Quotessence
Home / Authors / Isaiah Berlin
Isaiah Berlin

Isaiah Berlin Quotes

Philosopher

Filter quotes by topic

AllHumansMenBerlinLibertyMayValuesGoalIndividualLibertàIdeasBeliefChoicesDesireHuman BeingsIfsJusticeLossNeedsNotionObjects

Famous Isaiah Berlin Quotes

“Liberty and equality, spontaneity and security, happiness and knowledge, mercy and justice - all these are ultimate human values, sought for themselves alone; yet when they are incompatible, they cannot all be attained, choices must be made, sometimes tragic losses accepted in the pursuit of some preferred ultimate end.”

HumansMadeEndsSometimesValuesChoicesJusticeLossLibertySecurityMercyUltimateLibertarianAcceptedPursuitTragicSpontaneityHuman ValuesLiberty And EqualityTragic Loss
Book:The Power of Ideas
Create image

“If, as I believe, the ends of men are many, and not all of them are in principle compatible with each other, then the possibility of conflict - and of tragedy - can never wholly be eliminated from human life, either personal or social. The necessity of choosing between absolute claims is then an inescapable characteristic of the human condition. This gives its value to freedom as Acton conceived of it - as an end in itself, and not as a temporary need, arising out of our confused notions and irrational and disordered lives, a predicament which a panacea could one day put right.”

IfsMenNeedsGivingBelieveHumansEndsValuesI BelieveSocialPrinciplesConditionsPossibilityOne DayConflictClaimsTragedyAbsolutesNotionHuman LifeCharacteristicsConfusedTemporaryHuman ConditionIrrationalCompatiblePredicamentsPanacea
Author:Isaiah Berlin
Create image

“The very desire for guarantees that our values are eternal and secure in some objective heaven is perhaps only a craving for the certainties of childhood or the absolute values of our primitive past.”

PastDesireValuesHeavenChildhoodEternalAbsolutesObjectivesSecureCertaintyGuaranteesPrimitiveCravingGuarantees That
Book:Political Ideas in the Romantic Age: Their Rise and Influence on Modern Thought
Create image