There are many things which we can afford to forget which it is yet well to learn.
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.Read
If there is any principle of the Constitution that more imperatively calls for attachment than any other it is the principle of free thought, not free thought for those who agree with us but freedom for the thought that we hate.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the importance of protecting the freedom of thought, especially for ideas that we may disagree with or dislike.
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. argues that the essence of freedom of thought lies not just in protecting popular or agreeable ideas, but in safeguarding the rights to express even the most controversial or objectionable thoughts. He underscores that true liberty requires us to accept and protect beliefs that are contrary to our own, fostering a society where diverse ideas can coexist and flourish.
Themes
FreedomThoughtPrincipleConstitutionDisagreement
In practice
Example use cases
In a debate about censorship, this quote can illustrate the importance of allowing all voices to be heard, even if we disagree with them.
More from Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
All quotes →On the whole, I am on the side of the unregenerate who affirms the worth of life as an end in itself, as against the saints who deny it.
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.Read
If you don't know what you want, you will probably never get it.
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.Read
Why should you row a boat race? Why endure the long months of pain in preparation for a fierce half hour that will leave you all but dead? Does anyone ask the question? Is there anyone who would not go through all the costs, and more, for the moment when anguish breaks into triumph or even for the glory of having nobly lost? Is life less than a boat race? If a man will give the blood in his body to win the one, will he spend all the might of his soul to prevail in the other?
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.Read
The main part of intellectual education is not the acquisition of facts, but learning how to make facts live.
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.Read
Beware how you take away hope from another human being.
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.Read
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