Quotessence
Home / Quotes / Quote by Nathaniel Parker Willis

Quote by Nathaniel Parker Willis

Work

The poetical works of N.P. Willis

This book compiles a selection of poems written by the 19th-century American poet N.P. Willis, showcasing his poetic style and thematic content. more

Author

Nathaniel Parker Willis
Nathaniel Parker Willis

Nathaniel Parker Willis was an influential American author, editor, and critic, best known for his role as editor of The Atlantic Monthly, a leading literary magazine of the 19th century. Born on January 20, 1806, in Portland, Maine, Willis spent much of his life in Massachusetts, contributing significantly to the literary and intellectual life of the region. His work spanned a variety of genres, including poetry, fiction, and non-fiction. more

You May Also Like

“The notion that "applied" knowledge is somehow less worthy than "pure" knowledge, was natural to a society in which all useful work was performed by slaves and serfs, and in which industry was controlled by the models set by custom rather than by intelligence. Science, or the highest knowing, was then identified with pure theorizing, apart from all application in the uses of life; and knowledge relating to useful arts suffered the stigma attaching to the classes who engaged in them.”

“A modern theory of knowledge which takes account of the relational as distinct from the merely relative character of all historical knowledge must start with the assumption that there are spheres of thought in which it is impossible to conceive of absolute truth existing independently of the values and position of the subject and unrelated to the social context.”

“All schools, all colleges, have two great functions: to confer, and to conceal, valuable knowledge. The theological knowledge which they conceal cannot justly be regarded as less valuable than that which they reveal. That is, when a man is buying a basket of strawberries it can profit him to know that the bottom half of it is rotten.”