“Of true knowledge at any time, a good part is merely convenient, necessary indeed to the worker, but not to an understanding of his subject: One can judge a building without knowing where to buy the bricks; one can understand a violin sonata without knowing how to score for the instrument. The work may in fact be better understood without a knowledge of the details of its manufacture, of attention to these tends to distract from meaning and effect.”
Quote by Jacques Barzun
Author
Jacques Barzun
Jacques Barzun was an American historian, born on November 30, 1907, and passed away on October 25, 2012. He was renowned for his profound insights into Western culture, literature, and history, and is considered one of the most important cultural critics of the 20th century. more
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Source: Two Discourses Preached Before the University of Cambridge, on Commencement Sunday, July 1, 1810: And a Sermon Preached Before the Society for Missions to Africa and the East; at Their Tenth Anniversary, July 12, 1810. To which are Added Christian Researches in Asia
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“Knowledge is the only instrument of production that is not subject to diminishing returns.”
“The worth and value of knowledge is in proportion to the worth and value of its object.”
Source: Aids to reflection in the formation of a manly character on the several grounds of prudence, morality, and religion
Source: Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1953