--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As a result of his experiments he…" description: "\"“As a result of his experiments he concluded that imitation was a real evil that had to be broken before real rhetoric teaching could begin. This imita..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d50/robert-m-pirsig-817_education_as-a-result-of-his-experiments-he-conclu_1054497.png" --- # As a result of his experiments he concluded that imitation… ![“As a result of his experiments he concluded that imitation was a real evil that had to be broken before real rhetoric teaching could begin. This imitation seemed to be an external compulsion. Little children didn’t have it. It seemed to come later on, possibly as a result of school itself. That…” quote by Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d50/robert-m-pirsig-817_education_as-a-result-of-his-experiments-he-conclu_1054497.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d50/robert-m-pirsig-817_education_as-a-result-of-his-experiments-he-conclu_1054497.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d50/robert-m-pirsig-817_education_as-a-result-of-his-experiments-he-conclu_1054497.png) > ““As a result of his experiments he concluded that imitation was a real evil that had to be broken before real rhetoric teaching could begin. This imitation seemed to be an external compulsion. Little children didn’t have it. It seemed to come later on, possibly as a result of school itself. That sounded right, and the more he thought about it the more right it sounded. Schools teach you to imitate. If you don’t imitate what the teacher wants you get a bad grade. Here, in college, it was more sophisticated, of course; you were supposed to imitate the teacher in such a way as to convince the teacher you were not imitating, but taking the essence of the instruction and going ahead with it on your own. That got you A’s. Originality on the other hand could get you anything – from A to F. The whole grading system cautioned against it.”” [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote argues that formal education rewards imitation over true originality, making genuine creative thought risky for students. **In simple terms:** School systems favor copying over real creativity. Key Takeaway Questionourage authentic thinking despite grading pressures. Themes education creativity conformity assessment originality Mood critical reflective Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - college courses - creative projects - research papers - student evaluations Key Concepts Pedagogy authenticity risk evaluation Questions to Reflect On - How can educators reward genuine insight? - What alternatives to grading could foster creativity? A Different Perspective Originality may be penalized by grades. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Rhetoric](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rhetoric/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) ## Related quotes > [Schools teach you to imitate. If you don't imitate what the teacher wants you get a bad grade. Here, in college, it was more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/schools-teach-you-to-imitate-if-you-don-t-imitate-what-the-teacher/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [“Schools teach you to imitate. If you don�t imitate what the teacher wants you get a bad grade. Here, in college, it was more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/schools-teach-you-to-imitate-if-you-don-t-imitate-what-the-teacher-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My notion of a failed writing workshop is when everybody comes out replicating the teacher and imitating as closely as possible the great original…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-delbanco/my-notion-of-a-failed-writing-workshop-is-when-everybody-comes-out/) [Nicholas Delbanco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-delbanco/) > [The function of high school, then, is not so much to communicate knowledge as to oblige children finally to accept the grading system as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jules-henry/the-function-of-high-school-then-is-not-so-much-to-communicate/) [Jules Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jules-henry/) > [We can pay teachers a hundred thousand dollars a year, and we'll do nothing to improve our schools as long as we keep the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/we-can-pay-teachers-a-hundred-thousand-dollars-a-year-and-we-ll-do/) [William Glasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/) > [The security world needs to take a more proactive approach. A lot of companies will know an exploit exists and they'll release the software…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-demon-calce/the-security-world-needs-to-take-a-more-proactive-approach-a-lot-of/) [Michael Demon Calce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-demon-calce/) > [“most expensive originals have cheap imitations.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/most-expensive-originals-have-cheap-imitations/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) > [It is not the imitation that makes sons; it is sonship that makes imitators.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/it-is-not-the-imitation-that-makes-sons-it-is-sonship-that-makes/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [We have lost the good old British spirit. Instead we have American journalism and black-shirted buffoons making a cheap imitation of ice-cream sellers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oswald-mosley/we-have-lost-the-good-old-british-spirit-instead-we-have-american/) [Oswald Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oswald-mosley/) > [The method of not erring is sought by all the world. The logicians profess to guide it, the geometricians alone attain it, and apart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/the-method-of-not-erring-is-sought-by-all-the-world-the-logicians/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [“Imitation and custom are the spring of almost all human action. The cause of it is that men fight shy of all and any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/imitation-and-custom-are-the-spring-of-almost-all-human-action-the/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [Obviously I don't play the same way as Peter, but I could do a passable imitation of Peter Green; if you gave me a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-moore/obviously-i-don-t-play-the-same-way-as-peter-but-i-could-do-a/) [Gary Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-moore/) > [“You go into extinction by being obsessed about becoming something else and then travelling in the wrong car while your real self keeps waiting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/you-go-into-extinction-by-being-obsessed-about-becoming-something/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [every being is unique.god neva creates carbon copies,he alys creates originals.he is truly a creator.he neva repeats.but man goes on living in imitation.we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/every-being-is-unique-god-neva-creates-carbon-copies-he-alys-creates/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Imitation is the first instinct of the awakening mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/imitation-is-the-first-instinct-of-the-awakening-mind/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) ## More by Robert M. Pirsig > [“And from time to time you find your “county road” takes you onto a two-rutter and then a single rutter and then into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/and-from-time-to-time-you-find-your-county-road-takes-you-onto-a-two/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [“I started to roll over for more sleep but heard a rooster crowing and then became aware we are on vacation and there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/i-started-to-roll-over-for-more-sleep-but-heard-a-rooster-crowing-and/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [The Buddha, the Godhead, resides quite as comfortably in the circuits of a digital computer or the gears of a cycle transmission as he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/the-buddha-the-godhead-resides-quite-as-comfortably-in-the-circuits/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [Even though quality cannot be defined, you know what quality is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/even-though-quality-cannot-be-defined-you-know-what-quality-is/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [I suppose philosophy is historically not a woman's game, though that is changing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/i-suppose-philosophy-is-historically-not-a-woman-s-game-though-that/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [Up until my first book was published, I had all this potential, people would say, and I screwed up. After it, I could say:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/up-until-my-first-book-was-published-i-had-all-this-potential-people/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [There is a perennial classical question that asks which part of the motorcycle, which grain of sand in which pile, is the Buddha. Obviously…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/there-is-a-perennial-classical-question-that-asks-which-part-of-the/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [“Of the value traps, the most widespread and pernicious is value rigidity. This is an inability to revalue what one sees because of commitment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/of-the-value-traps-the-most-widespread-and-pernicious-is-value/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [“Historically mystics have claimed that for a true understanding of reality metaphysics is too “scientific”. Metaphysics is not reality. Metaphysics is names about reality.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/historically-mystics-have-claimed-that-for-a-true-understanding-of/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [“What’s emerging from the pattern of my own life is the for belief that the crisis is being caused by the inadequacy of existing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/what-s-emerging-from-the-pattern-of-my-own-life-is-the-for-belief/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [To speak of certain government and establishment institutions as 'the system' is to speak correctly . . . They are sustained by structural relationships…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/to-speak-of-certain-government-and-establishment-institutions-as-the/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [If a revolution destroys a systematic government, but the systematic patterns of thought that produced that government are left intact, then those patterns will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/if-a-revolution-destroys-a-systematic-government-but-the-systematic/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [The only Zen you can find on the tops of mountains is the Zen you bring up there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/the-only-zen-you-can-find-on-the-tops-of-mountains-is-the-zen-you/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [Only social patterns can control biological patterns, and the instrument of conversation between society and biology is not words. The instrument of conversation between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/only-social-patterns-can-control-biological-patterns-and-the/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [Even in the presence of others he was completely alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/even-in-the-presence-of-others-he-was-completely-alone/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) [Explore all 351 Robert M. Pirsig quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) ## More Education quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) Ted Martinez > [“In school you are taught to obey and not to think straight for your own good. Otherwise the world would be full of millionaires…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mwanandeke-kindembo/in-school-you-are-taught-to-obey-and-not-to-think-straight-for-your/) [Mwanandeke Kindembo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mwanandeke-kindembo/) > [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. It must be either new in itself or invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/for-successful-education-there-must-always-be-a-certain-freshness-in/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Where I grew up, learning was a collective activity. But when I got to school and tried to share learning with other students that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/where-i-grew-up-learning-was-a-collective-activity-but-when-i-got-to/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) > [There's no authoritarian structure at Reed College, but the education is conservative. So what you have is a lot of students who are very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/there-s-no-authoritarian-structure-at-reed-college-but-the-education/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [“What's the best thing about being in college? Good teachers. They inspire you, they entertain you, and you end up learning a ton even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/what-s-the-best-thing-about-being-in-college-good-teachers-they/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [“If one has not a head of steel it will burst; if he has not within it a brain of liquid quicksilver, he will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ioannes-amos-commenius/if-one-has-not-a-head-of-steel-it-will-burst-if-he-has-not-within-it/) Ioannes Amos Commenius > [“let us not teach / what we have learned badly / and not profited by”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-d-hilda-doolittle/let-us-not-teach-what-we-have-learned-badly-and-not-profited-by/) H.D. (Hilda Doolittle > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [According to Plato, we don't learn anything. Our soul has lived so many lives that we know everything. Teachers and education can only remind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/according-to-plato-we-don-t-learn-anything-our-soul-has-lived-so-many/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“I only began to enjoy studying after I got through the educational system and became a so-called member of society. If something interested me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-only-began-to-enjoy-studying-after-i-got-through-the-educational/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you had made the acquiring of ignorance the study of your life, you could not have graduated with higher honor than you could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/if-you-had-made-the-acquiring-of-ignorance-the-study-of-your-life-you/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [How wonderful it would be, I thought, if only we could practice the teachings of the Buddha as he really taught them from his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/how-wonderful-it-would-be-i-thought-if-only-we-could-practice-the/) [Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/) > [English teachers tend to put more thought in the books than the author did](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/english-teachers-tend-to-put-more-thought-in-the-books-than-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When will society, like a mother, take care of all her children?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-mann/when-will-society-like-a-mother-take-care-of-all-her-children/) [Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/) [Browse all 37,666 Education quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“As a result of his experiments he concluded that imitation was a real evil that had to be broken before real rhetoric teaching could begin. This imitation seemed to be an external compulsion. Little children didn’t have it. It seemed to come later on, possibly as a result of school itself. That sounded right, and the more he thought about it the more right it sounded. Schools teach you to imitate. If you don’t imitate what the teacher wants you get a bad grade. Here, in college, it was more sophisticated, of course; you were supposed to imitate the teacher in such a way as to convince the teacher you were not imitating, but taking the essence of the instruction and going ahead with it on your own. That got you A’s. Originality on the other hand could get you anything – from A to F. The whole grading system cautioned against it.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robert M. Pirsig" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/as-a-result-of-his-experiments-he-concluded-that-imitation-was-a-real/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Education" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/as-a-result-of-his-experiments-he-concluded-that-imitation-was-a-real/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d50/robert-m-pirsig-817_education_as-a-result-of-his-experiments-he-conclu_1054497.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d50/robert-m-pirsig-817_education_as-a-result-of-his-experiments-he-conclu_1054497.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d50/robert-m-pirsig-817_education_as-a-result-of-his-experiments-he-conclu_1054497.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“As a result of his experiments he concluded that imitation was a real evil that had to be broken before real…” — Robert M. Pirsig", "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 M. Pirsig", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“As a result of his experiments...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/as-a-result-of-his-experiments-he-concluded-that-imitation-was-a-real/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/as-a-result-of-his-experiments-he-concluded-that-imitation-was-a-real/#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 } } ] } ```