--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The first virtue of a young man today…" description: "\"The first virtue of a young man today - that is, for the next fifty years perhaps, as long as we live in fear, and religion has regained its powers - i..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97b/anonymous-1_ambition_the-first-virtue-of-a-young-man-today-th_1398707.jpg" --- # The first virtue of a young man today - that is, for the… ![“The first virtue of a young man today - that is, for the next fifty years perhaps, as long as we live in fear, and religion has regained its powers - is to be incapable of enthusiasm and not to have much in the way of brains.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97b/anonymous-1_ambition_the-first-virtue-of-a-young-man-today-th_1398707.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97b/anonymous-1_ambition_the-first-virtue-of-a-young-man-today-th_1398707.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97b/anonymous-1_ambition_the-first-virtue-of-a-young-man-today-th_1398707.jpg) > “The first virtue of a young man today - that is, for the next fifty years perhaps, as long as we live in fear, and religion has regained its powers - is to be incapable of enthusiasm and not to have much in the way of brains.” [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote suggests that in a fearful, religiously dominated era, a young man’s main flaw is lacking enthusiasm and intellect. **In simple terms:** Lack of enthusiasm and intellect in fearful times Key Takeaway Recognize and cultivate curiosity and critical thinking Themes caution intellect religion fear Mood reflective critical Type philosophical social commentary When to use this quote - education reform - personal development - public discourse - media literacy Key Concepts critical thinking cultural critique psychology Questions to Reflect On - How does fear shape intellectual growth? - What role does religion play in stifling enthusiasm? A Different Perspective Enthusiasm alone cannot overcome systemic fear; structural change is needed ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ambition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambition/) [Brain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brain/) [Enthusiasm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enthusiasm/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Fear Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear-religion-2314248/) [Fifty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fifty/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Incapable Enthusiasm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/incapable-enthusiasm-4896035/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Next](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/next/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Religion Regained](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion-regained-4896034/) [Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/today/) [Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virtue/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) [Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young/) [Young man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-man/) ## Related quotes > [Religion, a mediaeval form of unreason, when combined with modern weaponry becomes a real threat to our freedoms. This religious totalitarianism has caused a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/religion-a-mediaeval-form-of-unreason-when-combined-with-modern-3/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [Fear is religion, courage is science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/fear-is-religion-courage-is-science/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [Where there is fear there is no religion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/where-there-is-fear-there-is-no-religion/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [Respect for religion' has become a code phrase meaning 'fear of religion'. Religions, like all other ideas, deserve criticism, satire, and, yes, our fearless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/respect-for-religion-has-become-a-code-phrase-meaning-fear-of/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [The wicked fear the good, because the good are a constant reproach to their consciences. The ungodly like religion in the same way that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-wicked-fear-the-good-because-the-good-are-a-constant-reproach-to/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [Human life began in flight and fear. Religion rose from rituals of propitiation, spells to lull the punishing elements.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-paglia/human-life-began-in-flight-and-fear-religion-rose-from-rituals-of/) [Camille Paglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-paglia/) > [I fear it's because religion is man's attempt to reach God, and when he feels he has succeeded, he cannot abide anyone else's claim…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-b-jenkins/i-fear-it-s-because-religion-is-man-s-attempt-to-reach-god-and-when/) [Jerry B. Jenkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-b-jenkins/) > [“In speaking of the fear of religion, I don’t mean to refer to the entirely reasonable hostility toward certain established religions and religious institutions,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-nagel/in-speaking-of-the-fear-of-religion-i-don-t-mean-to-refer-to-the/) [Thomas Nagel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-nagel/) > [If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion and avoid the people, you might better stay home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-michener/if-you-reject-the-food-ignore-the-customs-fear-the-religion-and-avoid/) [James A. Michener](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-michener/) > [The condition of alienation, of being asleep, of being unconscious, of being out of one’s mind, is the condition of the normal man. Society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-condition-of-alienation-of-being-asleep-of-being-unconscious-of-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I am fifty years old and I have never known what it is to love. I can write those words, know them to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-am-fifty-years-old-and-i-have-never-known-what-it-is-to-love-i-can/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It is quite a three pipe problem, and I beg that you won't speak to me for fifty minutes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-quite-a-three-pipe-problem-and-i-beg-that-you-won-t-speak-to-me/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Old age doth in sharp pains abound; We are belabored by the gout, Our blindness is a dark profound, Our deafness each one laughs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/old-age-doth-in-sharp-pains-abound-we-are-belabored-by-the-gout-our/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Harry looked around; there was Ginny running toward him; she had a hard blazing look in her face as she threw her arms around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/harry-looked-around-there-was-ginny-running-toward-him-she-had-a-hard/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Oh, you mysterious girls, when you are fifty-two we shall find you out; you must come into the open then. If the mouth has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/oh-you-mysterious-girls-when-you-are-fifty-two-we-shall-find-you-out/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Anonymous > [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Ambition quotes > [Ambition drives you on, ability certainly helps, but the fickle finger of fate and luck are great things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fergus-henderson/ambition-drives-you-on-ability-certainly-helps-but-the-fickle-finger/) [Fergus Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fergus-henderson/) > [One needs more than ambition and talent to make a success of anything, really. There must be love and a vocation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessye-norman/one-needs-more-than-ambition-and-talent-to-make-a-success-of-anything/) [Jessye Norman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessye-norman/) > [I just think my own ambition would not allow me to sit on the gifts that my creator had given me. And so that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janelle-monae/i-just-think-my-own-ambition-would-not-allow-me-to-sit-on-the-gifts/) [Janelle Monae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janelle-monae/) > [A man's worth is no greater than the worth of his ambitions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-man-s-worth-is-no-greater-than-the-worth-of-his-ambitions/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm hungry and ambitious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julen-lopetegui/i-m-hungry-and-ambitious/) [Julen Lopetegui](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julen-lopetegui/) > [“I was ambitious and desperate to direct my first film, so I capitulated and blew it. Never again. Never fucking again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-ferguson/i-was-ambitious-and-desperate-to-direct-my-first-film-so-i/) [Craig Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-ferguson/) > [I was always attracted most to joining City, and I am pleased to be at such a good club with such a big ambition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edin-dzeko/i-was-always-attracted-most-to-joining-city-and-i-am-pleased-to-be-at/) [Edin Dzeko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edin-dzeko/) > [Work towards your goal and dont watch the post size,its either they hate,or like you.there is no room for both sides.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-buabeng/work-towards-your-goal-and-dont-watch-the-post-size-its-either-they/) [Isaac Buabeng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-buabeng/) > [“But young men have not only this frivolous ambition of being thought masters of execution, inciting them on the one hand, but also their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/but-young-men-have-not-only-this-frivolous-ambition-of-being-thought/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I almost never have a plan for myself... I'm not ambitious in that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-plimpton/i-almost-never-have-a-plan-for-myself-i-m-not-ambitious-in-that-way/) [Martha Plimpton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-plimpton/) > [I play for high stakes and given an audience - there is no act too daring or too noble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/i-play-for-high-stakes-and-given-an-audience-there-is-no-act-too/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [There's nothing worse than a leader who lacks ambition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-s-nothing-worse-than-a-leader-who-lacks-ambition/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If i can't even protect my captain's dream, then whatever ambition i have is nothing but talk..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoro/if-i-can-t-even-protect-my-captain-s-dream-then-whatever-ambition-i/) [Zoro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoro/) > [It may seem unattainable but if you put actions, your heart and your mind into it, you will prevail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/london-mond/it-may-seem-unattainable-but-if-you-put-actions-your-heart-and-your/) [London Mond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/london-mond/) > [Obligation is what's leading us to toward successful, and what keeps us moving towards the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wazim-shaw/obligation-is-what-s-leading-us-to-toward-successful-and-what-keeps/) [Wazim Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wazim-shaw/) [Browse all 4,601 Ambition quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambition/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The first virtue of a young man today - that is, for the next fifty years perhaps, as long as we live in fear, and religion has regained its powers - is to be incapable of enthusiasm and not to have much in the way of brains.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anonymous" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-first-virtue-of-a-young-man-today-that-is-for-the-next-fifty/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ambition" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-first-virtue-of-a-young-man-today-that-is-for-the-next-fifty/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97b/anonymous-1_ambition_the-first-virtue-of-a-young-man-today-th_1398707.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97b/anonymous-1_ambition_the-first-virtue-of-a-young-man-today-th_1398707.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97b/anonymous-1_ambition_the-first-virtue-of-a-young-man-today-th_1398707.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The first virtue of a young man today - that is, for the next fifty years perhaps, as long as we live in…” — Anonymous", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Anonymous", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The first virtue of a young...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-first-virtue-of-a-young-man-today-that-is-for-the-next-fifty/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-first-virtue-of-a-young-man-today-that-is-for-the-next-fifty/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```