The Greeks possessed a knowledge of human nature we seem hardly able to attain to without passing through the strengthening hibernation of a new barbarism.
Georg C. LichtenbergRead
Many things about our bodies would not seem to us so filthy and obscene if we did not have the idea of nobility in our heads.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Our perceptions of our bodies are influenced by societal notions of nobility, affecting how we view their natural aspects.
Georg C. Lichtenberg's quote reflects on the human tendency to associate cleanliness and purity with nobility, suggesting that our judgments about what is considered 'filthy' or 'obscene' are largely shaped by societal ideals. Without these imposed values, we might see our bodies in a more natural and accepting light, free from the stigmas and taboos that often surround the human condition. Thus, it raises questions about how cultural constructs can distort our perceptions of our own humanity.
Themes
BodiesNobilityPerceptionSocietyJudgment
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be shared during a discussion about body positivity and societal standards.
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The thoughts written on the walls of madhouses by their inmates might be worth publicizing.
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The noble simplicity in the works of nature only too often originates in the noble shortsightedness of him who observes it.
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Food probably has a very great influence on the condition of men. Wine exercises a more visible influence, food does it more slowly but perhaps just as surely. Who knows if a well-prepared soup was not responsible for the pneumatic pump or a poor one for a war?
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He who says he hates every kind of flattery, and says it in earnest, certainly does not yet know every kind of flattery.
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