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Ignorance Quotes

On what we don't know and why it matters.

One quote here makes an unexpected point about science, arguing that progress mostly deepens our awareness of just how much remains unknown rather than eliminating it. Another calls ignorance a person's greatest asset, a wry, almost self-deprecating twist on the word.

I never thought black people would say I wasn't black enough. It didn't turn me into a bully - it just put me on the defensive. I had to watch my back. It made me stronger because I learned how...

Quotes by Tionne Watkins

What I've created comedically owes a lot to my ignorance of comedy and love of making theatre stuff.

Quotes by Tim Minchin

Reason obeys itself; and ignorance submits to whatever is dictated to it.

Quotes by Thomas Paine

Where ignorance is bliss, 'Tis folly to be wise.

Quotes by Thomas Gray

I do not believe in the collective wisdom of individual ignorance.

Quotes by Thomas Carlyle

In order to have wisdom we must have ignorance.

Quotes by Theodore Dreiser

They say a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but it's not one half so bad as a lot of ignorance.

Quotes by Terry Pratchett

Far and away, the greatest threat to the ocean, and thus to ourselves, is ignorance. But we can do something about that.

Quotes by Sylvia Earle

Ignorance per se is not nearly as dangerous as ignorance of ignorance.

Quotes by Sydney J. Harris

When someone has that combination of arrogance and ignorance - that drives me crazy.

Quotes by Susan Lucci

It takes a man to suffer ignorance and smile.

Quotes by Sting

This paradox of vision - the genius of youthful ignorance - is nothing new. Had Bill Gates not been in diapers in the early days of computer software, he might have understood that there could never be a market for...

Quotes by Steven Levy

The truth is that our race survived ignorance; it is our scientific genius that will do us in.

Quotes by Stephen Vizinczey

It's inevitable that not everyone will like me, and that some will find me annoying. That's fine. All presenters deal with that. What's scary is the ignorance about what having a regional accent means, or indeed doesn't mean. It certainly...

Quotes by Steph McGovern

I know nothing except the fact of my ignorance.

Socrates

Idealism, alas, does not protect one from ignorance, dogmatism, and foolishness.

Quotes by Sidney Hook

Poverty and ignorance, which beget terror, are not eradicated by firing artillery shells. Borders do not stop rockets, and barbed wire does not prevent terror.

Quotes by Shimon Peres

We have to stand together against terror and the reasons for terrorism, which are poverty and ignorance.

Quotes by Shimon Peres

In Buddhist teaching, ignorance is considered the fundamental cause of violence - ignorance... about the separation of self and other... about the consequences of our actions.

Quotes by Sharon Salzberg

I surely don't think ignorance is bliss. But like everything else that has survived thousands of years of human evolution, ignorance - like denial, self-delusion, and magical thinking - seems to have its uses.

Quotes by Scott Spencer

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the more scientific take on ignorance in this collection?
One quote frames it almost as a feature of scientific progress itself: "We keep, in science, getting a more and more sophisticated view of our essential ignorance" - the more we learn, the more precisely we understand what we still don't know.
Is ignorance ever framed positively in this collection?
Surprisingly, yes - one quote claims "One's ignorance is one's chief asset," a provocative, tongue-in-cheek take rather than a literal endorsement of not knowing things.
What's the collection's warning about ignorance and power?
One quote is direct about the danger: "Ignorance is not too dangerous. If you combine it with power, then this is a toxic mix" - it's not ignorance alone that's the real risk, but ignorance paired with authority.
Does this collection touch on political philosophy?
Yes, generally: one quote reflects on governance itself, stating "The ruling of men is the effort to direct the individual actions of many persons toward some end." It adds that this end should ideally be for the greatest good of all, though the speaker argues no human group has ever fully achieved that.
Where can I find more quotes about knowledge and learning?
See the Knowledge and Education quote collections.

A sharper warning holds that ignorance alone isn't especially dangerous, but paired with power it becomes a genuinely toxic mix. For related reading, see our knowledge quotes and education quotes pages.