The philosophical writer stands in danger of harming his readers in the very act of trying to help them, by fostering an unhealthy presumption, passi… - Arthur M. Melzer

Intellectual humility and the keen sense of our ignorance are the necessary starting points for genuine philosophical development; therefore, books—even as they transmit brilliant philosophical insights—undercut philosophy at its root.

Only a person fully in touch with the irrational temptations buried within him has a chance of becoming genuinely rational.

In every age people are strongly tempted to rely upon the thinking and findings of others. And this can often seem like a useful shortcut. But if philosophy is to remain authentic and not degenerate into a “tradition,” then above all it must resist this dangerous temptation—the very temptation upon which modern progress-philosophy seeks to build.