"Our minds thus grow in spots; and..." - Quote by William James
Our minds thus grow in spots; and like grease-spots, the spots spread. But we let them spread as little as possible: we keep unaltered as much of our old knowledge, as many of our old prejudices and beliefs, as we can. We patch and tinker more than we renew. The novelty soaks in; it stains the ancient mass; but it is also tinged by what absorbs it.
More by William James
“The mind, in short, works on the data it receives very much as a sculptor works on his block of stone. In a sense the statue stoodthere from eternity. But there were a thousand different ones beside it, and the sculptor alone is to thank for having extricated this one from the rest.”
“For the moment, what we attend to is reality.”
“Each of us is in fact what he is almost exclusively by virtue of his imitative-ness.”
More on Mind
More on Learning
“I have not eaten enough of the tree of knowledge, though in my profession I am obligated to feed on it regularly.”
“In reading and writing, you cannot lay down rules until you have learnt to obey them. Much more so in life.”
“When you're traveling, ask the traveler for advice / not someone whose lameness keeps him in one place.”