To starve a child of the spell of the story, of the canter of the poem, oral or written, is a kind of living burial. It is to immure him in emptiness.
George SteinerRead
It took 10 months for me to learn to tie a lace; I must have howled with rage and frustration. But one day I could tie my laces. That no one can take from you. I profoundly distrust the pedagogy of ease.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Learning can be a frustrating process, but mastering a skill is a personal achievement that no one can take away from you.
In this quote, George Steiner reflects on the intense struggle and frustration he faced while learning to tie his shoelaces, emphasizing that the journey of learning is often filled with challenges. He expresses a deep skepticism towards the idea that learning should be easy, suggesting that true mastery comes from hard work and perseverance, leading to a sense of personal accomplishment that is inherent and secure.
Themes
LearningMasteryFrustrationEducationPerseverance
In practice
Example use cases
In a motivational speech about personal growth and overcoming challenges.
More from George Steiner
All quotes →The most important tribute any human being can pay to a poem or a piece of prose he or she really loves is to learn it by heart. Not by brain, by heart; the expression is vital.
George SteinerRead
Every language is a world. Without translation, we would inhabit parishes bordering on silence.
George SteinerRead
I have every reason to believe that an individual man or woman fluent in several tongues seduces, possesses, remembers differently according to his or her use of the relevant language.
George SteinerRead
The letter kills the spirit. The written text is mute in the face of responding challenge. It does not admit of inward growth and correction. Text subverts the absolutely vital role of memory.
George SteinerRead
Books are in no hurry. An act of creation is in no hurry; it reads us, it privileges us infinitely. The notion that it is the occasion for our cleverness fills me with baffled bitterness and anger.
George SteinerRead
Similar quotes
I was very lucky to have a father who read to us when we were children. And he didn't just read books - he brought them alive. We couldn't wait for the next chapter. So my love of reading started early and has stayed with me all my life.
Camilla, Duchess Of CornwallRead
With better vision, we sacrifice for students for whom that sacrifice will most likely pay off. I'm sorry to say this, but there are times when even superhuman effort will not save a child from his environment or himself. It's not the job of the teacher to save a child's soul; it is the teachers' job to provide an opportunity for the child to save his own soul.
Rafe EsquithRead
Many books that tell you how to achieve come from a privileged position. If you can't see yourself in the advice, how can you use it?
Stacey AbramsRead
Although the teachers or the students are not the same, the person in charge of education is being formed or re-formed as he/she teaches, and the person who is being taught forms him/herself in the process. ...There is, in fact, no teaching without learning.
Paulo FreireRead
It is time to recognize conventional MBA programs for what they are - or else to close them down. They are specialized training in the functions of business, not general educating in the practice of management.
Henry MintzbergRead
One of the biggest ways to level the playing field is to give all young people the same context on what opportunities are out there. And that means touching on some of the questions that are a little taboo in society: How much money do you make? What are your stresses? What would you do differently if you could?
Sal KhanRead