--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Complaints about the social…" description: "\"Complaints about the social irresponsibility of the intellectual typically concern the intellectual's tendency to marginalize herself, to move out from..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/richard-rorty-13909_berlin_complaints-about-the-social-irresponsibi_1397530.jpg" --- # Complaints about the social irresponsibility of the… ![“Complaints about the social irresponsibility of the intellectual typically concern the intellectual's tendency to marginalize herself, to move out from one community by interior identification of herself with some other community - for example, another country or historical period... It is not…” quote by Richard Rorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/richard-rorty-13909_berlin_complaints-about-the-social-irresponsibi_1397530.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/richard-rorty-13909_berlin_complaints-about-the-social-irresponsibi_1397530.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/richard-rorty-13909_berlin_complaints-about-the-social-irresponsibi_1397530.jpg) > “Complaints about the social irresponsibility of the intellectual typically concern the intellectual's tendency to marginalize herself, to move out from one community by interior identification of herself with some other community - for example, another country or historical period... It is not clear that those who thus marginalize themselves can be criticized for social irresponsibility. One cannot be irresponsible toward a community of which one does not think of oneself as a member. Otherwise runaway slaves and tunnelers under the Berlin Wall would be irresponsible.” [Richard Rorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rorty/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Intellectuals who detach from their own community by identifying with another cannot be judged for neglecting the first community. **In simple terms:** Marginalizing oneself removes responsibility to that group. Key Takeaway Responsibility follows identification. Themes identity responsibility community intellectualism Mood thoughtful critical Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - academic discourse - political activism - cultural criticism - identity politics Key Concepts social theory philosophy of self ethical relativism Questions to Reflect On - How does self‑identification shape moral obligations? - Can one be accountable to a community one does not feel part of? A Different Perspective Critics may argue that any community membership, even symbolic, entails some duty. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Berlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/berlin/) [Berlin wall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/berlin-wall/) [Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/) [Complaints](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/complaints/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Historical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/historical/) [Identification](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identification/) [Intellectual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intellectual/) [Irresponsibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/irresponsibility/) [Slave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slave/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Wall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wall/) ## Related quotes > [John von Neumann gave me an interesting idea: that you don't have to be responsible for the world that you're in. So I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/john-von-neumann-gave-me-an-interesting-idea-that-you-don-t-have-to/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [“Von Neumann gave me an interesting idea: that you don’t have to be responsible for the world that you’re in. So I have developed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feynman/von-neumann-gave-me-an-interesting-idea-that-you-don-t-have-to-be/) [Richard Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feynman/) > [“WALLS The Berlin Wall made the news every day. From morning till night we read, saw, heard: the Wall of Shame, the Wall of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-galeano/walls-the-berlin-wall-made-the-news-every-day-from-morning-till-night/) [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) > [“The ethos of East Berlin punk infused the city with a radical egalitarianism and a DIY approach to maintaining independence-to conjuring up the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-mohr/the-ethos-of-east-berlin-punk-infused-the-city-with-a-radical/) Tim Mohr > [Fall of the Berlin wall? Being there was fun. Nations that flaked off of the Soviet Union in southeastern Europe, Central Asia, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/fall-of-the-berlin-wall-being-there-was-fun-nations-that-flaked-off/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [The legacy of Ronald Reagan will live on forever. I, of course, had the wonderful opportunity of working with him and getting to know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-brady/the-legacy-of-ronald-reagan-will-live-on-forever-i-of-course-had-the/) [Sarah Brady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-brady/) > [I remember when the Berlin Wall fell and suddenly intractable problems get solved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-walker/i-remember-when-the-berlin-wall-fell-and-suddenly-intractable/) [Lucy Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-walker/) > [From the beginning, we failed to overcome Europe's division. The Berlin Wall fell, but invisible walls were moved to the East of Europe. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/from-the-beginning-we-failed-to-overcome-europe-s-division-the-berlin/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [“Did you know that some people wish the Berlin Wall had never come down?” said Esther. “That’s weird, isn’t it? Why would you want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liane-moriarty/did-you-know-that-some-people-wish-the-berlin-wall-had-never-come/) [Liane Moriarty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liane-moriarty/) > [We are living in a world in which developments are harder to predict and one that has become more uncertain. In such a world,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jens-stoltenberg/we-are-living-in-a-world-in-which-developments-are-harder-to-predict/) [Jens Stoltenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jens-stoltenberg/) > [“It’s not a very nice solution,” Kennedy acknowledged, “but a wall is a hell of a lot better than a war.”54 The president could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lewis-gaddis/it-s-not-a-very-nice-solution-kennedy-acknowledged-but-a-wall-is-a/) [John Lewis Gaddis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lewis-gaddis/) > [This coincided with the fall of the Berlin Wall and Europe coming closer together, and nightlife and techno and ecstasy culture seemed like a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-tillmans/this-coincided-with-the-fall-of-the-berlin-wall-and-europe-coming/) [Wolfgang Tillmans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-tillmans/) > [“The fear of a revanchist Germany was revived in 1989, when the Berlin Wall came down and the two Germanys made plans to reunite.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-fear-of-a-revanchist-germany-was-revived-in-1989-when-the-berlin/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm not a prophet, but I always thought it was natural for dictatorships to fall. I remember in 1989, two months before the fall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-m-not-a-prophet-but-i-always-thought-it-was-natural-for/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [The fall of the Berlin Wall makes for nice pictures. But it all started in the shipyards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lech-walesa/the-fall-of-the-berlin-wall-makes-for-nice-pictures-but-it-all/) [Lech Walesa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lech-walesa/) ## More by Richard Rorty > [If I had to lay bets, my bet would be that everything is going to go to hell, but, you know, what else have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rorty/if-i-had-to-lay-bets-my-bet-would-be-that-everything-is-going-to-go/) [Richard Rorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rorty/) > [Truth is simply a compliment paid to sentences seen to be paying their way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rorty/truth-is-simply-a-compliment-paid-to-sentences-seen-to-be-paying/) [Richard Rorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rorty/) > ["True" resembles... a compliment paid to sentences that seem to be paying their way and that fit in with other sentences which are doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rorty/true-resembles-a-compliment-paid-to-sentences-that-seem-to-be-paying/) [Richard Rorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rorty/) > [Open-mindedness should not be fostered because, as Scripture teaches, Truth is great and will prevail, nor because, as Milton suggests, Truth will always win…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rorty/open-mindedness-should-not-be-fostered-because-as-scripture-teaches/) [Richard Rorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rorty/) > [Philosophy makes progress not by becoming more rigorous but by becoming more imaginative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rorty/philosophy-makes-progress-not-by-becoming-more-rigorous-but-by/) [Richard Rorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rorty/) > [“There is nothing sacred about universality which makes the shared automatically better than the unshared.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rorty/there-is-nothing-sacred-about-universality-which-makes-the-shared/) [Richard Rorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rorty/) > [I think of an intellectual as just being bookish, being interested in history books, utopian ideas, that kind of thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rorty/i-think-of-an-intellectual-as-just-being-bookish-being-interested-in/) [Richard Rorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rorty/) > [I illustrate with a quotation from the atheist philosopher Richard Rorty, who died recently and is, I suspect, now having a lengthy conversation with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rorty/i-illustrate-with-a-quotation-from-the-atheist-philosopher-richard/) [Richard Rorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rorty/) > [Academic disciplines are subject to being overtaken by attacks of "knowingness"- a state of mind and soul that prevents shudders of awe and makes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rorty/academic-disciplines-are-subject-to-being-overtaken-by-attacks-of/) [Richard Rorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rorty/) > [There is nothing deep down inside us except what we have put there ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rorty/there-is-nothing-deep-down-inside-us-except-what-we-have-put-there/) [Richard Rorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rorty/) > [The most important advance that the West has yet made is to develop a secularist moral tradition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rorty/the-most-important-advance-that-the-west-has-yet-made-is-to-develop-a/) [Richard Rorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rorty/) > [Always strive to excel, but only on weekends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rorty/always-strive-to-excel-but-only-on-weekends/) [Richard Rorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rorty/) > [Every government, left or right, always engages in moral crusades. What else are they supposed to do? Especially when they make war; any war…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rorty/every-government-left-or-right-always-engages-in-moral-crusades-what/) [Richard Rorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rorty/) > [The world is out there, but descriptions of the world are not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rorty/the-world-is-out-there-but-descriptions-of-the-world-are-not/) [Richard Rorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rorty/) > [What sort of world can we prepare for our great grandchildren?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rorty/what-sort-of-world-can-we-prepare-for-our-great-grandchildren/) [Richard Rorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rorty/) [Explore all 48 Richard Rorty quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rorty/) ## More Berlin quotes > [This brings me back to the image of Kafka standing before a fish in the Berlin aquarium, a fish on which his gaze fell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/this-brings-me-back-to-the-image-of-kafka-standing-before-a-fish-in/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [I did a concert... in September with the Berlin Philharmonic... They're great musicians, and there's always something to learn from them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecilia-bartoli/i-did-a-concert-in-september-with-the-berlin-philharmonic-they-re/) [Cecilia Bartoli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecilia-bartoli/) > [The fall of the Berlin Wall makes for nice pictures. But it all started in the shipyards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lech-walesa/the-fall-of-the-berlin-wall-makes-for-nice-pictures-but-it-all/) [Lech Walesa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lech-walesa/) > [The music changed. We had Irving Berlin and Gershwin and Lerner and Loewe and Cole Porter. Great music. Now we have 'Rent.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyd-charisse/the-music-changed-we-had-irving-berlin-and-gershwin-and-lerner-and/) [Cyd Charisse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyd-charisse/) > [My works are dear to me, each in its own way, I shall have to answer for them on the Day off Judgement. God…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-chagall/my-works-are-dear-to-me-each-in-its-own-way-i-shall-have-to-answer/) [Marc Chagall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-chagall/) > [I'm not a prophet, but I always thought it was natural for dictatorships to fall. I remember in 1989, two months before the fall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-m-not-a-prophet-but-i-always-thought-it-was-natural-for/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [The church of St. Peter at Berlin, notwithstanding the total difference between them in the style of building, appears in some respects to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-philipp-moritz/the-church-of-st-peter-at-berlin-notwithstanding-the-total-difference/) [Karl Philipp Moritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-philipp-moritz/) > [...what happened in New York and Washington is the same thing that England and America did to Berlin every day for three years during…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lemmy-kilmister/what-happened-in-new-york-and-washington-is-the-same-thing-that/) [Lemmy Kilmister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lemmy-kilmister/) > [I am in Paris. Yes ma'am , I made it back. I came up from Berlin, stopped here ten days, fought a losing battle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-anne-porter/i-am-in-paris-yes-ma-am-i-made-it-back-i-came-up-from-berlin-stopped/) [Katherine Anne Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-anne-porter/) > [God bless America, land that I love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irving-berlin/god-bless-america-land-that-i-love/) [Irving Berlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irving-berlin/) > [I wouldn't want to live in Berlin. It's bombed out and there's a lot of techno.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sloane-crosley/i-wouldn-t-want-to-live-in-berlin-it-s-bombed-out-and-there-s-a-lot/) [Sloane Crosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sloane-crosley/) > [Berlin is still a very edgy place, a very cosmopolitan place. It's a place where completely different ideas and cultures come together and clash…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-bremmer/berlin-is-still-a-very-edgy-place-a-very-cosmopolitan-place-it-s-a/) [Ian Bremmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-bremmer/) > [Berlin would be a great place to have no cell phone, I think. Especially if you were able to live in a central location.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-ebert/berlin-would-be-a-great-place-to-have-no-cell-phone-i-think/) [Alex Ebert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-ebert/) > [Those who have ever valued liberty for its own sake believed that to be free to choose, and not to be chosen for, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaiah-berlin/those-who-have-ever-valued-liberty-for-its-own-sake-believed-that-to/) [Isaiah Berlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaiah-berlin/) > [The toughest thing about success is that you've got to keep on being a success. Talent is only a starting point in this business.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irving-berlin/the-toughest-thing-about-success-is-that-you-ve-got-to-keep-on-being/) [Irving Berlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irving-berlin/) [Browse all 438 Berlin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/berlin/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Complaints about the social irresponsibility of the intellectual typically concern the intellectual's tendency to marginalize herself, to move out from one community by interior identification of herself with some other community - for example, another country or historical period... It is not clear that those who thus marginalize themselves can be criticized for social irresponsibility. One cannot be irresponsible toward a community of which one does not think of oneself as a member. 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