--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Enthusiasm, being the infirmity of bold…" description: "\"Enthusiasm, being the infirmity of bold and ambitious tempers, is naturally accompanied with a spirit of liberty; as superstition,on the contrary, rend..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4d/david-hume-538_ambitious_enthusiasm-being-the-infirmity-of-bold-a_2477872.jpg" --- # Enthusiasm, being the infirmity of bold and ambitious… ![“Enthusiasm, being the infirmity of bold and ambitious tempers, is naturally accompanied with a spirit of liberty; as superstition,on the contrary, renders men tame and abject, and fits them for slavery.” quote by David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4d/david-hume-538_ambitious_enthusiasm-being-the-infirmity-of-bold-a_2477872.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4d/david-hume-538_ambitious_enthusiasm-being-the-infirmity-of-bold-a_2477872.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4d/david-hume-538_ambitious_enthusiasm-being-the-infirmity-of-bold-a_2477872.jpg) > “Enthusiasm, being the infirmity of bold and ambitious tempers, is naturally accompanied with a spirit of liberty; as superstition,on the contrary, renders men tame and abject, and fits them for slavery.” [David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Enthusiasm fuels boldness and liberty, while superstition makes people timid and prone to slavery. **In simple terms:** Enthusiasm promotes freedom; superstition leads to oppression. Key Takeaway Encourage enthusiasm, reject superstition. Themes freedom creativity politics Mood thought‑provoking critical Type philosophical political When to use this quote - political activism - education reform - personal growth - community organizing - artistic expression Key Concepts liberalism psychology social control Questions to Reflect On - When does enthusiasm become dangerous? - How can societies balance enthusiasm and caution? A Different Perspective Excessive enthusiasm can become reckless; superstition can be rationalized. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ambitious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambitious/) [Ambitious Tempers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambitious-tempers-829727/) [Contrary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contrary/) [Enthusiasm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enthusiasm/) [Enthusiasm Infirmity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enthusiasm-infirmity-829726/) [Fit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fit/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Infirmity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/infirmity/) [Infirmity Bold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/infirmity-bold-829728/) [Liberty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liberty/) [Liberty Superstition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liberty-superstition-829725/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Slavery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slavery/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) [Spirit Liberty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit-liberty-333588/) [Superstitions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/superstitions/) [Temper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/temper/) ## Related quotes > [Enthusiasm, being the infirmity of bold and ambitious tempers, is naturally accompanied with aspirit of liberty; as superstition, on the contrary, renders men tame…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/enthusiasm-being-the-infirmity-of-bold-and-ambitious-tempers-is/) [David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/) > [My vigour relents. I pardon something to the spirit of liberty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/my-vigour-relents-i-pardon-something-to-the-spirit-of-liberty/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [“I do not think that under modern Western materialism we should have anarchy. I doubt whether we should have enough individual valour and spirit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/i-do-not-think-that-under-modern-western-materialism-we-should-have/) [G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/) > [I love Vermont because of her hills and valleys, her scenery and invigorating climate, but most of all because of her indomitable people. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/calvin-coolidge/i-love-vermont-because-of-her-hills-and-valleys-her-scenery-and/) [Calvin Coolidge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/calvin-coolidge/) > [That the greatest security of the people, against the encroachments and usurpations of their superiors, is to keep the Spirit of Liberty constantly awake,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/that-the-greatest-security-of-the-people-against-the-encroachments/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [“The despotism of custom is everywhere the standing hindrance to human advancement, being in unceasing antagonism to that disposition to aim at something better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-stuart-mill/the-despotism-of-custom-is-everywhere-the-standing-hindrance-to-human/) [John Stuart Mill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-stuart-mill/) > [The church's final word is not 'church' but the glory of the Father and the Son in the Spirit of liberty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-rgen-moltmann/the-church-s-final-word-is-not-church-but-the-glory-of-the-father-and/) [Jürgen Moltmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-rgen-moltmann/) > [The spirit of liberty is the spirit which is not too sure that it is right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/learned-hand/the-spirit-of-liberty-is-the-spirit-which-is-not-too-sure-that-it-is-2/) [Learned Hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/learned-hand/) > [Liberty is not about class war, income war, race war, national war, a war between the sexes, or any other conflict apart from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-tucker/liberty-is-not-about-class-war-income-war-race-war-national-war-a-war/) [Jeffrey Tucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-tucker/) > [The spirit of liberty is the spirit which is not too sure that it is right; the spirit of liberty is the spirit which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/learned-hand/the-spirit-of-liberty-is-the-spirit-which-is-not-too-sure-that-it-is/) [Learned Hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/learned-hand/) > [The spirit of liberty is not merely, as multitudes imagine, a jealousy of our own particular rights, but a respect for the rights of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/the-spirit-of-liberty-is-not-merely-as-multitudes-imagine-a-jealousy/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [Life without Liberty is like a body without spirit. Liberty without thought is like a disturbed spirit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/life-without-liberty-is-like-a-body-without-spirit-liberty-without/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) > [Liberty lies in the hearts of men and women; when it dies there, no constitution, no law, no court can save it; no constitution,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/learned-hand/liberty-lies-in-the-hearts-of-men-and-women-when-it-dies-there-no/) [Learned Hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/learned-hand/) > [The spirit of liberty is the spirit of him who, near two thousand years ago, taught mankind that lesson it has never learned ... .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/learned-hand/the-spirit-of-liberty-is-the-spirit-of-him-who-near-two-thousand/) [Learned Hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/learned-hand/) > [Liberty lies in the hearts of men and women; when it dies there, no constitution, no law, no court can save it ... The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/learned-hand/liberty-lies-in-the-hearts-of-men-and-women-when-it-dies-there-no-4/) [Learned Hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/learned-hand/) ## More by David Hume > [“Beauty in things exists in the mind that contemplates them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/beauty-in-things-exists-in-the-mind-that-contemplates-them/) [David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/) > [“It is impossible for us to think of any thing, which we have not antecedently felt, either by our external or internal senses.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/it-is-impossible-for-us-to-think-of-any-thing-which-we-have-not/) [David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/) > [All morality depends upon our sentiments; and when any action or quality of the mind pleases us after a certain manner we say it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/all-morality-depends-upon-our-sentiments-and-when-any-action-or/) [David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/) > [And indeed nothing but the most determined scepticism, along with a great degree of indolence, can justify this aversion to metaphysics. 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When I hear a man is religious , I conclude…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/they-all-make-up-new-species-of-crime-and-bring-unhappiness-in-their/) [David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/) > [There is not to be found, in all history, any miracle attested by a sufficient number of men, of such unquestioned good sense, education…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/there-is-not-to-be-found-in-all-history-any-miracle-attested-by-a/) [David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/) > [“But though there be naturally a wide difference in point of delicacy between one person and another, nothing tends further to encrease and improve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/but-though-there-be-naturally-a-wide-difference-in-point-of-delicacy/) [David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/) [Explore all 487 David Hume quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/) ## More Ambitious quotes > [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 want my squad to be confident, ambitious. 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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/) > [“Getting rich is easy, staying rich is impressive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-trip/getting-rich-is-easy-staying-rich-is-impressive/) [Don Trip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-trip/) > [Trying to be perfect may be inevitable for people who are smart and ambitious and interested in the world and its good opinion...What is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/trying-to-be-perfect-may-be-inevitable-for-people-who-are-smart-and/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [Business is always a struggle. There are always obstacles and competitors. 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The fools are the happiest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hippolyte-taine/there-are-four-varieties-in-society-the-lovers-the-ambitious/) [Hippolyte Taine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hippolyte-taine/) > [People who are ambitious - politicians who crave power - think that they're in control of it, but at some point, the movement that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/people-who-are-ambitious-politicians-who-crave-power-think-that-they/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [I'm not ambitious. Not a bit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/indira-gandhi/i-m-not-ambitious-not-a-bit/) [Indira Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/indira-gandhi/) > [Aggressive and hard-charging women violate unwritten rules about acceptable social conduct. 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It is discrimination, isolation. "It is just me. What do I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evo-morales/to-talk-only-about-national-security-national-defense-means-to-be/) [Evo Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evo-morales/) [Browse all 1,269 Ambitious quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambitious/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Enthusiasm, being the infirmity of bold and ambitious tempers, is naturally accompanied with a spirit of liberty; as superstition,on the contrary, renders men tame and abject, and fits them for slavery.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "David Hume" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/enthusiasm-being-the-infirmity-of-bold-and-ambitious-tempers-is-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ambitious" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/enthusiasm-being-the-infirmity-of-bold-and-ambitious-tempers-is-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4d/david-hume-538_ambitious_enthusiasm-being-the-infirmity-of-bold-a_2477872.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4d/david-hume-538_ambitious_enthusiasm-being-the-infirmity-of-bold-a_2477872.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4d/david-hume-538_ambitious_enthusiasm-being-the-infirmity-of-bold-a_2477872.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Enthusiasm, being the infirmity of bold and ambitious tempers, is naturally accompanied with a spirit of…” — David Hume", "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": "David Hume", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Enthusiasm, being the infirmity of bold...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/enthusiasm-being-the-infirmity-of-bold-and-ambitious-tempers-is-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/enthusiasm-being-the-infirmity-of-bold-and-ambitious-tempers-is-2/#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 } } ] } ```