This morning I was listening to a “My fake history” episode in which Sebastian (the host) mentioned a quote attributed to Ghandi (which he might not have said). The exchange went like this.
Reporter: What do you think of western civilization?
Ghandi: It sounds like a good idea.
This made me think about levels of education.
Un-educated: never heard of the quote or of Ghandi.
Somewhat educated: has heard of Ghandi and the quote, but didn’t know it was Ghandi who said it.
Educated: Knows the quote is from Ghandi.
Very educated: Knows the quote is attributed to Ghandi, but that he probably didn’t say it.
And then you have another perspective altogether, which goes beyond the pedantic details. I might simply call this version “Jordan Peterson.” Viz., the important question is why the quote resonates, and why it was attributed to Ghandi in the first place.
I like that perspective, except that it can go too far, e.g., when people think that the truth or falsity of a claim doesn’t matter. All that matters is the analysis.