Meek young men grow up in libraries, believing it their duty to accept the views which Cicero, which Locke, which Bacon, have given, forgetful that Cicero, Locke, and Bacon were only young men in libraries, when they wrote these books. Hence, instead of Man Thinking, we have the book-worm.

Summary

This quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson criticizes the tendency of meek young men to blindly accept the views and ideas of historical figures such as Cicero, Locke, and Bacon. Emerson suggests that these individuals grow up spending too much time reading and absorbing the works of others, rather than developing their own critical thinking and intellectual independence. By referencing these great thinkers as once being young men in libraries themselves, he questions the authority and originality of their ideas. Instead of cultivating their own unique thoughts, these individuals become mere bookworms, lacking the ability for independent thought.

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