-of-boasting-won-t-attract-any-real-friends-it-will-set-you/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > [Most of us think of pride as self-centeredness, conceit, boastfulness, arrogance, or haughtiness. All of these are elements of the sin, but the heart,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-taft-benson/most-of-us-think-of-pride-as-self-centeredness-conceit-boastfulness/) [Ezra Taft Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-taft-benson/) > [Conceit is a sure sign of insecurity; humility denotes awareness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sivaya-subramuniyaswami/conceit-is-a-sure-sign-of-insecurity-humility-denotes-awareness/) [Sivaya Subramuniyaswami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sivaya-subramuniyaswami/) > [Conceit is a weird disease - it makes everybody sick except the guy who has it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-dobson/conceit-is-a-weird-disease-it-makes-everybody-sick-except-the-guy-who/) [James Dobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-dobson/) > [Be very slow to believe that you are wiser than all others; it is a fatal but common error. Where one has been saved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/be-very-slow-to-believe-that-you-are-wiser-than-all-others-it-is-a/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [History repeats the old conceits, the glib replies, the same defeats.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elvis-costello/history-repeats-the-old-conceits-the-glib-replies-the-same-defeats/) [Elvis Costello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elvis-costello/) > [Being carefree, you can fit in anywhere. If you’re not carefree you keep on bumping up against things. Your life becomes so narrow, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tsoknyi-rinpoche/being-carefree-you-can-fit-in-anywhere-if-you-re-not-carefree-you/) [Tsoknyi Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tsoknyi-rinpoche/) > [This man, who for twenty-five years has been reading and writing about art, and in all that time has never understood anything about art,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/this-man-who-for-twenty-five-years-has-been-reading-and-writing-about/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [There is nothing like a good bit of pain for taking the conceit out of one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-welsh-carlyle/there-is-nothing-like-a-good-bit-of-pain-for-taking-the-conceit-out/) [Jane Welsh Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-welsh-carlyle/) > [If you want to conquer conceit, do not desire praise, laurels, nice garments, respect, favor, but like to be blamed and slandered by people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-aleksandrovich-antonov/if-you-want-to-conquer-conceit-do-not-desire-praise-laurels-nice/) [Vladimir Aleksandrovich Antonov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-aleksandrovich-antonov/) > [The smaller the mind, the greater the ego.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-clancy/the-smaller-the-mind-the-greater-the-ego/) [Tom Clancy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-clancy/) > [If a man thinks he is not conceited, he is very conceited indeed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-a-man-thinks-he-is-not-conceited-he-is-very-conceited-indeed/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There is simple ignorance, which is the source of lighter offenses, and double ignorance, which is accompanied by a conceit of wisdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/there-is-simple-ignorance-which-is-the-source-of-lighter-offenses-and/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [Jesus regularly visualized the success of his efforts ... 'I always do what pleases God.' ... Was this conceit? Or was it enlightened creativity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-beth-jones/jesus-regularly-visualized-the-success-of-his-efforts-i-always-do/) [Laurie Beth Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-beth-jones/) > [“Took long enough,” she called out, not wanting to admit how the sight of him made her throat hitch, how the man was so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-mcintyre/took-long-enough-she-called-out-not-wanting-to-admit-how-the-sight-of/) [Katherine McIntyre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-mcintyre/) [Browse all 360 Conceit quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conceit/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The first step in learning is the destruction of human conceit.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Plato" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-first-step-in-learning-is-the-destruction-of-human-conceit/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Conceit" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-first-step-in-learning-is-the-destruction-of-human-conceit/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/323/plato-103_conceit_the-first-step-in-learning-is-the-destru_837439.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/323/plato-103_conceit_the-first-step-in-learning-is-the-destru_837439.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/323/plato-103_conceit_the-first-step-in-learning-is-the-destru_837439.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The first step in learning is the destruction of human conceit.” — Plato", "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": "Plato", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The first step in learning is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-first-step-in-learning-is-the-destruction-of-human-conceit/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-first-step-in-learning-is-the-destruction-of-human-conceit/#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 } } ] } ```