“Once the basic assumption of the superiority and attraction of fixed-field farming over all previous forms of subsistence is questioned, it becomes clear that this assumption itself rests on a deeper and more embedded assumption that is virtually never questioned. And that assumption is that sedentary life itself is superior to and more attractive than mobile forms of existence.”

—  James C. Scott, book Against the Grain: A Deep History of the Earliest States

Source: Against the Grain: A Deep History of the Earliest States (2017), pp. 7-8

Adopted from Wikiquote. Last update June 3, 2021. History

Help us to complete the source, original and additional information

Do you have more details about the quote "Once the basic assumption of the superiority and attraction of fixed-field farming over all previous forms of subsisten…" by James C. Scott?
James C. Scott photo
James C. Scott2
American political scientist and anthropologist 1936

Related quotes

Roger Fry photo

“It was inevitable that artists should turn around and question the validity of the fundamental assumption that art aimed at representation; and the moment the question was fairly posed it became clear the pseudo scientific assumption that fidelity to appearance was the measure of art had no logical foundation.”

Roger Fry (1866–1934) English artist and art critic

Lecture to Fabian Soiety 1917 Art and Life from Vision and design by Roger Fry , Forgotten Books , 2012
Art Quotes

“Any utterance is a major assumption of responsibility, and the assumption that one can avoid that responsibility by doing something to language itself is one of the chief considerations of the Phaedrus.”

Richard M. Weaver (1910–1963) American scholar

“The Phaedrus and the Nature of Rhetoric,” p. 6.
The Ethics of Rhetoric (1953)

Warren Farrell photo

“In a democracy, a government’s policies are rarely questioned until the underlying assumptions that create them are questioned.”

Warren Farrell (1943) author, spokesperson, expert witness, political candidate

Source: Father and Child Reunion (2001), p. 147.

Idries Shah photo

“Study the assumptions behind your actions. Then study the assumptions behind your assumptions.”

Idries Shah book Learning How to Learn: Psychology and Spirituality in the Sufi Way

Source: Learning How to Learn: Psychology and Spirituality in the Sufi Way

Peter M. Senge photo

“Mutual reflection. Open and candid conversation. Questioning of old beliefs and assumptions.”

Peter M. Senge (1947) American scientist

The Dance of Change (1999)
Context: Mutual reflection. Open and candid conversation. Questioning of old beliefs and assumptions. Learning to let go. Awareness of how our own actions create the systemic structures that produce our problems. Developing these learning capabilities lies at the heart of profound change.

Roger Scruton photo

“It is not enough to be nice; you have to be good. We are attracted by nice people; but only on the assumption that their niceness is a sign of goodness.”

Roger Scruton (1944–2020) English philosopher

“More: I will not take the oath. I will not tell you why I will not.
Norfolk: Then your reasons must be treasonable!
More: Not "must be;" may be.
Norfolk: It's a fair assumption!
More: The law requires more than an assumption; the law requires a fact.”

Robert Bolt A Man for All Seasons

Act II
A Man for All Seasons (1960)

Aristotle photo

“We may assume the superiority ceteris paribus [all things being equal] of the demonstration which derives from fewer postulates or hypotheses—in short from fewer premisses; for… given that all these are equally well known, where they are fewer knowledge will be more speedily acquired, and that is a desideratum. The argument implied in our contention that demonstration from fewer assumptions is superior may be set out in universal form…”

Aristotle book Posterior Analytics

Book I, Part 25
Also known as Occam's razor or the principle of parsimony / economy (lex parsimoniae)
Richard McKeon (tr.) (1963), p. 150
Posterior Analytics

Lois McMaster Bujold photo

“Check your assumptions. In fact, check your assumptions at the door.”

Lois McMaster Bujold Vorkosigan Saga

Vorkosigan Saga, Barrayar (1991)

Theodore Dalrymple photo

“I have never understood the liberal assumption that if there were justice in the world, there would be fewer rather than more prisoners.”

Theodore Dalrymple (1949) English doctor and writer

Policeman in Wonderland http://www.city-journal.org/html/10_2_oh_to_be.html (Spring 2000). <br class="br">City Journal (1998 - 2008)

Related topics