--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: English is so hierarchical. In Cree, we…" description: "\"English is so hierarchical. In Cree, we don't have animate-inanimate comparisons between things. Animals have souls that are equal to ours. Rocks have ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/486/tomson-highway-40261_animal_english-is-so-hierarchical-in-cree-we-do_3172589.jpg" --- # English is so hierarchical. In Cree, we don't have… ![“English is so hierarchical. In Cree, we don't have animate-inanimate comparisons between things. Animals have souls that are equal to ours. Rocks have souls, trees have souls. Trees are 'who,' not 'what.” quote by Tomson Highway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/486/tomson-highway-40261_animal_english-is-so-hierarchical-in-cree-we-do_3172589.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/486/tomson-highway-40261_animal_english-is-so-hierarchical-in-cree-we-do_3172589.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/486/tomson-highway-40261_animal_english-is-so-hierarchical-in-cree-we-do_3172589.jpg) > “English is so hierarchical. In Cree, we don't have animate-inanimate comparisons between things. Animals have souls that are equal to ours. Rocks have souls, trees have souls. Trees are 'who,' not 'what.” [Tomson Highway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tomson-highway/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Cree language treats all beings as having equal spiritual status, rejecting hierarchical classifications of animate versus inanimate. **In simple terms:** Cree sees all things as spiritually equal. Key Takeaway Respect all beings equally. Themes eity spirituality language culture equality Mood reflective respectful Type philosophical cultural When to use this quote - environmental activism - intercultural dialogue - education - policy making Key Concepts Animism ontological equality Questions to Reflect On - How does language shape our view of nature? - What would change if we saw rocks as persons? A Different Perspective Cree perspectives may be oversimplified in mainstream discourse. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Comparison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comparison/) [Comparisons Things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comparisons-things-5780768/) [Cree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cree-796908/) [English Hierarchical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/english-hierarchical-5780767/) [Equal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/equal/) [Hierarchical Cree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hierarchical-cree-5780766/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Rocks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rocks/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) [Things Animals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-animals-548028/) [Tree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tree/) ## Related quotes > [“Tu cerebro no puede hacer lo que cree que no puede hacer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/tu-cerebro-no-puede-hacer-lo-que-cree-que-no-puede-hacer/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [“A veces uno se cree incompleto y es solamente joven.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/a-veces-uno-se-cree-incompleto-y-es-solamente-joven/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [“Only when the last tree is cut; only when the last river is polluted; only when the last fish is caught; only then will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-ross/only-when-the-last-tree-is-cut-only-when-the-last-river-is-polluted/) [Terry Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-ross/) > [When I need to cry, I think of very sad things, mostly about animals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quvenzhane-wallis/when-i-need-to-cry-i-think-of-very-sad-things-mostly-about-animals/) [Quvenzhane Wallis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quvenzhane-wallis/) > [Animals. 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And why, for that matter, should God?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tomson-highway/i-mean-if-native-languages-have-no-gender-then-why-should-we-and-why/) [Tomson Highway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tomson-highway/) > [“Don't mourn me. Be joyful.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tomson-highway/don-t-mourn-me-be-joyful/) [Tomson Highway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tomson-highway/) [Explore all 11 Tomson Highway quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tomson-highway/) ## More Animal quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [Animals know nothing of themselves, and they also know nothing of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/animals-know-nothing-of-themselves-and-they-also-know-nothing-of-the/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Humans are animals too, but some do not like to work from expectations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/humans-are-animals-too-but-some-do-not-like-to-work-from-expectations/) [Mak\_786](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mak-786/) > [When grubbing for necessities man is still an animal. He becomes uniquely human when he reaches out for the superfluous and extravagant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/when-grubbing-for-necessities-man-is-still-an-animal-he-becomes/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [I'm 38 and I'm single, and I'm having my most intense and gratifying relationship with a dog. But we all learn about love in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-knapp/i-m-38-and-i-m-single-and-i-m-having-my-most-intense-and-gratifying/) [Caroline Knapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-knapp/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/a-horse-a-horse-my-kingdom-for-a-horse/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“it is a federal system of sadistic torture, vivisection, and animal genocide, which has been carried on for decades under the fraudulent guise of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tobias/it-is-a-federal-system-of-sadistic-torture-vivisection-and-animal/) [Michael Tobias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tobias/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? 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It makes no sense. None whatsoever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/animal-rights-without-veganism-is-like-human-rights-with-slavery-it/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) [Browse all 13,456 Animal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "English is so hierarchical. In Cree, we don't have animate-inanimate comparisons between things. Animals have souls that are equal to ours. Rocks have souls, trees have souls. 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