Mortimer J. Adler

Quotes

• “We are not told, or not told early enough so that it sinks in, that mathematics is a language, and that we can learn it ...”
• “Mathematics is one of the major modern mysteries. Perhaps it is the leading one, occupying a place in our society simila...”
• “If a book is easy and fits nicely into all your language conventions and thought forms, then you probably will not grow ...”
• “You will find that your comprehension of any book will be enormously increased if you only go to the trouble of finding ...”
• “If your friend wishes to read your 'Plutarch's Lives,' 'Shakespeare,' or 'The Federalist Papers,' tell him gently but fi...”
• “Most of us are addicted to non-active reading. The outstanding fault of the non-active or undemanding reader is his inat...”
• “... always keep in mind that an article of faith is not something that the faithful assume. Faith, for those who have it...”
• “In the case of good books the point is not to see how many of them you can get through but rather how many can get thr...”
• “Enlightenment is achieved only when, in addition to knowing what an author says, you know what he means and why he says ...”
• “What reaches the heart without going through the mind is likely to bounce back and put the mind out of business.”
• “The student can read as fast as his mind will let him, not as slow as his eyes make him.”
• “Don't try to resist the effect that a work of imaginative literature has on you.”
• “The telephone book is full of facts but it doesn't contain a single idea.”
• “True freedom is impossible without a mind made free by discipline.”
• “The mind can atrophy, like the muscles, if it is not used.”
• “In short, we can only learn from our "betters".”
• “Books are absent teachers.”