---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I turn to history not for lessons but to…"
description: "\"I turn to history not for lessons but to confront my experience with the experience of others and to win for myself a sense of responsibility for the s..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bb/zbigniew-herbert-23947_conscience_i-turn-to-history-not-for-lessons-but-to_2640575.png"
---

#  I turn to history not for lessons but to confront my…

![“I turn to history not for lessons but to confront my experience with the experience of others and to win for myself a sense of responsibility for the state of the human conscience.” quote by Zbigniew Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bb/zbigniew-herbert-23947_conscience_i-turn-to-history-not-for-lessons-but-to_2640575.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bb/zbigniew-herbert-23947_conscience_i-turn-to-history-not-for-lessons-but-to_2640575.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bb/zbigniew-herbert-23947_conscience_i-turn-to-history-not-for-lessons-but-to_2640575.png)

> “I turn to history not for lessons but to confront my experience with the experience of others and to win for myself a sense of responsibility for the state of the human conscience.”

[Zbigniew Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-herbert/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Uses history as a mirror to confront personal experience and assume moral responsibility for humanity.

**In simple terms:** History helps us confront personal and collective duty.

Key Takeaway

Learn from past to act responsibly today.

Themes

history responsibility conscience humanity

Mood

thoughtful inspirational

Type

philosophical practical

When to use this quote

- education
- activism
- personal growth

Key Concepts

ethics philosophy

Questions to Reflect On

- What personal lessons does history reveal?
- How can we act responsibly now?

A Different Perspective

Historical lessons can be misused.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Conscience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscience/) [Ethics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethics/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Lessons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lessons/) [Responsibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/responsibility/) [Sense of responsibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sense-of-responsibility/) [Winning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/winning/)

## Related quotes

> [I like the feeling of being able to confront an experience and resolve it as art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eudora-welty/i-like-the-feeling-of-being-able-to-confront-an-experience-and/)

[Eudora Welty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eudora-welty/)

> [“we must be willing to confront and experience the discomfort that accompanies internal change. Only then will we be able to live freely.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-lynn-andrews/we-must-be-willing-to-confront-and-experience-the-discomfort-that/)

Amy Lynn Andrews

> [If people could learn history, what lessons it might teach us!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-taylor-coleridge/if-people-could-learn-history-what-lessons-it-might-teach-us/)

[Samuel Taylor Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-taylor-coleridge/)

> [“some of history’s lessons here with respect to writing should be obvious: make a copy; back up your data; and beware of invaders.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-carroll/some-of-history-s-lessons-here-with-respect-to-writing-should-be/)

Brian Carroll

> [I was determined to achieve the total freedom that our history lessons...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosa-parks/i-was-determined-to-achieve-the-total-freedom-that-our-history-lessons/)

[Rosa Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosa-parks/)

> [If men could learn from history, what lessons it might teach us. But passion and party blind our eyes, and the light which experience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-taylor-coleridge/if-men-could-learn-from-history-what-lessons-it-might-teach-us-but/)

[Samuel Taylor Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-taylor-coleridge/)

> [“History lessons were superficial. The past was not set in stone, and was occasionally rewritten.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hyeonseo-lee/history-lessons-were-superficial-the-past-was-not-set-in-stone-and/)

[Hyeonseo Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hyeonseo-lee/)

> [I was determined to achieve the total freedom that our history lessons taught us we were entitled to, no matter what the sacrifice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosabeth-moss-kanter/i-was-determined-to-achieve-the-total-freedom-that-our-history/)

[Rosabeth Moss Kanter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosabeth-moss-kanter/)

> [“History's lessons don't expire after a few decades.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/history-s-lessons-don-t-expire-after-a-few-decades/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I've found that once people are introduced to Madam Walker's story, they are inspired but also perplexed about why she was omitted from their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-lelia-bundles/i-ve-found-that-once-people-are-introduced-to-madam-walker-s-story/)

[A'Lelia Bundles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-lelia-bundles/)

> [Music is part of history, and our history has lessons that cannot be separated from our greatest music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mstislav-rostropovich/music-is-part-of-history-and-our-history-has-lessons-that-cannot-be/)

[Mstislav Rostropovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mstislav-rostropovich/)

> [“The biggest challenge facing the great teachers and communicators of history is not to teach history itself, nor even the lessons of history, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/the-biggest-challenge-facing-the-great-teachers-and-communicators-of/)

[Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/)

> [History is full of lessons for how water crises could have been avoided or better managed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-angel-gurria/history-is-full-of-lessons-for-how-water-crises-could-have-been/)

[Jose Angel Gurria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-angel-gurria/)

> [Time after time mankind is driven against the rocks of the horrid reality of a fallen creation. And time after time mankind must learn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilaire-belloc/time-after-time-mankind-is-driven-against-the-rocks-of-the-horrid/)

[Hilaire Belloc](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilaire-belloc/)

> [Those who ignore history's lessons in the ultimate folly of war are forced to do more than relive them ... they may be forced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-simmons/those-who-ignore-history-s-lessons-in-the-ultimate-folly-of-war-are/)

[Dan Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-simmons/)

## More by Zbigniew Herbert

> [“We fall asleep on words / we wake among words”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/we-fall-asleep-on-words-we-wake-among-words/)

[Zbigniew Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-herbert/)

> [Inanimate objects are always correct and cannot, unfortunately, be reproached with anything. I have never observed a chair shift from one foot to another,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/inanimate-objects-are-always-correct-and-cannot-unfortunately-be/)

[Zbigniew Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-herbert/)

> [“Ubrzo sam shvatio da u meni postoje dva Akropolja, dnevni i noćni. Prvi je bio analitičan, s vodičevom glavom. Provera plana, istraživanje strukture celine,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/ubrzo-sam-shvatio-da-u-meni-postoje-dva-akropolja-dnevni-i-no-ni-prvi/)

[Zbigniew Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-herbert/)

> [The dead have need of fairy tales too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/the-dead-have-need-of-fairy-tales-too/)

[Zbigniew Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-herbert/)

> [“Grčki pejzaž mi se obratio patetičnim glasom mita i tragedije. Bio je to dominantan utisak. Nametljivo prisustvo gole zemlje, veoma izreckanih stenovitih masa, pojačano…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/gr-ki-pejza-mi-se-obratio-pateti-nim-glasom-mita-i-tragedije-bio-je/)

[Zbigniew Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-herbert/)

> [And if the City falls and one survives he shall carry the City within on the roads of exile he shall be the City](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/and-if-the-city-falls-and-one-survives-he-shall-carry-the-city-within/)

[Zbigniew Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-herbert/)

> [“A craftsman must probe to the very bottom of cruelty.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/a-craftsman-must-probe-to-the-very-bottom-of-cruelty/)

[Zbigniew Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-herbert/)

> [Be courageous when the mind deceives you Be courageous In the final account only this is important](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/be-courageous-when-the-mind-deceives-you-be-courageous-in-the-final/)

[Zbigniew Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-herbert/)

> [“when the Lord built the world he furrowed his brow calculated calculated calculated that is why the world is perfect and uninhabitable instead the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/when-the-lord-built-the-world-he-furrowed-his-brow-calculated/)

[Zbigniew Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-herbert/)

> [I could write a treatise on the sudden transformation of life into archaeology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/i-could-write-a-treatise-on-the-sudden-transformation-of-life-into/)

[Zbigniew Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-herbert/)

> [Even if we love someone very much, at times it happens that we forget about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/even-if-we-love-someone-very-much-at-times-it-happens-that-we-forget/)

[Zbigniew Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-herbert/)

> [“Sa teme pejzaža pero mi je često klizilo u oblast legendi i istorije. Tu vezu koja postoji između pejzaža Grčke, njene umetnosti i verovanja…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/sa-teme-pejza-a-pero-mi-je-esto-klizilo-u-oblast-legendi-i-istorije/)

[Zbigniew Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-herbert/)

> [Study the world's skin before you set out to look for its heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/study-the-world-s-skin-before-you-set-out-to-look-for-its-heart/)

[Zbigniew Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-herbert/)

> [“Svoje dogodovštine zabavno opisuje engleski crtač Edvard Dodvel. Radio je na Akropolju, koristeći camera obscura - prototip fotografskog aparata koji je davao umanjenu sliku…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/svoje-dogodov-tine-zabavno-opisuje-engleski-crta-edvard-dodvel-radio/)

[Zbigniew Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-herbert/)

> [forgive me also that I didn't fight like Lord Byron for the happiness of captive peoples that I watched only risings of the moon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/forgive-me-also-that-i-didn-t-fight-like-lord-byron-for-the-happiness/)

[Zbigniew Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-herbert/)

[Explore all 23 Zbigniew Herbert quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-herbert/)

## More Conscience quotes

> [Self-respect and a clear conscience are powerful components of integrity and are the basis for enriching your relationships with others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-waitley/self-respect-and-a-clear-conscience-are-powerful-components-of/)

[Denis Waitley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-waitley/)

> [“Knowledge without conscience is but the ruin of the soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabelaise/knowledge-without-conscience-is-but-the-ruin-of-the-soul/)

Rabelaise

> [Writing adds up to the conscience of our times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-firrell/writing-adds-up-to-the-conscience-of-our-times/)

[Martin Firrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-firrell/)

> [My conscience is really active. So I feel bad about spending excess amount of money on things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/syd/my-conscience-is-really-active-so-i-feel-bad-about-spending-excess/)

[Syd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/syd/)

> [Let us be thankful for health and competence, and, above all, for a quiet conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/izaak-walton/let-us-be-thankful-for-health-and-competence-and-above-all-for-a/)

[Izaak Walton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/izaak-walton/)

> [Making money doesn't oblige people to forfeit their honor or their conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-de-rothschild/making-money-doesn-t-oblige-people-to-forfeit-their-honor-or-their/)

[Guy de Rothschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-de-rothschild/)

> [“If we cannot be happy and powerful and prey on others, we invent conscience and prey on ourselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/if-we-cannot-be-happy-and-powerful-and-prey-on-others-we-invent/)

[Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/)

> [The God in whose hands are all our days and ways, did cast into my hand one day a book of Martin Luthers; it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bunyan/the-god-in-whose-hands-are-all-our-days-and-ways-did-cast-into-my/)

[John Bunyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bunyan/)

> [My morals are important to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-parrish/my-morals-are-important-to-me/)

[Hunter Parrish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-parrish/)

> [Being tolerant does not mean that I share another ones belief. But it does mean that I acknowledge another ones right to believe, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viktor-frankl/being-tolerant-does-not-mean-that-i-share-another-ones-belief-but-it/)

[Viktor Frankl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viktor-frankl/)

> [Never can true courage dwell with them, Who, playing tricks with conscience, dare not look At their own vices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-taylor-coleridge/never-can-true-courage-dwell-with-them-who-playing-tricks-with/)

[Samuel Taylor Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-taylor-coleridge/)

> [In presenting a mathematical argument the great thing is to give the educated reader the chance to catch on at once to the momentary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-edensor-littlewood/in-presenting-a-mathematical-argument-the-great-thing-is-to-give-the/)

[John Edensor Littlewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-edensor-littlewood/)

> [I've worked with people who are much further to the left than I am and much further to the right than I am. At…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/i-ve-worked-with-people-who-are-much-further-to-the-left-than-i-am/)

[Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/)

> [If all the world hated you and believed you wicked, while your own conscience approved of you and absolved you from guilt, you would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/if-all-the-world-hated-you-and-believed-you-wicked-while-your-own/)

[Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/)

> [ \[D\]on't grow old. With age comes caution, which is another name for cowardice… Whatever else you do in life, don't cultivate a conscience. Without… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hesketh-pearson/d-on-t-grow-old-with-age-comes-caution-which-is-another-name-for/)

[Hesketh Pearson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hesketh-pearson/)

[Browse all 3,490 Conscience quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscience/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I turn to history not for lessons but to confront my experience with the experience of others and to win for myself a sense of responsibility for the state of the human conscience.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Zbigniew Herbert"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/i-turn-to-history-not-for-lessons-but-to-confront-my-experience-with/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Conscience"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/i-turn-to-history-not-for-lessons-but-to-confront-my-experience-with/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bb/zbigniew-herbert-23947_conscience_i-turn-to-history-not-for-lessons-but-to_2640575.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bb/zbigniew-herbert-23947_conscience_i-turn-to-history-not-for-lessons-but-to_2640575.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bb/zbigniew-herbert-23947_conscience_i-turn-to-history-not-for-lessons-but-to_2640575.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I turn to history not for lessons but to confront my experience with the experience of others and to win for…” — Zbigniew Herbert",
                "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": "Zbigniew Herbert",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-herbert/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I turn to history not for...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/i-turn-to-history-not-for-lessons-but-to-confront-my-experience-with/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-herbert/i-turn-to-history-not-for-lessons-but-to-confront-my-experience-with/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```