Absolute Quote by Thomas Huxley
“Every great advance in natural knowledge has involved the absolute rejection of authority.”
About This Quote
Source Book: The Origin of Species, 1859 (paraphrased)
Scientific progress requires rejecting established authority when evidence demands.
In simple terms: Science advances by questioning authority.
Key Takeaway
Question authority with evidence.
Themes
science
progress
authority
skepticism
Mood
analytical
inquisitive
Type
philosophical
educational
When to use this quote
- research
- education
- policy making
- innovation
Key Concepts
empiricism
critical thinking
paradigm shift
Questions to Reflect On
- When is it appropriate to trust authority?
- How to balance respect and critique?
A Different Perspective
Authority can provide useful frameworks.
![“The following of authority is the denial of intelligence. [It] may help us temporarily to cover up our difficulties and problems; but to avoid a problem is only to intensify it, and in the process, self-knowledge and freedom are abandoned.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/885/anonymous-1_abandoned_the-following-of-authority-is-the-denial_247202.jpg)
![“[All good research scientists understand that] no position is unassailable. There are no absolute truth in science. Authority counts for nothing when contradicted by nature.” quote by Brian Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/9da/brian-cox-8883_absolute-truth_all-good-research-scientists-understand_1936188.jpg)
![“Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this [step by step, from humans to apes to monkeys to lemurs] - leading us insensibly from the crown and summit of the animal creation down to creatures, from which there is but a step, as it seems, to the…” quote by Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/f0b/thomas-huxley-1183_animal_perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us_3051.jpg)
![“In the worldly life, due to maadakta (intoxication of the ego of ‘I am Chandubhai’), one has completely lost awareness of everything about one’s self. Everything in the worldly life is nothing but intoxication. The food is intoxicating, the senses are intoxicating. [Therefore] Go to the one, who…” quote by Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/2b3/dada-bhagwan-31_absolute_in-the-worldly-life-due-to-maadakta-into_3662.jpg)
