A dictionary of Marshall McLuhan’s quotations

Compiled by William Kuhns
©2026 Marshall McLuhan Estate

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When it is understood how entirely oral these thesis defenses were, it is easier to see why the students of such arts would need to have memories furnished with a large repertory of aphorisms and sententiae.
The Gutenberg Galaxy: The Making of Typographic Man, (1962), p 102
Quote #394
Year: 1962
Chapter: Aphorism
The study of communication theory and practice… seems inevitably to hold the key to the unification of the proliferating specialisms of modern knowledge. In this study, the physicists can profitably confer with the student of poetry or philosophy. And the advertising executive can converse intelligibly with the anthropologist or linguist. In moving towards the harmonizing of the arts and sciences, the later Innis appears as one of the indisputable pioneers whose work will for long remain not only a standard reference but a source of ever renewed insight.
“The Later Innis" Queen's Quarterly, Vol. 60, No 3, Autumn (1953), p 393-394, reprinted in On the Nature of Media (2016), p 47
Quote #1198
Year: 1953
Chapters: Communication | Harmony | Living Unity
↪ Also at #2596, #3557

Drawn to McLuhan #5

Illustration of a smartphone whose screen displays a man in business attire curled into a cramped fetal position inside the device.
"New technology breeds new man."
Illustrated procession of warriors and soldiers through history — a Native American fighter, Roman legionaries, a medieval knight, WWI/WWII infantry, a modern rifle-armed soldier, a futuristic armored trooper, and an astronaut — set against a sky shifting from fire to outer space.
"Every new technology necessitates a new war."
Illustration of a giant boot-shaped prison labeled "Section 7" and "Processing," guarded by an armed soldier, with a long line of people below all staring down at their smartphones.
"Today the tyrant rules not by club or fist, but ... he shepherds his flocks in the ways of utility and comfort."
Illustration of a young man and woman riding old-fashioned bicycles through a swirling, disorienting vortex surrounded by crumbling buildings, uprooted trees, and floating debris, with a torn sign reading "...cade de l'avenir."
"Our confused efforts to re-establish goals, habits, attitudes, and the sense of security they bring has become the main order of business."
Illustrated procession of warriors and soldiers through history — a Native American fighter, Roman legionaries, a medieval knight, WWI/WWII infantry, a modern rifle-armed soldier, a futuristic armored trooper, and an astronaut — set against a sky shifting from fire to outer space.
"We put on our technology as evolutionary clothing."
Illustration of a diverse group of pedestrians on a city sidewalk lined with a cafe and bookstore, most wearing headphones or earbuds and looking at their phones near a crosswalk.
"We can musically harmonize our lives to a fantastic degree. And we are headed that way."
Cartoon illustration of an awards-ceremony stage with a banner reading "This Year's Man of Distinction," where a crowd of identically dressed men in black tuxedos jostle forward to receive the same trophy from a smiling recipient.
"[We can expect] less and less distinction for more and more men of distinction."
Photo-style graphic of a smartphone displaying the YouTube logo (red play button and wordmark) centered against a pink-to-orange gradient background.
"[As we retribalize, we're certain to build] a new tribal encyclopedia of auditory incantation."
© The Estate of Marshall McLuhan