Philosophical and Psychological Foundations of Education

QUOTATIONS BY TOPIC

WISDOM

If you are a wise man you will observe your pupil carefully before saying a word to him. ~ Jean Jacques Rousseau, Emile

On ne reçoit pas la sagesse, il faut la découvrir soi-même, après un trajet que personne ne peut faire pour nous, ne peut nous épargner. [One does not receive wisdom, it's necessary to discover it oneself, after a trip that no one can make for us, no one can spare us.] ~ Marcel Proust

He speaks little, because he has no desire to attract notice. For the same reason he only speaks about things that are of practical value, being too well informed ever to be a babbler. ~ Jean Jacques Rousseau, Emile

For while a wise man, as well as a just man and the rest, need the necessaries of life, when they are sufficiently equipped with things of that sort the just man needs people towards whom and with whom he shall act justly, and the temperate man, the brave man, and each of the others is in the same case, but the wise man, even when by himself, can contemplate truth, and the better the wiser he is; he can perhaps do so better if he has fellow-workers, but still he is the most self-sufficient. ~ Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics

Be simple and hold yourself in check, you zealous teachers. Never be in a hurry to act. So far as you can, refrain from a good instruction for fear of giving a bad one. ~ Jean Jacques Rousseau, Emile

I do not like explanatory speeches. Young people pay little attention to them and rarely remember them. Give them facts. I cannot say often enough that we allow too great power to words. With our babbling education we only make babblers. ~ Jean Jacques Rousseau, Emile

When it is only a matter of sailing against the wind it is enough to tack, but when the sea runs high and you want to stay where you are, you must throw out the anchor. ~ Jean Jacques Rousseau, Emile

In order that a child may acquire prudence, he must learn to disguise his feelings and to be reserved, while at the same time he learns to read the character of others. It is chiefly with regard to his own character that he must cultivate reserve. ~ Immanuel Kant, Thoughts on Education

The best athlete
wants his opponent at his best.
The best general
enters the mind of his enemy.
The best businessman
serves the communal good.
The best leader
follows the will of the people.

All of them embody
the virtue of non-competition.
Not that they don't love to compete,
but they do it in the spirit of play.
In this they are like children
and in harmony with the Tao.

~ Lao-tzu, Tao Te Ching

A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds. A great person does not have to think consistently from one day to the next. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson, “Self-Reliance”

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Last updated:
September 19, 2008 4:23 PM