‘Nothing is more dangerous than an idea if it’s the only one you have’

I love this quote by John Arnold, ‘Ideas are the sparks of light that leap from creative abrasions. They come unbidden and dance just beyond our fingertips. They can be crystal clear to us and as clear as mud to others. They are total fun and total frustration, both rolled into one. ‘

When you can only see life in black and white and no shades of grey, things can get dangerous. Émile-Auguste Chartier more commonly known as Alain puts this very well ‘Nothing is more dangerous than an idea if it’s the only one you have’.  Alain, born in 1886 was a famous French philosopher, journalist, and pacifist

Alain wrote various publications and the most important of these was interestingly named, The Dreamer, 81 chapters about the spirit and passions, About Happiness, Mars, and The citizen against powers.

What I think Alain was trying to highlight is the dangers of fundamentalism and single mindedness.