“Man is only a reed, the weakest in nature, but he is a thinking reed.”
Blaise Pascal · Early modern philosophy
mindmeaningdeath
Paraphrase or translation
Philosopher
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Blaise Pascal
1623–1662 · Early modern philosophy · Early modern
Blaise Pascal, born in 1623, died in 1662, was a mathematician, experimenter, and Christian thinker. He contributed to probability, built a calculating machine, and wrote the Provincial Letters against casuistry. The Pensées are notes toward an unfinished apology for Christian faith, published after his death and ordered differently by later editors, so Lafuma and Sellier numbers diverge.
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The thinking reed says human dignity is thought, not strength: a drop of water can kill a person, and the person knows, which the universe does not. The heart, in his vocabulary, is a way of knowing first principles and God, not a word for whim. The wager, a long fragment, is an argument in a speaker's voice about practice under uncertainty.
It is not a proof he thinks has ended doubt. Short English cards flatten these notes into proverbs. The numbers exist so the notes can be found. The voice and the unfinishedness are part of the meaning.
Start here
The thinking-reed fragment and the wager fragment, in a translation that prints Sellier or Lafuma numbers
The reed is the anthropology. The wager is the practical argument. Reading them as one proverb loses both.
Quotations
“The heart has its reasons, which reason does not know.”
Blaise Pascal · Early modern philosophy
knowledgelovemind
Paraphrase or translation
“Either God is or he is not. You must wager.”
Blaise Pascal · Early modern philosophy
knowledgemeaningmind
Paraphrase or translation
“The eternal silence of these infinite spaces frightens me.”
Blaise Pascal · Early modern philosophy
meaningknowledgedeath
Paraphrase or translation
“Man is neither angel nor brute, and the unfortunate thing is that he who would act the angel acts the brute.”
Blaise Pascal · Early modern philosophy
selfvirtuemind
Paraphrase or translation
Key ideas
Thinking reed
Human dignity is thought in a being fragile enough for a vapour to kill, not a fantasy of control.
The heart
The heart grasps what deduction does not supply, especially first principles, and it is not a synonym for a mood.
The wager
Under uncertainty one is told to bet, in a speaker's voice, and the fragment is not a demonstration that doubt is over.
Major works
Pensées (notes of the 1650s, published 1670)
Unordered notes. Cite Lafuma or Sellier numbers. The reed, the heart, and the wager are different fragments.
Provincial Letters (1656–1657)
Polemic against Jesuit casuistry, finished prose rather than notes.
Influences
Influenced
- Søren Kierkegaard
- Later existential religious thought
Common misreadings
- The heart has its reasons means feeling may ignore evidence.
- The wager is a proof of God that Pascal thinks finishes the question.
Famous lines Blaise Pascal never said
None of the lines this library files for Blaise Pascal is marked Questionable or Misattributed. That is only a fact about these cards. It is not a certificate that every popular sentence is theirs.
FAQ
What is the best book to start with?
The thinking-reed fragment and the wager fragment, in a translation that prints Sellier or Lafuma numbers The reed is the anthropology. The wager is the practical argument. Reading them as one proverb loses both.
What is the most famous quote?
This library does not measure fame, and it does not rank lines by how often they are shared. The first line it files for Blaise Pascal that is not marked Questionable or Misattributed is “Man is only a reed, the weakest in nature, but he is a thinking reed.” (Pensées, the thinking-reed fragment (Lafuma 200 / Sellier 231), Paraphrase or translation).
What is the most misquoted line?
None of the lines this library files for Blaise Pascal is marked Misattributed or Questionable. That is a fact about these cards, not a certificate that every popular sentence is theirs.
What is one key idea, in a sentence?
Thinking reed: Human dignity is thought in a being fragile enough for a vapour to kill, not a fantasy of control.