--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Cleanliness in the cat world is usually a…" description: "\"Cleanliness in the cat world is usually a virtue put above godliness.\" — Carl Van Vechten" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/179/carl-van-vechten-27250_cat_cleanliness-in-the-cat-world-is-usually_418722.jpg" --- # Cleanliness in the cat world is usually a virtue put above… ![“Cleanliness in the cat world is usually a virtue put above godliness.” quote by Carl Van Vechten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/179/carl-van-vechten-27250_cat_cleanliness-in-the-cat-world-is-usually_418722.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/179/carl-van-vechten-27250_cat_cleanliness-in-the-cat-world-is-usually_418722.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/179/carl-van-vechten-27250_cat_cleanliness-in-the-cat-world-is-usually_418722.jpg) > “Cleanliness in the cat world is usually a virtue put above godliness.” [Carl Van Vechten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-van-vechten/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. In the cat world, cleanliness is valued even more than divine qualities. **In simple terms:** Cats prioritize cleanliness over spirituality. Key Takeaway Maintain hygiene as a core value. Themes hygiene values animal behavior humor Mood playful lighthearted Type observational humorous When to use this quote - pet care - personal grooming - environmental cleanliness Key Concepts ethics cultural critique Questions to Reflect On - Why is cleanliness emphasized? - What does this say about human vs. animal values? A Different Perspective Humor may oversimplify complex cultural values. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cat/) [Cats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cats/) [Cleanliness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cleanliness/) [Godliness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/godliness/) [Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virtue/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [Women are dirt searchers; their greatest worth is irradicating rings on collars and tables. Never mind real-estate boards' corruption and racism, here's your soapsuds.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florynce-kennedy/women-are-dirt-searchers-their-greatest-worth-is-irradicating-rings/) [Florynce Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florynce-kennedy/) > [Cleanliness is indeed next to godliness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/cleanliness-is-indeed-next-to-godliness/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Cleanliness might be next to godliness, but honey, ugliness will get you nowhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-wells/cleanliness-might-be-next-to-godliness-but-honey-ugliness-will-get/) [Rebecca Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-wells/) > [If truth were told, most of us spend longer each day on personal cleanliness than on practical godliness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-begg/if-truth-were-told-most-of-us-spend-longer-each-day-on-personal/) [Alistair Begg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-begg/) > [Mrs Joe was a very clean housekeeper, but had an exquisite art of making her clenliness more umcomfortable and unacceptable than dirt itself. Cleanliness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/mrs-joe-was-a-very-clean-housekeeper-but-had-an-exquisite-art-of-3/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [Skepticism, not cleanliness, is next to godliness. Skepticism is the father of freedom. It is like the pry that holds open the door for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/skepticism-not-cleanliness-is-next-to-godliness-skepticism-is-the/) [Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) > [A good digestion is as truly obligatory as a good conscience; pure blood is as truly a part of mankind as a pure faith;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/a-good-digestion-is-as-truly-obligatory-as-a-good-conscience-pure/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [If by the quarter of the twentieth century godliness wasn’t next to something more interesting than cleanliness, it might be time to reevaluate our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/if-by-the-quarter-of-the-twentieth-century-godliness-wasn-t-next-to/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [Cleanliness', chuckled Sir Benjamin, noting his great niece's delighted smile as her eyes rested upon him, 'comes next to godliness, eh, Maria?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-goudge/cleanliness-chuckled-sir-benjamin-noting-his-great-niece-s-delighted/) [Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) > [The doctrines of religion are resolved into carefulness; carefulness into vigorousness; vigorousness into guiltlessness; guiltlessness into abstemiousness; abstemiousness into cleanliness; cleanliness into godliness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/the-doctrines-of-religion-are-resolved-into-carefulness-carefulness/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [Disease an never be conquered, can never be quelled by emotion's willful screaming or faith's symbolic prayer. It can only be conquered by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-o-casey/disease-an-never-be-conquered-can-never-be-quelled-by-emotion-s/) [Sean O'Casey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-o-casey/) > [Most of us have heard the saying, 'Cleanliness is next to godliness.' That's a sentiment I value, but another virtue has inspired me to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-gardner/most-of-us-have-heard-the-saying-cleanliness-is-next-to-godliness/) [Chris Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-gardner/) > [Cleanliness is not next to godliness nowadays, for cleanliness is made an essential and godliness is regarded as an offence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/cleanliness-is-not-next-to-godliness-nowadays-for-cleanliness-is-made/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) > [Juliet's version of cleanliness was next to godliness, which was to say it was erratic, past all understanding and was seldom seen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/juliet-s-version-of-cleanliness-was-next-to-godliness-which-was-to/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [Cleanliness is not next to godliness. It isn't even in the same neighborhood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/cleanliness-is-not-next-to-godliness-it-isn-t-even-in-the-same/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) ## More by Carl Van Vechten > [The cat seldom interferes with other people's rights. His intelligence keeps him from doing many of the fool things that complicate life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/the-cat-seldom-interferes-with-other-people-s-rights-his-intelligence/) [Carl Van Vechten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-van-vechten/) > [Is a little experience too much to pay for learning to know oneself?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/is-a-little-experience-too-much-to-pay-for-learning-to-know-oneself/) [Carl Van Vechten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-van-vechten/) > [I've photographed everybody from Matisse to Isamu Noguchi.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/i-ve-photographed-everybody-from-matisse-to-isamu-noguchi/) [Carl Van Vechten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-van-vechten/) > [There is, indeed, no single quality of the cat that man could not emulate to his advantage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/there-is-indeed-no-single-quality-of-the-cat-that-man-could-not/) [Carl Van Vechten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-van-vechten/) > [A cat is never vulgar.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/a-cat-is-never-vulgar/) [Carl Van Vechten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-van-vechten/) > [The lack of imagination or invention most people display in naming pussies is almost beyond credence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/the-lack-of-imagination-or-invention-most-people-display-in-naming/) [Carl Van Vechten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-van-vechten/) > [Catnip is vodka and whisky to most cats.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/catnip-is-vodka-and-whisky-to-most-cats/) [Carl Van Vechten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-van-vechten/) > [There are ... two kinds of people in this world, those who long to be understood and those who long to be misunderstood. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/there-are-two-kinds-of-people-in-this-world-those-who-long-to-be/) [Carl Van Vechten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-van-vechten/) > [Cats have gnosis to a degree that is granted to few bishops.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/cats-have-gnosis-to-a-degree-that-is-granted-to-few-bishops/) [Carl Van Vechten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-van-vechten/) > [Note 4. For these and other reasons the cat is also very hard to photograph. The best photographs are instantaneous, as the mere breathing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/note-4-for-these-and-other-reasons-the-cat-is-also-very-hard-to/) [Carl Van Vechten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-van-vechten/) > [As an inspiration to the author, I do not think the cat can be over-estimated. He suggests so much grace, power, beauty, motion, mysticism.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/as-an-inspiration-to-the-author-i-do-not-think-the-cat-can-be-over/) [Carl Van Vechten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-van-vechten/) > [The cat, it is well to remember, remains the friend of man because it pleases him to do so and not because he must.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/the-cat-it-is-well-to-remember-remains-the-friend-of-man-because-it/) [Carl Van Vechten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-van-vechten/) > [An ordinary kitten will ask more questions than any five-year-old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/an-ordinary-kitten-will-ask-more-questions-than-any-five-year-old/) [Carl Van Vechten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-van-vechten/) > [Paris is not a city I should care to approach for the first time after I had passed forty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/paris-is-not-a-city-i-should-care-to-approach-for-the-first-time/) [Carl Van Vechten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-van-vechten/) > [Cats seldom make mistakes, and they never make the same mistake twice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/cats-seldom-make-mistakes-and-they-never-make-the-same-mistake-twice/) [Carl Van Vechten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-van-vechten/) [Explore all 20 Carl Van Vechten quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-van-vechten/) ## More Cat quotes > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [Okay, so I'll admit I'm curious. Big deal. We both know what that leads to. Dead cat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-elizabeth-phillips/okay-so-i-ll-admit-i-m-curious-big-deal-we-both-know-what-that-leads/) [Susan Elizabeth Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-elizabeth-phillips/) > [Most people are sensitized to animals through their cats and dogs, but for me it was a flounder. I used to go fishing with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-mathews/most-people-are-sensitized-to-animals-through-their-cats-and-dogs-but/) [Dan Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-mathews/) > [One reason why my memory decays is that I have three cats, all so loving and insistent that they play cat's-cradle with every train…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-townsend-warner/one-reason-why-my-memory-decays-is-that-i-have-three-cats-all-so/) [Sylvia Townsend Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-townsend-warner/) > [It's an interesting fact that fewer than 17 % of Real cats end their lives with the same name they started with. Much family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/it-s-an-interesting-fact-that-fewer-than-17-of-real-cats-end-their/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [The dog is guided by kindly instinct to the man or woman whose heart is open to his advances. The cat often leaves the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-repplier/the-dog-is-guided-by-kindly-instinct-to-the-man-or-woman-whose-heart/) [Agnes Repplier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-repplier/) > [If you ask me to tell you anything about the nature of what lies beyond the phaneron… my answer is “How should I know?”……](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-gardner/if-you-ask-me-to-tell-you-anything-about-the-nature-of-what-lies/) [Martin Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-gardner/) > [Is man no more than this? Consider him well. Thou ow'st the worm no silk, the beast no hide, the sheep no wool, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/is-man-no-more-than-this-consider-him-well-thou-ow-st-the-worm-no/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [One cat just leads to another. The place is so damned big it doesn't really seem as though there were many cats until you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/one-cat-just-leads-to-another-the-place-is-so-damned-big-it-doesn-t/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [In the olden days in England, you could be hung for stealing a sheep or a loaf of bread. However, if a sheep stole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-harding/in-the-olden-days-in-england-you-could-be-hung-for-stealing-a-sheep/) [Mike Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-harding/) > [Kittens can happen to anyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gallico/kittens-can-happen-to-anyone/) [Paul Gallico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gallico/) > [I think if you keep the box closed long enough you do kill the cat, actually.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-think-if-you-keep-the-box-closed-long-enough-you-do-kill-the-cat/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“All right, you deadly little ghostlings,” I muttered. “Mama says go back to bed! - Cat”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeaniene-frost/all-right-you-deadly-little-ghostlings-i-muttered-mama-says-go-back/) [Jeaniene Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeaniene-frost/) > [Man wishes woman to be peaceable, but in fact she is essentially warlike, like the cat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/man-wishes-woman-to-be-peaceable-but-in-fact-she-is-essentially/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [There are videos I used to take at home, pretending to be a newscaster, interviewing the teapot or my house cat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-wagner/there-are-videos-i-used-to-take-at-home-pretending-to-be-a-newscaster/) [Alex Wagner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-wagner/) [Browse all 2,996 Cat quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cat/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Cleanliness in the cat world is usually a virtue put above godliness.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Carl Van Vechten" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/cleanliness-in-the-cat-world-is-usually-a-virtue-put-above-godliness/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cat" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/cleanliness-in-the-cat-world-is-usually-a-virtue-put-above-godliness/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/179/carl-van-vechten-27250_cat_cleanliness-in-the-cat-world-is-usually_418722.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/179/carl-van-vechten-27250_cat_cleanliness-in-the-cat-world-is-usually_418722.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/179/carl-van-vechten-27250_cat_cleanliness-in-the-cat-world-is-usually_418722.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Cleanliness in the cat world is usually a virtue put above godliness.” — Carl Van Vechten", "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": "Carl Van Vechten", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-van-vechten/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Cleanliness in the cat world is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/cleanliness-in-the-cat-world-is-usually-a-virtue-put-above-godliness/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-van-vechten/cleanliness-in-the-cat-world-is-usually-a-virtue-put-above-godliness/#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 } } ] } ```