The phoenix hope, can wing her way through the desert skies, and still defying fortune's spite; revive from ashes and rise.
Miguel De CervantesRead
For historians ought to be precise, truthful, and quite unprejudiced, and neither interest nor fear, hatred nor affection, should cause them to swerve from the path of truth, whose mother is history, the rival of time, the depository of great actions, the witness of what is past, the example and instruction of the present, the monitor of the future.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Historians must approach their work with objectivity and integrity, ensuring that truth prevails over personal biases.
In this quote, Cervantes emphasizes the vital role of historians in crafting an accurate account of events. He asserts that historians must remain impartial, free from personal interests or emotions that could distort their representation of the past. This commitment to truthful storytelling is crucial, as history serves not only as a record of past actions but also as a guide for both present understanding and future decisions.
Themes
HistoryTruthObjectivityPrecisionHindsight
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about the importance of education, one might say, 'As Cervantes reminds us, historians must be precise and truthful to guide our learning today.'
More from Miguel De Cervantes
All quotes →Patience and shuffle the cards.
Miguel De CervantesRead
It's up to brave hearts, sir, to be patient when things are going badly, as well as being happy when they're going well ... For I've heard that what they call fortune is a flighty woman who drinks too much, and, what's more, she's blind, so she can't see what she's doing, and she doesn't know who she's knocking over or who she's raising up.
Miguel De CervantesRead
When the head aches, all the members partake of the pain.
Miguel De CervantesRead
Though Gods attributes are equal, yet his mercy is more attractive and pleasing in our eyes than his justice.
Miguel De CervantesRead
If you are ambitious of climbing up to the difficult, and in a manner inaccessible, summit of the Temple of Fame, your surest way is to leave on one hand the narrow path of Poetry, and follow the narrower track of Knight-Errantry, which in a trice may raise you to an imperial throne.
Miguel De CervantesRead
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