Facts per se can neither prove nor refute anything. Everything is decided by the interpretation and explanation of the facts, by the ideas and the theories.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Mises says facts alone do not prove anything; interpretation and theory decide meaning.
- In plain terms
- Facts need interpretation and theories to have meaning.
- What can you take from it?
- Interpretation gives facts their value.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Do facts always need a story?
- How much does theory change facts?
Another view
Raw facts can sometimes speak loudly without any interpretation.
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