--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I hear any man talk of an…" description: "\"When I hear any man talk of an unalterable law, the only effect it produces on me is to convince me that he is an unalterable fool\" — Sydney Smith" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b92/sydney-smith-6523_convince_when-i-hear-any-man-talk-of-an-unalterab_1720638.png" --- # When I hear any man talk of an unalterable law, the only… ![“When I hear any man talk of an unalterable law, the only effect it produces on me is to convince me that he is an unalterable fool” quote by Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b92/sydney-smith-6523_convince_when-i-hear-any-man-talk-of-an-unalterab_1720638.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b92/sydney-smith-6523_convince_when-i-hear-any-man-talk-of-an-unalterab_1720638.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b92/sydney-smith-6523_convince_when-i-hear-any-man-talk-of-an-unalterab_1720638.png) > “When I hear any man talk of an unalterable law, the only effect it produces on me is to convince me that he is an unalterable fool” [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Claims of unchangeable laws reveal the speaker's rigidity and foolishness. **In simple terms:** Unchangeable laws expose folly. Key Takeaway Question absolute statements. Themes logic humor philosophy Mood skeptical witty Type philosophical satirical When to use this quote - debates - academic discussions - policy analysis Key Concepts critical thinking skepticism Questions to Reflect On - When have you encountered an unalterable rule? - How do you balance flexibility with consistency? A Different Perspective Some laws are indeed immutable, like physical constants. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fool/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Religious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religious/) ## Related quotes > [“...inequality was the unalterable law of human life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/inequality-was-the-unalterable-law-of-human-life/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“...and to know that things never had been, nor ever could be much better or much worse–hunger, hardship, and disappointment being, so he said,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/and-to-know-that-things-never-had-been-nor-ever-could-be-much-better/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [The ultimate foundation of honor is the conviction that moral character is unalterable: a single bad action implies that future actions of the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/the-ultimate-foundation-of-honor-is-the-conviction-that-moral/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [Swim or sink, live or die, survive or perish with my country was my unalterable determination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-adams/swim-or-sink-live-or-die-survive-or-perish-with-my-country-was-my/) [John Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-adams/) > [Upon the glazen shelves kept watch Matthew and Waldo, guardians of the faith The army of unalterable law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/upon-the-glazen-shelves-kept-watch-matthew-and-waldo-guardians-of-the/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [Only old Benjamin professed to remember every detail of his long life and to know that things never had been, nor ever could be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/only-old-benjamin-professed-to-remember-every-detail-of-his-long-life/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Around the ancient track marched, rank on rank, The army of unalterable law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-meredith/around-the-ancient-track-marched-rank-on-rank-the-army-of-unalterable/) [George Meredith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-meredith/) > [ If I had to choose a motto for myself, I would take this one — pure, dure, sûre, \[Pure, hard, certain\] — in other… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/savitri-devi/if-i-had-to-choose-a-motto-for-myself-i-would-take-this-one-pure-dure/) [Savitri Devi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/savitri-devi/) > [“What can I say to convince you the Houses of Parliament dissolve night after night to become the fluid dream of the Thames? I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisel-mueller/what-can-i-say-to-convince-you-the-houses-of-parliament-dissolve/) [Lisel Mueller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisel-mueller/) > [The people on the QVC shopping channel convince me that life is worth living. They see the good in everything. People who go to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-vegas/the-people-on-the-qvc-shopping-channel-convince-me-that-life-is-worth/) [Johnny Vegas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-vegas/) > [Once you convince people that they're victims, you really own them because you've just told them that whatever problems they have in life, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/once-you-convince-people-that-they-re-victims-you-really-own-them/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [The first duty of a wise advocate is to convince his opponents that he understands their arguments, and sympathies with their just feelings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-taylor-coleridge/the-first-duty-of-a-wise-advocate-is-to-convince-his-opponents-that/) [Samuel Taylor Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-taylor-coleridge/) > [Jesus never met a disease he could not cure, a birth defect he could not reverse, a demon he could not exorcise. But he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/jesus-never-met-a-disease-he-could-not-cure-a-birth-defect-he-could/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [The privilege of prayer to me is one of the most cherished possessions, because faith and experience alike convince me that God himself sees…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilfred-grenfell/the-privilege-of-prayer-to-me-is-one-of-the-most-cherished/) [Wilfred Grenfell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilfred-grenfell/) > [“Sometimes we want something to be true so badly that we convince ourselves that it is true.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-lamb/sometimes-we-want-something-to-be-true-so-badly-that-we-convince/) [Wally Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-lamb/) ## More by Sydney Smith > [Live always in the best company when you read.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/live-always-in-the-best-company-when-you-read/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [Scotland: That garret of the earth - that knuckle-end of England - that land of Calvin, oatcakes, and sulfur.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/scotland-that-garret-of-the-earth-that-knuckle-end-of-england-that/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [My living in Yorkshire was so far out of the way, that it was eleven miles away from a lemon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/my-living-in-yorkshire-was-so-far-out-of-the-way-that-it-was-eleven/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [Poverty is no disgrace to a man, but it is confoundedly inconvenient](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/poverty-is-no-disgrace-to-a-man-but-it-is-confoundedly-inconvenient/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [A comfortable house is a great source of happiness. It ranks immediately after health and a good conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/a-comfortable-house-is-a-great-source-of-happiness-it-ranks/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [How can a bishop marry? How can he flirt? The most he can say is "I will see you in the vestry after service."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/how-can-a-bishop-marry-how-can-he-flirt-the-most-he-can-say-is-i-will/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [It is the greatest of all mistakes to do nothing because you can only do little - do what you can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/it-is-the-greatest-of-all-mistakes-to-do-nothing-because-you-can-only/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [Silence is a girl's loudest shout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/silence-is-a-girl-s-loudest-shout/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [A great deal of talent is lost to the world for want of a little courage. Every day sends to their graves obscure men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/a-great-deal-of-talent-is-lost-to-the-world-for-want-of-a-little/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [A man who wishes to make his way in life could do no better than go through the world with a boiling tea-kettle in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/a-man-who-wishes-to-make-his-way-in-life-could-do-no-better-than-go/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [ \[T\]he 47th proposition in Euclid might now be voted down with as much ease as any proposition in politics; and therefore if Lord Hawkesbury… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/t-he-47th-proposition-in-euclid-might-now-be-voted-down-with-as-much/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [Be what nature intended you for, and you will succeed; be anything else and you will be ten thousand times worse than nothing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/be-what-nature-intended-you-for-and-you-will-succeed-be-anything-else/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [To business that we love we rise bedtime, and go to't with delight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/to-business-that-we-love-we-rise-bedtime-and-go-to-t-with-delight/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [The schoolboy whips his taxed top; the beardless youth manages his taxed horse with a taxed bridle on a taxed road; and the dying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/the-schoolboy-whips-his-taxed-top-the-beardless-youth-manages-his/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [I always fear that creation will expire before teatime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/i-always-fear-that-creation-will-expire-before-teatime/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) [Explore all 98 Sydney Smith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) ## More Convince quotes > [“Sometimes we want something to be true so badly that we convince ourselves that it is true.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-lamb/sometimes-we-want-something-to-be-true-so-badly-that-we-convince/) [Wally Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-lamb/) > [The privilege of prayer to me is one of the most cherished possessions, because faith and experience alike convince me that God himself sees…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilfred-grenfell/the-privilege-of-prayer-to-me-is-one-of-the-most-cherished/) [Wilfred Grenfell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilfred-grenfell/) > [Jesus never met a disease he could not cure, a birth defect he could not reverse, a demon he could not exorcise. But he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/jesus-never-met-a-disease-he-could-not-cure-a-birth-defect-he-could/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [The first duty of a wise advocate is to convince his opponents that he understands their arguments, and sympathies with their just feelings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-taylor-coleridge/the-first-duty-of-a-wise-advocate-is-to-convince-his-opponents-that/) [Samuel Taylor Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-taylor-coleridge/) > [Once you convince people that they're victims, you really own them because you've just told them that whatever problems they have in life, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/once-you-convince-people-that-they-re-victims-you-really-own-them/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [The people on the QVC shopping channel convince me that life is worth living. They see the good in everything. People who go to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-vegas/the-people-on-the-qvc-shopping-channel-convince-me-that-life-is-worth/) [Johnny Vegas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-vegas/) > [“What can I say to convince you the Houses of Parliament dissolve night after night to become the fluid dream of the Thames? I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisel-mueller/what-can-i-say-to-convince-you-the-houses-of-parliament-dissolve/) [Lisel Mueller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisel-mueller/) > [Human beings have the incredible capacity for denial. I think they do. And although it's really hard to believe, I have my doubts. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-byrne/human-beings-have-the-incredible-capacity-for-denial-i-think-they-do/) [David Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-byrne/) > [“If you can convince yourself, you can convince the other fellow,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-sanders/if-you-can-convince-yourself-you-can-convince-the-other-fellow/) [Tim Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-sanders/) > [Don't lie to yourself about what you can't or can achieve. Convince yourself on a realistic level that you can do it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-lie-to-yourself-about-what-you-can-t-or-can-achieve-convince/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Don't ever let anyone convince you that your imagination is wrong.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giuseppe-bianco/don-t-ever-let-anyone-convince-you-that-your-imagination-is-wrong/) [Giuseppe Bianco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giuseppe-bianco/) > [It's hard to convince your agents and managers to do theater, because it's not as financially rewarding and it takes up a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-helberg/it-s-hard-to-convince-your-agents-and-managers-to-do-theater-because/) [Simon Helberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-helberg/) > [I guess that is the strange part of the human brain that people have studied for eons - is hatred and self-hatred. You can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trevor-noah/i-guess-that-is-the-strange-part-of-the-human-brain-that-people-have/) [Trevor Noah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trevor-noah/) > [I knew I shouldn't like him cause I know it's not working, and everybody tells me that, and I convince myself I don't... and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernajoy-vaal/i-knew-i-shouldn-t-like-him-cause-i-know-it-s-not-working-and/) [Bernajoy Vaal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernajoy-vaal/) > [The statesmen will invent cheap lies, putting the blame upon the nation that is attacked, and every man will be glad of those conscience-soothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-statesmen-will-invent-cheap-lies-putting-the-blame-upon-the/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) Browse all 1,431 Convince quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When I hear any man talk of an unalterable law, the only effect it produces on me is to convince me that he is an unalterable fool", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sydney Smith" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/when-i-hear-any-man-talk-of-an-unalterable-law-the-only-effect-it/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Convince" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/when-i-hear-any-man-talk-of-an-unalterable-law-the-only-effect-it/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b92/sydney-smith-6523_convince_when-i-hear-any-man-talk-of-an-unalterab_1720638.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b92/sydney-smith-6523_convince_when-i-hear-any-man-talk-of-an-unalterab_1720638.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b92/sydney-smith-6523_convince_when-i-hear-any-man-talk-of-an-unalterab_1720638.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When I hear any man talk of an unalterable law, the only effect it produces on me is to convince me that he…” — Sydney Smith", "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": "Sydney Smith", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When I hear any man talk...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/when-i-hear-any-man-talk-of-an-unalterable-law-the-only-effect-it/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/when-i-hear-any-man-talk-of-an-unalterable-law-the-only-effect-it/#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 } } ] } ```