--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He was beholden to no one, and would…" description: "\"“He was beholden to no one, and would never take on trust what others might maintain to be true without himself coming to an independent judgment.”\" — ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/846/richard-feynman-12444_beholden_he-was-beholden-to-no-one-and-would-neve_3075960.jpg" --- # He was beholden to no one, and would never take on trust… ![“He was beholden to no one, and would never take on trust what others might maintain to be true without himself coming to an independent judgment.” quote by Richard Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/846/richard-feynman-12444_beholden_he-was-beholden-to-no-one-and-would-neve_3075960.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/846/richard-feynman-12444_beholden_he-was-beholden-to-no-one-and-would-neve_3075960.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/846/richard-feynman-12444_beholden_he-was-beholden-to-no-one-and-would-neve_3075960.jpg) > ““He was beholden to no one, and would never take on trust what others might maintain to be true without himself coming to an independent judgment.”” [Richard Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Independence of thought requires personal verification rather than relying on others' claims. **In simple terms:** Think for yourself, verify independently. Key Takeaway Question assumptions before accepting them. Themes critical thinking independence skepticism Mood inquisitive thoughtful Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - research - decision making - education - scientific inquiry Key Concepts epistemology autonomy Questions to Reflect On - When should you trust expert consensus? - How do you balance skepticism with collaboration? A Different Perspective Reliance on others can be efficient in some contexts. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beholden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beholden/) [Trust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trust/) ## Related quotes > [“On behalf of the deference under the Administrative Procedure Act, it is said that Congress is not constitutionally barred from authorizing deference—as if Congress…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-hamburger/on-behalf-of-the-deference-under-the-administrative-procedure-act-it/) [Philip Hamburger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-hamburger/) > [A man of independent judgment is a man of profound self-esteem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/a-man-of-independent-judgment-is-a-man-of-profound-self-esteem/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [“A jury is always a more orthodox body than any defendant brought before it; for blacks it is usually a whiter group, for poor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/a-jury-is-always-a-more-orthodox-body-than-any-defendant-brought/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [One's own independent judgment is the means by which one must choose one's actions, but it is not a moral criterion nor a moral…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/one-s-own-independent-judgment-is-the-means-by-which-one-must-choose/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [The truest test of independent judgment is being able to dislike someone who admires us, and to admire someone who dislikes us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-j-harris/the-truest-test-of-independent-judgment-is-being-able-to-dislike/) [Sydney J. Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-j-harris/) > [People working for a news organization, even those with a point of view, are supposed to exercise independent judgment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-folkenflik/people-working-for-a-news-organization-even-those-with-a-point-of/) [David Folkenflik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-folkenflik/) > [“If beauty is in the eye of the beholder than consider yourself beholden.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truth-devour/if-beauty-is-in-the-eye-of-the-beholder-than-consider-yourself/) Truth Devour > [“Be beholden to no one, he had said. Make sure you owe nobody any favors.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/be-beholden-to-no-one-he-had-said-make-sure-you-owe-nobody-any-favors/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [“There's nothing worse in the world than to owe and be beholden to anyone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/there-s-nothing-worse-in-the-world-than-to-owe-and-be-beholden-to/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [I've never believed that 'Idol' as a franchise is beholden to any individual because everybody said it would die the minute Simon Cowell left,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-lythgoe/i-ve-never-believed-that-idol-as-a-franchise-is-beholden-to-any/) [Nigel Lythgoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-lythgoe/) > [“I go where I want to go, I do what I want to do, and I am beholden to no one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-m-derobertis/i-go-where-i-want-to-go-i-do-what-i-want-to-do-and-i-am-beholden-to/) Mark M. DeRobertis > [“You are a woman; this is your body. You are beholden to no one, Ke-Han or Volstovic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danielle-bennett/you-are-a-woman-this-is-your-body-you-are-beholden-to-no-one-ke-han/) [Danielle Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danielle-bennett/) > [I owe nobody anything. I'm beholden to nobody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-hardy/i-owe-nobody-anything-i-m-beholden-to-nobody/) [Dan Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-hardy/) > [God is not beholden to us at all. He doesn't owe us anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-piper/god-is-not-beholden-to-us-at-all-he-doesn-t-owe-us-anything/) [John Piper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-piper/) > [The Shins is, in a way, a recording project that turned into a live band. So I don't really keep myself beholden to any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-mercer/the-shins-is-in-a-way-a-recording-project-that-turned-into-a-live/) [James Mercer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-mercer/) ## More by Richard Feynman > [“From a long view of the history of mankind-seen from, say, ten thousand years from now-there can be little doubt that the most significant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/from-a-long-view-of-the-history-of-mankind-seen-from-say-ten-thousand/) [Richard Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/) > [“Everything is interesting if you go into it deeply enough”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/everything-is-interesting-if-you-go-into-it-deeply-enough/) [Richard Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/) > [“All of our ideas in physics require a certain amount of common sense in their application; they are not purely mathematical or abstract ideas.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/all-of-our-ideas-in-physics-require-a-certain-amount-of-common-sense/) [Richard Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/) > [“I was an ordinary person who studied hard. There are no miracle people. It happens they get interested in this thing and they learn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/i-was-an-ordinary-person-who-studied-hard-there-are-no-miracle-people/) [Richard Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/) > [“If a Martian (who, we'll imagine, never dies except by accident) came to Earth and saw this peculiar race of creatures - these humans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/if-a-martian-who-we-ll-imagine-never-dies-except-by-accident-came-to/) [Richard Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/) > [“If u think u can u may if u think u can't u r right”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/if-u-think-u-can-u-may-if-u-think-u-can-t-u-r-right/) [Richard Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/) > [“The guy says, “Buddy, the housing situation in Ithaca is tough. In fact, it’s so tough that, believe it or not, a professor had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/the-guy-says-buddy-the-housing-situation-in-ithaca-is-tough-in-fact/) [Richard Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/) > [“It doesn't matter how beautiful your theory is ... If it doesn't agree with experiment, it's wrong.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/it-doesn-t-matter-how-beautiful-your-theory-is-if-it-doesn-t-agree/) [Richard Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/) > [“Although my mother didn't know anything about science, she had a great influence on me as well. In particular, she had a wonderful sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/although-my-mother-didn-t-know-anything-about-science-she-had-a-great/) [Richard Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/) > [“Take this neat little equation here. It tells me all the ways an electron can make itself comfortable in or around an atom. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/take-this-neat-little-equation-here-it-tells-me-all-the-ways-an/) [Richard Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/) > [“To every man is given the key to the gates of heaven. The same key opens the gates of hell. And so it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/to-every-man-is-given-the-key-to-the-gates-of-heaven-the-same-key/) [Richard Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/) > [“But wait,” he said. “Let’s suppose it returns by advanced waves—reactions backward in time—so it comes back at the right time. We saw the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/but-wait-he-said-let-s-suppose-it-returns-by-advanced-waves-reactions/) [Richard Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/) > [“I believe there's nothing in hallucinations that has anything to do with anything external to the internal psychological state of the person who's got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/i-believe-there-s-nothing-in-hallucinations-that-has-anything-to-do/) [Richard Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/) > [“My father had the spirit and integrity of a scientist, but he was a salesman. I remember asking him the question "How can a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/my-father-had-the-spirit-and-integrity-of-a-scientist-but-he-was-a/) [Richard Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/) > [“I started to walk into the bar, and I suddenly thought to myself, “Wait a minute! It’s the middle of the afternoon. There’s nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/i-started-to-walk-into-the-bar-and-i-suddenly-thought-to-myself-wait/) [Richard Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/) [Explore all 54 Richard Feynman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/) ## More Beholden quotes > [“Be beholden to no one, he had said. Make sure you owe nobody any favors.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/be-beholden-to-no-one-he-had-said-make-sure-you-owe-nobody-any-favors/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [I've never believed that 'Idol' as a franchise is beholden to any individual because everybody said it would die the minute Simon Cowell left,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-lythgoe/i-ve-never-believed-that-idol-as-a-franchise-is-beholden-to-any/) [Nigel Lythgoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-lythgoe/) > [I owe nobody anything. I'm beholden to nobody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-hardy/i-owe-nobody-anything-i-m-beholden-to-nobody/) [Dan Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-hardy/) > [“If beauty is in the eye of the beholder than consider yourself beholden.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truth-devour/if-beauty-is-in-the-eye-of-the-beholder-than-consider-yourself/) Truth Devour > [God is not beholden to us at all. He doesn't owe us anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-piper/god-is-not-beholden-to-us-at-all-he-doesn-t-owe-us-anything/) [John Piper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-piper/) > [The Shins is, in a way, a recording project that turned into a live band. So I don't really keep myself beholden to any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-mercer/the-shins-is-in-a-way-a-recording-project-that-turned-into-a-live/) [James Mercer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-mercer/) > [“You are a woman; this is your body. You are beholden to no one, Ke-Han or Volstovic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danielle-bennett/you-are-a-woman-this-is-your-body-you-are-beholden-to-no-one-ke-han/) [Danielle Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danielle-bennett/) > [“I go where I want to go, I do what I want to do, and I am beholden to no one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-m-derobertis/i-go-where-i-want-to-go-i-do-what-i-want-to-do-and-i-am-beholden-to/) Mark M. DeRobertis > [“There's nothing worse in the world than to owe and be beholden to anyone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/there-s-nothing-worse-in-the-world-than-to-owe-and-be-beholden-to/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [The simple fact is we do not live in a democracy. Certainly not the kind our Founding Fathers intended. We live in a corporate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-van-zandt/the-simple-fact-is-we-do-not-live-in-a-democracy-certainly-not-the/) [Steven Van Zandt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-van-zandt/) > [It is time to celebrate the New Black Americans - those who have sealed the Deal, who aren't beholden to liberal indulgence any more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ridley/it-is-time-to-celebrate-the-new-black-americans-those-who-have-sealed/) [John Ridley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ridley/) > [We can't be beholden to the past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-liefeld/we-can-t-be-beholden-to-the-past/) [Rob Liefeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-liefeld/) > [I am beholden to calumny, that she hath so endeavored to belie me.-It shall make me set a surer guard on myself, and keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/i-am-beholden-to-calumny-that-she-hath-so-endeavored-to-belie-me-it/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [I don't think there's an interesting boundary between philosophy and science. Science is totally beholden to philosophy. There are philosophical assumptions in science and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/i-don-t-think-there-s-an-interesting-boundary-between-philosophy-and/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [When leaders are no longer beholden to the people who elected them, corruption results and the recruitment of extremists becomes easier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iqbal-quadir/when-leaders-are-no-longer-beholden-to-the-people-who-elected-them/) [Iqbal Quadir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iqbal-quadir/) [Browse all 35 Beholden quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beholden/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“He was beholden to no one, and would never take on trust what others might maintain to be true without himself coming to an independent judgment.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Feynman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/he-was-beholden-to-no-one-and-would-never-take-on-trust-what-others/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Beholden" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/he-was-beholden-to-no-one-and-would-never-take-on-trust-what-others/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/846/richard-feynman-12444_beholden_he-was-beholden-to-no-one-and-would-neve_3075960.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/846/richard-feynman-12444_beholden_he-was-beholden-to-no-one-and-would-neve_3075960.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/846/richard-feynman-12444_beholden_he-was-beholden-to-no-one-and-would-neve_3075960.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“He was beholden to no one, and would never take on trust what others might maintain to be true without…” — Richard Feynman", "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": "Richard Feynman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“He was beholden to no one,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/he-was-beholden-to-no-one-and-would-never-take-on-trust-what-others/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/he-was-beholden-to-no-one-and-would-never-take-on-trust-what-others/#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 } } ] } ```