“Perfectibility is one of the most unequivocal characteristics of the human species.”
Vol. 1, bk. 1, ch. 2
Enquiry Concerning Political Justice (1793)
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William Godwin36
English journalist, political philosopher and novelist 1756–1836Related quotes
John Kenneth Galbraith (1908–2006) American economist and diplomat
Source: The Age of Uncertainty (1977), Chapter 12, p. 330
Gotthold Ephraim Lessing (1729–1781) writer, philosopher, publicist, and art critic
Eben die Bahn, aus welcher das Geschlecht zu seiner Vollkommenheit gelangt, muß jeder einzelne Mensch (der früher, der später) erst durchlaufen haben.
The Education of Mankind, § 93
“Only the most perfect human being can design the most perfect philosophy.”
Novalis (1772–1801) German poet and writer
Fichte Studies § 651
Adlai Stevenson (1900–1965) mid-20th-century Governor of Illinois and Ambassador to the UN
As quoted in Challenge of a Liberal Faith (1988), by George N. Marshall, Ch. 3 : A Contemporary Religion, p. 34
Context: I think that one of our most important tasks is to convince others that there's nothing to fear in difference; that difference, in fact, is one of the healthiest and most invigorating of human characteristics without which life would become meaningless. Here lies the power of the liberal way: not in making the whole world Unitarian, but in helping ourselves and others to see some of the possibilities inherent in viewpoints other than one's own; in encouraging the free interchange of ideas; in welcoming fresh approaches to the problems of life; in urging the fullest, most vigorous use of critical self-examination.
José Ortega Y Gasset book The Revolt of the Masses
Source: The Revolt of the Masses (1929), Chapter XI: The Self-Satisfied Age
“Perfection? Being the most human you can be.”
Giovanni Morassutti (1980) Italian actor, theatre director and cultural entrepreneur.
From the official website
“Inhumanity, n. One of the signal and characteristic qualities of humanity.”
Ambrose Bierce (1842–1914) American editorialist, journalist, short story writer, fabulist, and satirist
Source: The Unabridged Devil's Dictionary
Walter F. Buckley (1922–2006) American sociologist
Source: Class and society (1959), p. 4.