ENGLISH LITERATURE (CBSE/UGC NET)

Detailed explanation-1: -Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote: “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines.” His point was that only small-minded men refused to rethink their prior beliefs.

Detailed explanation-2: -A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds. ” It is often even misquoted as simply “consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds” (or even more sloppy approximations like “conformity is a bugbear of small-minded people", etc.).

Detailed explanation-3: -He just repeats what is said by other little minds instead of taking a stand and being an individual – even if a person preaches one idea one day and then changes his mind – he should then preach the new idea and keep moving on. The person needs to grow and change to fulfill his potential.

Detailed explanation-4: -A great person does not have to think consistently from one day to the next. This remark comes from the essay “Self-Reliance” by Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Detailed explanation-5: -A foolish consistency is one that serves no benefit for the end user. Making things look and work the same is pointless if the user can no longer accomplish their tasks. Rank making things useful above making them consistent. An example is interfaces for video games.