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It is impossible to divide the past into distinct, clearly defined periods and prove that one age ended and another began in a particular year, such as 476, or 1453, or 1789. Men do not and cannot change their habits and ways of doing things all at once, no matter what happens.

— James Harvey Robinson An Introduction to the History of Western Europe (1902)

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More quotes by James Harvey Robinson

It is a poor technic when attempting to convert one's neighbor to attack his beliefs directly, especially those of the sacred variety.

The Human Comedy : As Devised and Directed by Mankind Itself (1937)

In its amplest meaning history includes every trace and vestige of everything that man has done or thought since first he appeared on the earth.

The New History (1912)

To become historically-minded is to be grown-up.

The Human Comedy : As Devised and Directed by Mankind Itself (1937)

It gives one something of a shock, indeed, to consider what a very small part of our guiding convictions are in any way connected with our personal experience.

The New History (1912)

We are incredibly heedless in the formation of our beliefs, but find ourselves filled with an illicit passion for them when anyone proposes to rob us of their companionship. It is obviously not the ideas themselves that are dear to us, but our self-esteem, which is threatened.

The Mind in the Making : The Relation of Intelligence to Social Reform (1921)

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Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: James Harvey Robinson (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.