--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We see only what we know. —Goethe" description: "\"“We see only what we know. —Goethe”\" — Robert Burton M.D" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6f2/robert-burton-m-d-103583_goethe_we-see-only-what-we-know-goethe-2282918_2282918.jpg" --- # We see only what we know. —Goethe ![“We see only what we know. —Goethe” quote by Robert Burton M.D](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6f2/robert-burton-m-d-103583_goethe_we-see-only-what-we-know-goethe-2282918_2282918.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6f2/robert-burton-m-d-103583_goethe_we-see-only-what-we-know-goethe-2282918_2282918.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6f2/robert-burton-m-d-103583_goethe_we-see-only-what-we-know-goethe-2282918_2282918.jpg) > ““We see only what we know.   —Goethe”” [Robert Burton M.D](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-burton-m-d/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We perceive only what we have knowledge of, limiting our understanding. **In simple terms:** We see what we know. Key Takeaway Expand knowledge to broaden view. Themes knowledge perception learning Mood reflective curious Type Goethe:1 Know:1 Know Goethe:0 When to use this quote - education - research - personal growth Key Concepts cognitive bias epistemology Questions to Reflect On - What do you assume you know? - How can you learn beyond current knowledge? A Different Perspective Knowledge gaps can persist despite effort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goethe/) [Know](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know/) [Know Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-goethe-3728775/) ## Related quotes > [Goethe died in 1832. As you know, Goethe was very active in science. 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Grayling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-c-grayling/) > [“do you know the land where the lemon-trees blossom;where the golden oranges glow in the dark foliage''.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maeve-binchy/do-you-know-the-land-where-the-lemon-trees-blossom-where-the-golden/) [Maeve Binchy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maeve-binchy/) > [“Sometimes when reading Goethe I have a paralyzing suspicion that he is trying to be funny.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-davenport/sometimes-when-reading-goethe-i-have-a-paralyzing-suspicion-that-he/) [Guy Davenport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-davenport/) > [“It was the period in Germany of Goethe’s highest fame. Notwithstanding his rather condescending attitude towards patriotism he had been adopted as the national…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-somerset-maugham/it-was-the-period-in-germany-of-goethe-s-highest-fame-notwithstanding/) [William Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-somerset-maugham/) > [“We should talk less and draw more. (Goethe)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/huxley-aldous-2/we-should-talk-less-and-draw-more-goethe/) [Huxley Aldous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/huxley-aldous-2/) > [Goethe tells us in his greatest poem that Faust lost the liberty of his soul when he said to the passing moment, 'Stay, thou…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/goethe-tells-us-in-his-greatest-poem-that-faust-lost-the-liberty-of/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [“Night knew no bounds. Goethe, on a moonlit evening in Naples, was “overwhelmed by a feeling of infinite space.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-roger-ekirch/night-knew-no-bounds-goethe-on-a-moonlit-evening-in-naples-was/) [A. Roger Ekirch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-roger-ekirch/) > [“Someone once told me people write down stories because they would like to forget, and those who read are those who would like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-zelazny/someone-once-told-me-people-write-down-stories-because-they-would/) [John Zelazny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-zelazny/) > [“Goethe, the great nineteenth-century thinker, reportedly summed up, “You can easily judge the character of a man by how he treats those who can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-sinek/goethe-the-great-nineteenth-century-thinker-reportedly-summed-up-you/) [Simon Sinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-sinek/) ## More by Robert Burton M.D > [“If the evidence is strong enough, you are convinced that there is no other reasonable answer. Your resulting sense of certainty feels like the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-burton-m-d/if-the-evidence-is-strong-enough-you-are-convinced-that-there-is-no/) [Robert Burton M.D](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-burton-m-d/) [Explore all 2 Robert Burton M.D quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-burton-m-d/) ## More Goethe quotes > [“Goethe, the great nineteenth-century thinker, reportedly summed up, “You can easily judge the character of a man by how he treats those who can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-sinek/goethe-the-great-nineteenth-century-thinker-reportedly-summed-up-you/) [Simon Sinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-sinek/) > [“Someone once told me people write down stories because they would like to forget, and those who read are those who would like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-zelazny/someone-once-told-me-people-write-down-stories-because-they-would/) [John Zelazny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-zelazny/) > [“Night knew no bounds. 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Notwithstanding his rather condescending attitude towards patriotism he had been adopted as the national…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-somerset-maugham/it-was-the-period-in-germany-of-goethe-s-highest-fame-notwithstanding/) [William Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-somerset-maugham/) > [“Sometimes when reading Goethe I have a paralyzing suspicion that he is trying to be funny.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-davenport/sometimes-when-reading-goethe-i-have-a-paralyzing-suspicion-that-he/) [Guy Davenport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-davenport/) > [“do you know the land where the lemon-trees blossom;where the golden oranges glow in the dark foliage''.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maeve-binchy/do-you-know-the-land-where-the-lemon-trees-blossom-where-the-golden/) [Maeve Binchy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maeve-binchy/) > [“Goethe had long since remarked that nationalistic feelings ‘are at their strongest and most violent where there is the lowest degree of culture’.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-c-grayling/goethe-had-long-since-remarked-that-nationalistic-feelings-are-at/) [A.C. Grayling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-c-grayling/) > [What am I then...? Everything that I have seen, heard, and observed I have collected and exploited. My works have been nourished by countless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/what-am-i-then-everything-that-i-have-seen-heard-and-observed-i-have/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [“Lo que habéis heredado de vuestros padres, volvedlo a ganar a pulso o no será vuestro”, dice Goethe.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-alicia-chavez/lo-que-hab-is-heredado-de-vuestros-padres-volvedlo-a-ganar-a-pulso-o/) [Martha Alicia Chavez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-alicia-chavez/) > [“Treat others as if they were what they ought to be and you will help them become what they are capable of becoming.” Goethe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-moore/treat-others-as-if-they-were-what-they-ought-to-be-and-you-will-help/) [Mike Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-moore/) > [Goethe said there would be little left of him if he were to discard what he owed to others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-saunders-cushman/goethe-said-there-would-be-little-left-of-him-if-he-were-to-discard/) [Charlotte Saunders Cushman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-saunders-cushman/) > [Ask Jeeves! Who ever used that thing? College freshmen to find out who Goethe was - that's it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/ask-jeeves-who-ever-used-that-thing-college-freshmen-to-find-out-who/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [I know very well what Goethe meant when he said that he never had a chagrin but he made a poem out of it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-know-very-well-what-goethe-meant-when-he-said-that-he-never-had-a/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Browse all 115 Goethe quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goethe/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We see only what we know.   —Goethe”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robert Burton M.D" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-burton-m-d/we-see-only-what-we-know-goethe/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Goethe" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-burton-m-d/we-see-only-what-we-know-goethe/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6f2/robert-burton-m-d-103583_goethe_we-see-only-what-we-know-goethe-2282918_2282918.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6f2/robert-burton-m-d-103583_goethe_we-see-only-what-we-know-goethe-2282918_2282918.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6f2/robert-burton-m-d-103583_goethe_we-see-only-what-we-know-goethe-2282918_2282918.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We see only what we know. —Goethe” — Robert Burton M.D", "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": "Robert Burton M.D", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-burton-m-d/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“We see only what we know....", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-burton-m-d/we-see-only-what-we-know-goethe/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-burton-m-d/we-see-only-what-we-know-goethe/#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 } } ] } ```