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Alexandre Dumas: The Count of Monte CristoChapter 17: The Abbe's Chamber. (continued)"You must teach me a small part of what you know," said Dantes, "if only to prevent your growing weary of me. I can well believe that so learned a person as yourself would prefer absolute solitude to being tormented with the company of one as ignorant and uninformed as myself. If you will only agree to my request, I promise you never to mention another word about escaping." The abbe smiled. "Alas, my boy," said he, "human knowledge is confined within very narrow limits; and when I have taught you mathematics, physics, history, and the three or four modern languages with which I am acquainted, you will know as much as I do myself. Now, it will scarcely require two years for me to communicate to you the stock of learning I possess." "Two years!" exclaimed Dantes; "do you really believe I can acquire all these things in so short a time?" "Not their application, certainly, but their principles you may; to learn is not to know; there are the learners and the learned. Memory makes the one, philosophy the other." "But cannot one learn philosophy?" "Philosophy cannot be taught; it is the application of the sciences to truth; it is like the golden cloud in which the Messiah went up into heaven." "Well, then," said Dantes, "What shall you teach me first? I am in a hurry to begin. I want to learn." This is page 185 of 1374. [Marked] This title is on Your Bookshelf. Buy a copy of The Count of Monte Cristo at Amazon.com
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