Imagination does not breed insanity. Exactly what does breed insanity is reason. Poets do not go mad; but chess-players do. Mathematicians go mad, and cashiers; but creative artists very seldom. I am not, as will be seen, in any sense attacking logic: I only say that this danger does lie in logic, not in imagination.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Chesterton claims that rigid reason and logic are more likely to cause insanity than imagination, noting that creative artists rarely go mad while mathematicians and chess players often do.
- In plain terms
- Logic can make you crazy, but imagination usually does not.
- What can you take from it?
- Rigid thinking poses a greater risk to mental stability than creativity.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Does logical rigor isolate people from reality?
- How does creativity protect mental health?
Another view
The claim that mathematicians go mad more than artists is debatable.
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