“ Man usually believes, if only words he hears, that also with them goes material for thinking! ”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Faust (1808). copy citation
| Author | Johann Wolfgang von Goethe |
|---|---|
| Source | Faust |
| Topic | words thinking |
| Date | 1808 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | Translated by Bayard Taylor |
| Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/files/14591/14591-h/14591-h.htm |
Context
“All ages have been taught the matter,— By Three and One, and One and Three, Error instead of Truth to scatter. They prate and teach, and no one interferes; All from the fellowship of fools are shrinking. Man usually believes, if only words he hears, That also with them goes material for thinking! THE WITCH (continues) The lofty skill Of Science, still From all men deeply hidden! Who takes no thought, To him 'tis brought, 'Tis given unsought, unbidden! FAUST What nonsense she declaims before us!”
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Meaning and analysis
