Source identified
Read & copy the quotation
“A distinct university walks about under each man's hat.”
- Date
- 1917
- Local voice
- Authorial / signed preface voice · Russell H. Conwell
Meaning of “A distinct university walks about under each man's…”
Conwell’s metaphor presents each person’s powers of observation and reflection as a continuing source of self-education beyond formal institutions.
Where does it come from?
Every Man His Own University, Chapter I, “Every Man’s University,” Project Gutenberg #36955, copyright 1917 witness. Conwell opens the chapter with “A distinct university walks about under each man’s hat” and develops the metaphor through observation, reading and independent thought. It is historical motivational/educational rhetoric, not evidence that formal education is unnecessary.
Why the local voice matters
Every Man His Own University, Chapter I. Conwell uses a metaphor for self-directed education through observation; it is early-twentieth-century motivational/educational rhetoric.