Original artwork, not a still
The important thing is not to stop questioning.
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
This is the line behind a thousand classroom walls, and the lines after it are what give it weight: curiosity as a duty, even a form of reverence, rather than a stepping stone to answers. It has become shorthand for the scientific temperament, and for staying open after you already know a lot, which is why it turns up on school posters and graduation speeches.
Context reviewed
In context
May contain spoilersShow the scene
LIFE magazine's issue of 2 May 1955, published after Einstein died, ran a tribute called "Death of a Genius". In it, William Miller reported advice Einstein had given him: the important thing is not to stop questioning. Einstein went on that curiosity has its own reason for existing, that one cannot help being in awe at the mysteries of eternity, life and the structure of reality, and that it is enough to grasp a little of it each day. He ended by urging a "holy curiosity".
Sources (1)
- Wikiquote: Albert Einstein1950s section; LIFE, 2 May 1955, p. 64Reference checked
Context reviewed
