"We call a man a bigot or a slave of dogma because he is a thinker who has thought thoroughly and to a definite end"
- Gilbert K. Chesterton
About this Quote
This quote by Gilbert K. Chesterton is a commentary on the propensity of society to label those that meditate and pertain to a guaranteed verdict as "bigots" or "servants of conviction". Chesterton is suggesting that this is an unjust characterization of those who have actually made the effort to think through a concern and come to a conclusion. He is suggesting that those who think deeply as well as involve a certain end should be valued for their believed process, rather than identified as "chauvinists" or "servants of dogma". Chesterton is likewise suggesting that those who meditate and concern a precise end are more likely to be right than those that do not take the time to analyze a concern. He is implying that those that think deeply and pertain to a certain end are more likely to be appropriate in their final thoughts than those who do not put in the time to think through a problem. Ultimately, Chesterton is recommending that those who meditate and involve a certain end should be appreciated for their assumed process, as opposed to identified as "bigots" or "slaves of conviction".
"The whole commerce between master and slave is a perpetual exercise of the most boisterous passions, the most unremitting despotism on the one part, and degrading submissions on the other. Our children see this, and learn to imitate it"