Quotessence
Home / Authors / Arthur Koestler
Arthur Koestler

Arthur Koestler Quotes

Author

Filter quotes by topic

AllMenSelfMindIndividualSocietyIfsRealitySeemsTwoCreativityEndsFormHumansMayWorldBelieveDiscoveryMankindScienceSocial

Famous Arthur Koestler Quotes

“The integrative tendencies of the individual operate through the mechanisms of empathy, sympathy, projection, introjection, identification, worship- all of which make him feel that he is a part of some larger entity which transcends the boundaries of the individual self. This psychological urge to belong, to participate, to commune is as primary and real as its opposite. The all-important question is the nature of that higher entity of which the individual feels himself a part.”

FeelsImportantRealSelfIndividualSocietyHigherWorshipEmpathyOppositesBoundariesTendenciesPsychologicalPrimariesUrgesMechanismEntityProjectionIdentificationImportant QuestionsCommunes
Author:Arthur Koestler
Create image

“All "if" statements about the past are as dubious as prophecies of the future are. It seems fairly plausible that if Alexander or Ghengis Khan had never been born, some other individual would have filled his place and executed the design of the Hellenic or Mongolic expansion; but the Alexanders of philosophy and religion, of science and art, seem less expendable; their impact seems less determined by economic challenges and social pressures; and they seem to have a much wider range of possibilities to influence the direction, shape and texture of civilizations.”

IfsArtPhilosophySeemsPastIndividualSocialBornChallengesInfluenceEconomicDesignPossibilityCivilizationShapesPressureImpactFilledDeterminedStatementsRangeProphecyExpansionTextureArt And SciencePlausibleDubiousPhilosophy And ReligionSocial PressureExpendables
Author:Arthur Koestler
Create image

“I have repeatedly stressed that the selfish impulses of man constitute a much less historic danger than his integrative tendencies. To put it in the simplest way: the individual who indulges in an excess of aggressive self-assertiveness incurs the penalties of society-he outlaws himself, he contracts out of the hierarchy. The true believer, on the other hand, becomes more closely knit into it; he enters the womb of his church, or party, or whatever the social holon to which he surrenders his identity.”

MenWaySelfHandsIndividualSocialChurchPartyDangerIdentityBelieverSelfishSurrenderTendenciesImpulseContractsAggressiveExcessPenaltiesSimplestHistoricWombHierarchyIndulgeStressedIndulge InOutlawTrue BelieverAssertiveness
Author:Arthur Koestler
Create image

“Creativity is a type of learning process where the teacher and pupil are located in the same individual.”

SchoolIndividualProcessInspiringCreativityCreativeLearningTeacherTypeEducationalCreative PeoplePupilsSchoolingLearning ProcessCreative ArtCreativity And InnovationUnschoolingSchools And EducationSchool EducationCreative IdeasArt And CreativityIdeas And CreativityInspire CreativityInspiration And CreativityArtists And CreativityEducation And FreedomCreativity And LearningCreativity In Education
Author:Arthur Koestler
Create image

“If one looks with a cold eye at the mess man has made of his history, it is difficult to avoid the conclusion that he has been afflicted by some built-in mental disorder which drives him towards self-destruction. Murder within the species on an individual or collective scale is a phenomenon unknown in the whole animal kingdom, except for man, and a few varieties of ants and rats.”

IfsMenLooksHas BeensMadeSelfWholeEyeIndividualDifficultAnimalColdBuiltDestructionMurderSpeciesScalesKingdomsConclusionMessVarietyCollectivesPhenomenonDisorderCynicalRatsAntsSelf DestructionMental DisorderAnimal KingdomCold Eyes
Author:Arthur Koestler
Create image