John Dryden Quotes

Narrowness of mind is often the cause of obstinacy; we do not easily believe beyond what we see.

Smallness of mind is the cause of stubbornness, and we do not credit readily what is beyond our view.

There is no man so blind as one who has made up his mind.

One of the main faults of a fool is that he never changes his mind.

Obstinacy and heat of opinion are the surest proof of stupidity.

The greater the ignorance the greater the dogmatism.

Nothing so obstinately stands in the way of all sorts of progress as pride of opinion. While nothing is so foolish and baseless.

If one can only see things according to one's own belief system, one is destined to become virtually deaf, dumb, and blind.

The most learned are often the most narrow-minded men.

Denial of all outside of our own limited experience is absurd.

There is no cure for narrowness of mind.

In order to keep an open mind, I am trying to avoid learning anything.

Firmness or stiffness of the mind is not from adherence to truth, but submission to prejudice.

Orthodoxy is a relaxation of the mind accompanied by a stiffening of the heart.

No amount of evidence will ever persuade an idiot

Moreover, the attitude that one ought to believe such and such a proposition, independently of the question whether there is evidence in its favor, is an attitude which produces hostility to evidence and causes us to close our minds to every fact that does not suit our prejudices.

How prone we are to come to the consideration of every question with heads and hearts pre-occupied! How prone to shrink from any opinion, however reasonable, if it be opposed to any, however unreasonable, of our own! How disposed are we to judge, in anger, those who call upon us to think, and encourage us to enquire! To question our prejudices seems nothing less than sacrilege; to break the chains of our ignorance, nothing short of impiety!

Certainty sees things in restrictive, protective, aggressive ways, and thus isn't seeing at all.

The mind that doggedly insists on prejudice often has not intelligence enough to change.

One thing about being narrow-minded: you'll never be lonely.

The door of a bigoted mind opens outwards so that the only result of the pressure of facts upon it is to close it more snugly.

A narrow mind and a fat head invariably come on the same person.

None so deaf as those that will not hear. None so blind as those that will not see.

But if you are going to wear blinders then you do not know the world.

He has a brilliant mind until he makes it up.