--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Personal dignity is to be measured with…" description: "\"Personal dignity is to be measured with the yardstick of one's conscience, not with that of other people's judgement.\" — Fausto Cercignani" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/118/fausto-cercignani-34783_conscience_personal-dignity-is-to-be-measured-with_567705.png" --- # Personal dignity is to be measured with the yardstick of… ![“Personal dignity is to be measured with the yardstick of one's conscience, not with that of other people's judgement.” quote by Fausto Cercignani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/118/fausto-cercignani-34783_conscience_personal-dignity-is-to-be-measured-with_567705.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/118/fausto-cercignani-34783_conscience_personal-dignity-is-to-be-measured-with_567705.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/118/fausto-cercignani-34783_conscience_personal-dignity-is-to-be-measured-with_567705.png) > “Personal dignity is to be measured with the yardstick of one's conscience, not with that of other people's judgement.” [Fausto Cercignani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fausto-cercignani/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Personal dignity is defined by one's own conscience rather than external judgments, emphasizing internal moral standards over societal approval. **In simple terms:** Dignity comes from inner moral standards, not others' opinions. Key Takeaway Align actions with your conscience. Themes dignity conscience self‑respect authenticity ethics Mood introspective serious Type ethical motivational When to use this quote - making decisions - career choices - social interactions - creative work Key Concepts moral philosophy self‑evaluation integrity Questions to Reflect On - Do you prioritize your conscience over others' expectations? - When does societal feedback become constructive? A Different Perspective External opinions can still influence self‑perception, making it hard to stay purely internally guided. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conscience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscience/) [Dignity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dignity/) [Ethics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethics/) [Judgement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judgement/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Personal dignity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personal-dignity/) [Respect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/respect/) ## Related quotes > [I remember when I came out of an exam thinking I had done well and then I had a clue that maybe one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abbas-kiarostami/i-remember-when-i-came-out-of-an-exam-thinking-i-had-done-well-and/) [Abbas Kiarostami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abbas-kiarostami/) > [“After seeing a movie that dramatizes nuclear war, they worried more about nuclear war; indeed, they felt that it was more likely to happen.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/after-seeing-a-movie-that-dramatizes-nuclear-war-they-worried-more/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [Don't base your Life on People's judgements, simply base it on God's perfect judgement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-mark/don-t-base-your-life-on-people-s-judgements-simply-base-it-on-god-s/) [Terry Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-mark/) > [Because you are women, people will force their thinking on you, their boundaries on you. 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But the organizing of 'social charity' and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/whoever-infringes-upon-individual-charity-i-began-infringes-upon-man/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [“But I had absolutely lost all sense of personal dignity, and could not tear myself away from the spectacle of my own misery.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivan-turgenev/but-i-had-absolutely-lost-all-sense-of-personal-dignity-and-could-not/) [Ivan Turgenev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivan-turgenev/) > [If cruelty is no longer declared unlawful, but instead is applied as a matter of policy, it alters the fundamental relationship of man to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alberto-j-mora/if-cruelty-is-no-longer-declared-unlawful-but-instead-is-applied-as-a/) Alberto J. Mora > [Sex divorced from love is the thief of personal dignity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-thomas/sex-divorced-from-love-is-the-thief-of-personal-dignity/) [Caitlin Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-thomas/) ## More by Fausto Cercignani > [Do not confuse fantasy with imagination; the former consumes itself in daydreaming, the latter stimulates creativity in the arts and in the sciences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fausto-cercignani/do-not-confuse-fantasy-with-imagination-the-former-consumes-itself-in/) [Fausto Cercignani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fausto-cercignani/) > [As long as his strength permits, the poor mortal must always climb new mountains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fausto-cercignani/as-long-as-his-strength-permits-the-poor-mortal-must-always-climb-new/) [Fausto Cercignani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fausto-cercignani/) > [It is certainly a good thing always to forgive with generosity, but it is no doubt just never to forget the wrongs received: they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fausto-cercignani/it-is-certainly-a-good-thing-always-to-forgive-with-generosity-but-it/) [Fausto Cercignani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fausto-cercignani/) > [We learn a lot from the mistakes of others, but even more from our own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fausto-cercignani/we-learn-a-lot-from-the-mistakes-of-others-but-even-more-from-our-own/) [Fausto Cercignani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fausto-cercignani/) > [Inner freedom demands the rejection of any imposition that injures our dignity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fausto-cercignani/inner-freedom-demands-the-rejection-of-any-imposition-that-injures/) [Fausto Cercignani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fausto-cercignani/) > [When you would suffocate or ignore dissent, remember how many times you dissented.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fausto-cercignani/when-you-would-suffocate-or-ignore-dissent-remember-how-many-times/) [Fausto Cercignani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fausto-cercignani/) > [Unlike money, hope is all: for the rich as well as for the poor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fausto-cercignani/unlike-money-hope-is-all-for-the-rich-as-well-as-for-the-poor/) [Fausto Cercignani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fausto-cercignani/) > [A secret remains a secret until you make someone promise never to reveal it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fausto-cercignani/a-secret-remains-a-secret-until-you-make-someone-promise-never-to/) [Fausto Cercignani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fausto-cercignani/) > [If you are living in the past or in the future, you will never find a meaning in the present.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fausto-cercignani/if-you-are-living-in-the-past-or-in-the-future-you-will-never-find-a/) [Fausto Cercignani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fausto-cercignani/) > [Secret thoughts are only half free: they fly undisturbed in the skies of the inner freedom, but they can never leave them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fausto-cercignani/secret-thoughts-are-only-half-free-they-fly-undisturbed-in-the-skies/) [Fausto Cercignani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fausto-cercignani/) > [Your identity is like your shadow: not always visible and yet always present.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fausto-cercignani/your-identity-is-like-your-shadow-not-always-visible-and-yet-always/) [Fausto Cercignani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fausto-cercignani/) > [Sometimes true tolerance requires an extraordinary strength, which we are often too weak to exercise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fausto-cercignani/sometimes-true-tolerance-requires-an-extraordinary-strength-which-we/) [Fausto Cercignani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fausto-cercignani/) > [Your will cannot always choose the path; very often the route is determined by chance or by the will of others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fausto-cercignani/your-will-cannot-always-choose-the-path-very-often-the-route-is/) [Fausto Cercignani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fausto-cercignani/) [Explore all 14 Fausto Cercignani quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fausto-cercignani/) ## More Conscience quotes > [Self-respect and a clear conscience are powerful components of integrity and are the basis for enriching your relationships with others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-waitley/self-respect-and-a-clear-conscience-are-powerful-components-of/) [Denis Waitley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-waitley/) > [“Knowledge without conscience is but the ruin of the soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabelaise/knowledge-without-conscience-is-but-the-ruin-of-the-soul/) Rabelaise > [Writing adds up to the conscience of our times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-firrell/writing-adds-up-to-the-conscience-of-our-times/) [Martin Firrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-firrell/) > [My conscience is really active. So I feel bad about spending excess amount of money on things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/syd/my-conscience-is-really-active-so-i-feel-bad-about-spending-excess/) [Syd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/syd/) > [Let us be thankful for health and competence, and, above all, for a quiet conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/izaak-walton/let-us-be-thankful-for-health-and-competence-and-above-all-for-a/) [Izaak Walton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/izaak-walton/) > [Making money doesn't oblige people to forfeit their honor or their conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-de-rothschild/making-money-doesn-t-oblige-people-to-forfeit-their-honor-or-their/) [Guy de Rothschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-de-rothschild/) > [“If we cannot be happy and powerful and prey on others, we invent conscience and prey on ourselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/if-we-cannot-be-happy-and-powerful-and-prey-on-others-we-invent/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [The God in whose hands are all our days and ways, did cast into my hand one day a book of Martin Luthers; it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bunyan/the-god-in-whose-hands-are-all-our-days-and-ways-did-cast-into-my/) [John Bunyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bunyan/) > [My morals are important to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-parrish/my-morals-are-important-to-me/) [Hunter Parrish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-parrish/) > [Being tolerant does not mean that I share another ones belief. 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At…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/i-ve-worked-with-people-who-are-much-further-to-the-left-than-i-am/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) > [If all the world hated you and believed you wicked, while your own conscience approved of you and absolved you from guilt, you would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/if-all-the-world-hated-you-and-believed-you-wicked-while-your-own/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [ \[D\]on't grow old. With age comes caution, which is another name for cowardice… Whatever else you do in life, don't cultivate a conscience. Without… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hesketh-pearson/d-on-t-grow-old-with-age-comes-caution-which-is-another-name-for/) [Hesketh Pearson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hesketh-pearson/) [Browse all 3,490 Conscience quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscience/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Personal dignity is to be measured with the yardstick of one's conscience, not with that of other people's judgement.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Fausto Cercignani" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fausto-cercignani/personal-dignity-is-to-be-measured-with-the-yardstick-of-one-s/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Conscience" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fausto-cercignani/personal-dignity-is-to-be-measured-with-the-yardstick-of-one-s/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/118/fausto-cercignani-34783_conscience_personal-dignity-is-to-be-measured-with_567705.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/118/fausto-cercignani-34783_conscience_personal-dignity-is-to-be-measured-with_567705.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/118/fausto-cercignani-34783_conscience_personal-dignity-is-to-be-measured-with_567705.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Personal dignity is to be measured with the yardstick of one's conscience, not with that of other people's…” — Fausto Cercignani", "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": "Fausto Cercignani", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fausto-cercignani/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Personal dignity is to be measured...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fausto-cercignani/personal-dignity-is-to-be-measured-with-the-yardstick-of-one-s/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fausto-cercignani/personal-dignity-is-to-be-measured-with-the-yardstick-of-one-s/#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 } } ] } ```