Q0357
“Intelligence is characterized by a natural incomprehension of life.” — Henri Bergson (The Creative Mind)
Verified English quotation. Primary source: The Creative Mind. Theme: life.
English
Intelligence is characterized by a natural incomprehension of life.
Source and attribution
The archive attributes this English wording to The Creative Mind and files it under Process Philosophy. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.
About Henri Bergson
Henri Bergson (1859–1941), Nobel laureate in Literature (1927), developed a philosophy of duration, memory, and creative evolution opposing purely spatialized time.
Interpretation
Bergson is not disparaging intelligence but identifying its function and its limit. Intelligence, on his account, evolved to handle solid, measurable things and to act on them, so it naturally represents life the way it represents matter — as composed of separate parts. That is exactly what living processes are not, since duration is continuous. The incomprehension is therefore built in rather than a failure of effort.
Why it matters
It explains a recurring difficulty: the tools that work on objects misrepresent anything that is essentially a process, including a life.
Concepts in this quote
- Life
- Philosophy quotes about life ask what makes a life good, meaningful, or worth examining—questions that drive ethics, religion, and everyday decision.
How to cite this quotation
APA: Henri Bergson. (n.d.). Intelligence is characterized by a natural incomprehension of life. In Philosophy Blind Box. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0357
MLA: Henri Bergson. “Intelligence is characterized by a natural incomprehension of….” Philosophy Blind Box, https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0357.
Chicago: Henri Bergson. “Intelligence is characterized by a natural incomprehension of….” Philosophy Blind Box. Accessed 2026. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0357.
Frequently asked questions
What is the source of the quotation “Intelligence is characterized by a natural incomprehension of…”?
The passage is attributed to Henri Bergson, The Creative Mind. The archive attributes this English wording to The Creative Mind and files it under Process Philosophy. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.
What does Henri Bergson mean by life?
Life is both a biological fact and a practical project. Philosophers debate flourishing, suffering, mortality, and the standards by which a biography can be judged successful or wasted. This passage enters that discussion through life.