"I stated that Hiroshima and Nagasaki are 'among the most unspeakable crimes in history.' I took no position on just where they stand on the scale of horrors relative to Auschwitz, the bombing of Chungking, Lidice, and so on."

History

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Insight & Reflection

This reflection on history by Noam Chomsky resonates across generations. It highlights a fundamental truth about human nature: our continuous search for meaning in history is what ultimately defines our character and our path forward.

About Noam Chomsky

Avram Noam Chomsky is an American intellectual, philosopher, linguist, political activist, and social critic. Sometimes called "the father of modern linguistics", Chomsky is also a major figure in analytic philosophy and one of the founders of the field of cognitive science. He is a laureate professor of linguistics at the University of Arizona and an institute professor emeritus at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Among the most cited living authors, Chomsky has written more than 150 books on topics such as linguistics, war, and politics. In addition to his work in linguistics, since the 1960s, Chomsky has been an influential voice on the American Left as a consistent critic of the foreign policy of the United States, contemporary capitalism, and corporatocracy.

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Editorial Note: This quote is curated and fact-checked by the Quotes Archive Editorial Team. Verified Literature Specialist.

More by Noam Chomsky

"Humans have certain properties and characteristics which are intrinsic to them, just as every other organism does. That's human nature."

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"Resistance is feasible even for those who are not heroes by nature, and it is an obligation, I believe, for those who fear the consequences and detest the reality of the attempt to impose American hegemony."

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"If you are working 50 hours a week in a factory, you don't have time to read 10 newspapers a day and go back to declassified government archives. But such people may have far-reaching insights into the way the world works."

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"The more you can increase fear of drugs and crime, welfare mothers, immigrants and aliens, the more you control all the people."

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More about History

"The stoutest timber is forged in the fiercest gales, not in the sheltered grove. A lesson woven into the fabric of human history."

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"The slightest acquaintance with history shows that powerful republics are the most warlike and unscrupulous of nations."

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"A life well-lived leaves an aroma of kindness long after the sun has set. A lesson woven into the fabric of human history — an essential principle for the reflective life."

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"Where compassion abides, fear and resentment lose their dominion. A lesson woven into the fabric of human history — an essential principle for the reflective life."

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