The task of a university is the creation of the future, so far as rational thought and civilized modes of appreciation can affect the issue.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Thought, Civilized, Issue, Modes
No period of history has ever been great or ever can be that does not act on some sort of high, idealistic motives, and idealism in our time has been shoved aside, and we are paying the penalty for it.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Some, Been, Period, Idealistic
Human life is driven forward by its dim apprehension of notions too general for its existing language.
- Alfred North Whitehead
General, Existing, Notions, Apprehension
I have suffered a great deal from writers who have quoted this or that sentence of mine either out of its context or in juxtaposition to some incongruous matter which quite distorted my meaning, or destroyed it altogether.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Matter, Some, Deal, Context
In formal logic, a contradiction is the signal of defeat, but in the evolution of real knowledge it marks the first step in progress toward a victory.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Victory, Evolution, Real, Signal
Almost all new ideas have a certain aspect of foolishness when they are first produced.
- Alfred North Whitehead
New, Almost All, Almost, New Ideas
Fools act on imagination without knowledge, pedants act on knowledge without imagination.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Imagination, Act, Without, Fools
Art attracts us only by what it reveals of our most secret self.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Art, Only, Most, Attracts
Common sense is genius in homespun.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Genius, Common, Sense, Common Sense
Intelligence is quickness to apprehend as distinct form ability, which is capacity to act wisely on the thing apprehended.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Act, Which, Apprehend, Wisely
What is morality in any given time or place? It is what the majority then and there happen to like and immorality is what they dislike.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Happen, Like, Given, Any Given Time
The vitality of thought is in adventure. Ideas won't keep. Something must be done about them. When the idea is new, its custodians have fervor, live for it, and if need be, die for it.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Thought, Die, New, Custodian
No one who achieves success does so without acknowledging the help of others. The wise and confident acknowledge this help with gratitude.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Thankful, Confident, Without, Acknowledging
Man can acquire accomplishments or he can become an animal, whichever he wants. God makes the animals, man makes himself.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Animal, Himself, Makes, Accomplishments
Every philosophy is tinged with the coloring of some secret imaginative background, which never emerges explicitly into its train of reasoning.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Some, Which, Explicitly, Train
Familiar things happen, and mankind does not bother about them. It requires a very unusual mind to undertake the analysis of the obvious.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Mind, Happen, Very, Familiar Things
Philosophy begins in wonder. And, at the end, when philosophic thought has done its best, the wonder remains.
- Alfred North Whitehead
End, Thought, Begins, Philosophic
Civilizations can only be understood by those who are civilized.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Only, Civilized, Understood
It is in literature that the concrete outlook of humanity receives its expression.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Literature, Concrete, Receives
Periods of tranquility are seldom prolific of creative achievement. Mankind has to be stirred up.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Mankind, Seldom, Prolific, Tranquility
The art of progress is to preserve order amid change and to preserve change amid order.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Change, Art, Progress, Order
An enormous part of our mature experience cannot not be expressed in words.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Words, Mature, Part, Expressed
True courage is not the brutal force of vulgar heroes, but the firm resolve of virtue and reason.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Courage, Reason, Firm, True Courage
Wisdom alone is true ambition's aim, wisdom is the source of virtue and of fame; obtained with labour, for mankind employed, and then, when most you share it, best enjoyed.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Best, Aim, Mankind, Obtained
Religion is the last refuge of human savagery.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Human, Last, Refuge, Savagery
I have always noticed that deeply and truly religious persons are fond of a joke, and I am suspicious of those who aren't.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Always, Religious, Noticed, Fond
If a dog jumps into your lap, it is because he is fond of you; but if a cat does the same thing, it is because your lap is warmer.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Pet, Same Thing, Jumps, Fond
Speech is human nature itself, with none of the artificiality of written language.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Nature, Speech, Itself, Human Nature
The total absence of humor from the Bible is one of the most singular things in all literature.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Literature, Most, Total, Singular
The absolute pacifist is a bad citizen; times come when force must be used to uphold right, justice and ideals.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Bad, Citizen, Ideals, Uphold
Simple solutions seldom are. It takes a very unusual mind to undertake analysis of the obvious.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Mind, Very, Undertake, Unusual
It requires a very unusual mind to undertake the analysis of the obvious.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Mind, Very, Undertake, Unusual
The safest general characterization of the European philosophical tradition is that it consists of a series of footnotes to Plato.
- Alfred North Whitehead
General, Series, European, Philosophical
Life is an offensive, directed against the repetitious mechanism of the Universe.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Against, Offensive, Directed, Mechanism
But you can catch yourself entertaining habitually certain ideas and setting others aside; and that, I think, is where our personal destinies are largely decided.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Think, I Think, Entertaining, Destinies
When you're average, you're just as close to the bottom as you are the top.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Top, Average, Bottom, Close
Philosophy is the product of wonder.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Philosophy, Product, Wonder
Civilization advances by extending the number of important operations which we can perform without thinking of them.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Technology, Important, Which, Operations
We think in generalities, but we live in detail.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Live, Think, Generalities, Detail
Fundamental progress has to do with the reinterpretation of basic ideas.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Progress, Ideas, Fundamental, Basic
It is the business of the future to be dangerous; and it is among the merits of science that it equips the future for its duties.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Business, Future, Among, Merits
Knowledge shrinks as wisdom grows.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Wisdom, Knowledge, Grows, Shrinks
Without adventure civilization is in full decay.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Adventure, Civilization, Decay
Speak out in acts; the time for words has passed, and only deeds will suffice.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Words, Will, Deeds, Suffice
Art flourishes where there is a sense of adventure.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Adventure, Art, Where, Flourishes
Our minds are finite, and yet even in these circumstances of finitude we are surrounded by possibilities that are infinite, and the purpose of life is to grasp as much as we can out of that infinitude.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Possibilities, Surrounded, Finite
I would be a billionaire if I was looking to be a selfish boss. That's not me.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Boss, Selfish, Would, Billionaire
The deepest definition of youth is life as yet untouched by tragedy.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Tragedy, Deepest, Definition, Untouched
It takes an extraordinary intelligence to contemplate the obvious.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Extraordinary, Contemplate, Obvious
Seek simplicity but distrust it.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Simplicity, Seek, Distrust
The guiding motto in the life of every natural philosopher should be, seek simplicity and distrust it.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Natural, Philosopher, Distrust
There are no whole truths: all truths are half-truths. It is trying to treat them as whole truths that plays to the devil.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Treat, Trying, Plays, Devil
The silly question is the first intimation of some totally new development.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Development, New, Some, Silly
Art is the imposing of a pattern on experience, and our aesthetic enjoyment is recognition of the pattern.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Art, Aesthetic, Imposing, Recognition
Ideas won't keep; something must be done about them.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Keep, Must, About, Ideas
Everything of importance has been said before by somebody who did not discover it.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Discover, Been, Before, Importance
Not ignorance, but ignorance of ignorance, is the death of knowledge.
- Alfred North Whitehead
Knowledge, Death, Ignorance
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