Milan Kundera Quotes

The stupidity of people comes from having an answer for everything. The wisdom of the novel comes from having a question for everything. The novelist teaches the reader to comprehend the world as a question. There is wisdom and tolerance in that attitude. In a world built on sacrosanct certainties the novel is dead.

The stupidity of people comes from having an answer for everything. The wisdom of the novel comes from having a question for everything.

Only the fools are certain and assured.

In all affairs it's a healthy thing now and then to hang a question mark on the things you have long taken for granted.

I think that when we know that we actually do live in uncertainty, then we ought to admit it; it is of great value to realize that we do not know the answers to different questions. This attitude of mind - this attitude of uncertainty - is vital to the scientist, and it is this attitude of mind which the student must first acquire.

Just think of the tragedy of teaching children not to doubt.

The spirit of liberty is the spirit that is not too sure that it is right

Doubt is the origin of wisdom.

We absolutely must leave room for doubt or there is no progress and no learning. There is no learning without having to pose a question. And a question requires doubt. People search for certainty. But there is no certainty.

I am too much of a sceptic to deny the possibility of anything...

Doubt is uncomfortable, certainty is ridiculous.

Skepticism may undermine beliefs, but never belief.

I would say that I'm 98 percent skeptical, but the other 2 percent [is] open for the possibility of things.

if you don't have doubts you're either kidding yourself or asleep. Doubts are the ants-in-the-pants of faith. They keep it alive and moving.

I think doubt is a very healthy way to live.

I think that certainty is a closed door, It's the end of the conversation. Doubt is an open door.

An educated man must have a "curiosity in exploring the unfamiliar and unexpected, an open-mindedness in entertaining opposing points of view, tolerance for the ambiguity that surrounds so many important issues, and a willingness to make the best decisions he can in the face of uncertainty and doubt".

The job is to ask questions-it always was-and to ask them as inexorably as I can. And to face the absence of precise answers with a certain humility.

Doubt grows with knowledge.

It's really important, whether you're a conservative or a liberal, to always challenge the conventional wisdom, which is what I've tried to do in all my work.

The older I get, the less I know. By that I mean the less I am sure of. I view people with strong opinions on the big stuff with distrust. I don't think we should have certain certainties on faith and politics; I think we should be open-minded.

Because a truly skeptical position would be a very uncertain one.

I love to doubt as well as know.

I make work not to give answers but to question things.