Famous quote by Alfred North Whitehead

"Every philosophy is tinged with the coloring of some secret imaginative background, which never emerges explicitly into its train of reasoning"

About this Quote

Alfred North Whitehead, a prominent philosopher and mathematician, recommends in this quote that every philosophical system is deeply influenced by an underlying imaginative or creative context that remains hidden and unarticulated within its overt rational or reasonable discourse. This idea challenges the standard idea that philosophy is simply an exercise in reasonable idea, detached from emotion or imagination.

The "secret imaginative background" that Whitehead refers to might be comprehended as the collection of individual experiences, cultural stories, mental assumptions, and perhaps even unconscious predispositions that notify the thinker's perspective and assist their expedition of reality. These components, while not explicitly stated or acknowledged in the formal argument, shape the instructions and nature of the philosophical inquiry. For instance, the method a philosopher perceives time, area, or human nature may be discreetly colored by their personal context, including their childhood, historic period, or cultural environment.

This background is "secret" due to the fact that it runs at a level beyond conscious expression, mixing with the imagination to form an unstated structure within which reasoning happens. Whitehead implies that even the most extensive philosophical thinking can not totally extricate itself from these creative influences. This understanding opens a more nuanced view of philosophical endeavors, seeing them as a mix of reasonable clarity and the more opaque, strange workings of creativity.

Additionally, this insight welcomes readers to view philosophical overcome a richer lens, acknowledging that they are not merely removed intellectual exercises but are also expressions of the theorist's much deeper, frequently unmentioned vision of reality. It encourages a deeper exploration of how philosophical ideas are notified and formed by the individual and cumulative imaginative contexts from which they arise. Thus, Whitehead's quote invites a broader appreciation of the function of imagination in shaping philosophical idea, recommending that the interaction between factor and imagination is basic to the development of philosophical concepts.

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About the Author

England Flag This quote is from Alfred North Whitehead between February 15, 1861 and December 30, 1947. He/she was a famous Mathematician from England. The author also have 47 other quotes.
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