--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: ...people have always known, at least…" description: "\"...people have always known, at least since Moses denounced the Golden Calf, that images were dangerous, that they can captivate the onlooker and steal..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8e/william-j-mitchell-31611_calves_people-have-always-known-at-least-since_1315840.jpg" --- # ...people have always known, at least since Moses… ![“...people have always known, at least since Moses denounced the Golden Calf, that images were dangerous, that they can captivate the onlooker and steal the soul.” quote by William J. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8e/william-j-mitchell-31611_calves_people-have-always-known-at-least-since_1315840.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8e/william-j-mitchell-31611_calves_people-have-always-known-at-least-since_1315840.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8e/william-j-mitchell-31611_calves_people-have-always-known-at-least-since_1315840.jpg) > “...people have always known, at least since Moses denounced the Golden Calf, that images were dangerous, that they can captivate the onlooker and steal the soul.” [William J. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-mitchell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Images can captivate and manipulate, posing a danger to the viewer’s autonomy. **In simple terms:** Images can steal attention. Key Takeaway Critically evaluate visual media. Themes media visual culture manipulation Mood critical analytical Type philosophical educational When to use this quote - advertising - social media - film analysis Key Concepts attention economy visual rhetoric Questions to Reflect On - How do you guard against visual manipulation? - What role can images play positively? A Different Perspective Visual influence can be positive; context matters. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Moses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moses/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) ## Related quotes > [“I have found it an amusing strategy, when asked whether I am an atheist, to point out that the questioner is also an atheist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-have-found-it-an-amusing-strategy-when-asked-whether-i-am-an/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [I had a turbulent relationship with my calves, but I love them now because I realize that they were never the problem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iskra-lawrence/i-had-a-turbulent-relationship-with-my-calves-but-i-love-them-now/) [Iskra Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iskra-lawrence/) > [In college, girls would come up to me: 'I want your calves.' It just makes me laugh. I guess people pay a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-krieger/in-college-girls-would-come-up-to-me-i-want-your-calves-it-just-makes/) [Ali Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-krieger/) > [It would not do for the consumer to know that the hamburger she is eating came from a steer who spent much of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-sweet/it-would-not-do-for-the-consumer-to-know-that-the-hamburger-she-is/) [Leonard Sweet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-sweet/) > [I'm feeling alright, I am pretty happy with it. I was trying to catch her, around 37k my calf started to cramp on me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lanni-marchant/i-m-feeling-alright-i-am-pretty-happy-with-it-i-was-trying-to-catch/) Lanni Marchant > [...and we have so far improved upon the custom of Adam and Eve, that we generally furnish forth our feasts with a portion of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-hawthorne/and-we-have-so-far-improved-upon-the-custom-of-adam-and-eve-that-we/) [Nathaniel Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-hawthorne/) > [You know, I've lived a long time," he told me, massaging my calf more firmly now. "And I met a lot of people. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-chance/you-know-i-ve-lived-a-long-time-he-told-me-massaging-my-calf-more/) [Karen Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-chance/) > [I don't know but a book in a man's brain is better off than a book bound in calf--at any rate it is safer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/i-don-t-know-but-a-book-in-a-man-s-brain-is-better-off-than-a-book/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [Everyone makes fun of my calves. They are so big. I don't really even like them, I don't really want them as big as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-krieger/everyone-makes-fun-of-my-calves-they-are-so-big-i-don-t-really-even/) [Ali Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-krieger/) > [America's critics can be heard everywhere. It is too much in love with money - worshipping the god of the marketplace, the golden calf.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-saatchi/america-s-critics-can-be-heard-everywhere-it-is-too-much-in-love-with/) [Maurice Saatchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-saatchi/) > [Calf love doesn't usually survive amputation, Your Majesty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-whalen-turner/calf-love-doesn-t-usually-survive-amputation-your-majesty/) [Megan Whalen Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-whalen-turner/) > [Mr. William Shakespeare was born at Stratford upon Avon in the county of Warwick. His father was a butcher, and I have been told…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-aubrey/mr-william-shakespeare-was-born-at-stratford-upon-avon-in-the-county/) [John Aubrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-aubrey/) > [Most calves used by the dairy industry have their horns BURNED or GOUGED out of their heads.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/casey-affleck/most-calves-used-by-the-dairy-industry-have-their-horns-burned-or/) [Casey Affleck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/casey-affleck/) > [Most women loathe limericks, for the same reason that calves hate cookbooks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gershon-legman/most-women-loathe-limericks-for-the-same-reason-that-calves-hate/) Gershon Legman > [“To protest about bullfighting in Spain, the eating of dogs in South Korea, or the slaughter of baby seals in Canada while continuing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/to-protest-about-bullfighting-in-spain-the-eating-of-dogs-in-south/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) ## More by William J. Mitchell > [ We \[MIT Smart Cities research group\] try to identify the fundamental underlying design assumptions that everybody takes as a sort of given and unchallengeable… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/we-mit-smart-cities-research-group-try-to-identify-the-fundamental/) [William J. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-mitchell/) > [Automobile is one of the most successful inventions of all time, but in my view, it is thoroughly obsolete already. And so by fundamentally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/automobile-is-one-of-the-most-successful-inventions-of-all-time-but/) [William J. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-mitchell/) > [Everybody thinks an automobile needs an engine. Well, an automobile doesn't necessarily need an engine. What we do is shift electric motors into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/everybody-thinks-an-automobile-needs-an-engine-well-an-automobile/) [William J. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-mitchell/) > [The relation of photography and language is a principal site of struggle for value and power in contemporary representations of reality; it is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/the-relation-of-photography-and-language-is-a-principal-site-of/) [William J. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-mitchell/) > [Most automobiles spend about 80 percent of their time sitting around doing nothing. They're gasoline powered; they go to very high speeds, which in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/most-automobiles-spend-about-80-percent-of-their-time-sitting-around/) [William J. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-mitchell/) > [Imagine a kind of system where you have lightweight electric vehicles relatively small battery capacity, and then picking up charge wherever they park. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/imagine-a-kind-of-system-where-you-have-lightweight-electric-vehicles/) [William J. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-mitchell/) > [That's not a utopian vision. It is a set of ideas that we think are important to discuss. Those ideas largely have to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/that-s-not-a-utopian-vision-it-is-a-set-of-ideas-that-we-think-are/) [William J. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-mitchell/) > [Photography is and is not a language; language also is and is not a photography.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/photography-is-and-is-not-a-language-language-also-is-and-is-not-a/) [William J. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-mitchell/) > [The essential characteristic of digital information is that it can be manipulated easily and very rapidly by computer... Computational tools for transforming, combining, altering,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/the-essential-characteristic-of-digital-information-is-that-it-can-be/) [William J. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-mitchell/) > [There is no magical solution because urban traffic congestion arises from the fact that a lot of people want to be in the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/there-is-no-magical-solution-because-urban-traffic-congestion-arises/) [William J. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-mitchell/) > [What we need is a critique of visual culture that is alert to the power of images for good and evil and that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/what-we-need-is-a-critique-of-visual-culture-that-is-alert-to-the/) [William J. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-mitchell/) > [Exile is a series of photographs without texts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/exile-is-a-series-of-photographs-without-texts/) [William J. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-mitchell/) > [We are surrounded by pictures; we have an abundance of theories about them, but it doesn't seem to do us any good. Knowing what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/we-are-surrounded-by-pictures-we-have-an-abundance-of-theories-about/) [William J. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-mitchell/) > [An interlude of false innocence has passed. Today, as we enter the post-photographic era, we must face once again the ineradicable fragility of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/an-interlude-of-false-innocence-has-passed-today-as-we-enter-the-post/) [William J. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-mitchell/) > [American cities are kind of difficult contexts to work in. They are politically complex. There are a lot of different interest groups. It takes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/american-cities-are-kind-of-difficult-contexts-to-work-in-they-are/) [William J. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-mitchell/) [Explore all 16 William J. Mitchell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-mitchell/) ## More Calves quotes > [“I have found it an amusing strategy, when asked whether I am an atheist, to point out that the questioner is also an atheist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-have-found-it-an-amusing-strategy-when-asked-whether-i-am-an/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Most women loathe limericks, for the same reason that calves hate cookbooks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gershon-legman/most-women-loathe-limericks-for-the-same-reason-that-calves-hate/) Gershon Legman > [Most calves used by the dairy industry have their horns BURNED or GOUGED out of their heads.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/casey-affleck/most-calves-used-by-the-dairy-industry-have-their-horns-burned-or/) [Casey Affleck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/casey-affleck/) > [Mr. William Shakespeare was born at Stratford upon Avon in the county of Warwick. His father was a butcher, and I have been told…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-aubrey/mr-william-shakespeare-was-born-at-stratford-upon-avon-in-the-county/) [John Aubrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-aubrey/) > [Calf love doesn't usually survive amputation, Your Majesty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-whalen-turner/calf-love-doesn-t-usually-survive-amputation-your-majesty/) [Megan Whalen Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-whalen-turner/) > [America's critics can be heard everywhere. It is too much in love with money - worshipping the god of the marketplace, the golden calf.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-saatchi/america-s-critics-can-be-heard-everywhere-it-is-too-much-in-love-with/) [Maurice Saatchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-saatchi/) > [Everyone makes fun of my calves. They are so big. I don't really even like them, I don't really want them as big as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-krieger/everyone-makes-fun-of-my-calves-they-are-so-big-i-don-t-really-even/) [Ali Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-krieger/) > [I don't know but a book in a man's brain is better off than a book bound in calf--at any rate it is safer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/i-don-t-know-but-a-book-in-a-man-s-brain-is-better-off-than-a-book/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [You know, I've lived a long time," he told me, massaging my calf more firmly now. "And I met a lot of people. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-chance/you-know-i-ve-lived-a-long-time-he-told-me-massaging-my-calf-more/) [Karen Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-chance/) > [...and we have so far improved upon the custom of Adam and Eve, that we generally furnish forth our feasts with a portion of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-hawthorne/and-we-have-so-far-improved-upon-the-custom-of-adam-and-eve-that-we/) [Nathaniel Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-hawthorne/) > [I'm feeling alright, I am pretty happy with it. I was trying to catch her, around 37k my calf started to cramp on me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lanni-marchant/i-m-feeling-alright-i-am-pretty-happy-with-it-i-was-trying-to-catch/) Lanni Marchant > [It would not do for the consumer to know that the hamburger she is eating came from a steer who spent much of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-sweet/it-would-not-do-for-the-consumer-to-know-that-the-hamburger-she-is/) [Leonard Sweet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-sweet/) > [In college, girls would come up to me: 'I want your calves.' It just makes me laugh. I guess people pay a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-krieger/in-college-girls-would-come-up-to-me-i-want-your-calves-it-just-makes/) [Ali Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-krieger/) > [I had a turbulent relationship with my calves, but I love them now because I realize that they were never the problem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iskra-lawrence/i-had-a-turbulent-relationship-with-my-calves-but-i-love-them-now/) [Iskra Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iskra-lawrence/) > [“To protest about bullfighting in Spain, the eating of dogs in South Korea, or the slaughter of baby seals in Canada while continuing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/to-protest-about-bullfighting-in-spain-the-eating-of-dogs-in-south/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) Browse all 130 Calves quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "...people have always known, at least since Moses denounced the Golden Calf, that images were dangerous, that they can captivate the onlooker and steal the soul.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William J. Mitchell" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/people-have-always-known-at-least-since-moses-denounced-the-golden/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Calves" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/people-have-always-known-at-least-since-moses-denounced-the-golden/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8e/william-j-mitchell-31611_calves_people-have-always-known-at-least-since_1315840.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8e/william-j-mitchell-31611_calves_people-have-always-known-at-least-since_1315840.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8e/william-j-mitchell-31611_calves_people-have-always-known-at-least-since_1315840.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“...people have always known, at least since Moses denounced the Golden Calf, that images were dangerous…” — William J. Mitchell", "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": "William J. Mitchell", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-mitchell/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "...people have always known, at least...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/people-have-always-known-at-least-since-moses-denounced-the-golden/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-mitchell/people-have-always-known-at-least-since-moses-denounced-the-golden/#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 } } ] } ```