--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I’m not sure I know what ‘simple-hearted’…" description: "\"“I’m not sure I know what ‘simple-hearted’ means,” I said haughtily. “When there’s no deceit or malice in your heart. Most of us have some; it protects..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04d/gail-godwin-13566_heart_i-m-not-sure-i-know-what-simple-hearted_2952388.jpg" --- # I’m not sure I know what ‘simple-hearted’ means,” I said… ![“I’m not sure I know what ‘simple-hearted’ means,” I said haughtily. “When there’s no deceit or malice in your heart. Most of us have some; it protects us. People without it are rare.” quote by Gail Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04d/gail-godwin-13566_heart_i-m-not-sure-i-know-what-simple-hearted_2952388.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04d/gail-godwin-13566_heart_i-m-not-sure-i-know-what-simple-hearted_2952388.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04d/gail-godwin-13566_heart_i-m-not-sure-i-know-what-simple-hearted_2952388.jpg) > ““I’m not sure I know what ‘simple-hearted’ means,” I said haughtily. “When there’s no deceit or malice in your heart. Most of us have some; it protects us. People without it are rare.”” [Gail Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A simple‑hearted person lacks deceit, yet such purity is rare and may serve protective functions. **In simple terms:** Simple‑heartedness is rare but protective. Key Takeaway Cultivate honesty while recognizing its rarity. Themes honesty innocence trust Mood thoughtful cautious Type ethical psychological When to use this quote - friendships - leadership - conflict resolution Key Concepts psychology ethical behavior Questions to Reflect On - What are the risks of being too trusting? - How can you balance honesty with discernment? A Different Perspective Naïveté can be exploited. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) ## Related quotes > [“A ribcage is no armour for a heart; it protects nothing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tonya-alexandra/a-ribcage-is-no-armour-for-a-heart-it-protects-nothing/) Tonya Alexandra > [The simple-hearted and sincere never do more than half deceive themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-joubert/the-simple-hearted-and-sincere-never-do-more-than-half-deceive/) [Joseph Joubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-joubert/) > [“In most cases, people, even the wicked, are much more naive and simple hearted than we suppose. And we ourselves are, too.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevskys/in-most-cases-people-even-the-wicked-are-much-more-naive-and-simple/) Fyodor Dostoyevskys > [Beauty as we feel it is something indescribebale, what it is or what it means can never be said.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-santayana/beauty-as-we-feel-it-is-something-indescribebale-what-it-is-or-what/) [George Santayana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-santayana/) > [If what we said cannot go beyond the century we live in, it means that we have said nothing. Let us say something for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/if-what-we-said-cannot-go-beyond-the-century-we-live-in-it-means-that/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [Someone killed my Mother and my Father and my Sister?" "Yes, someone did." "A Man?" "A Man." "Which means," said Bod, "you're asking the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/someone-killed-my-mother-and-my-father-and-my-sister-yes-someone-did/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“who would expect less?" she said. " You're a Wiggin." " Whatever that means." He said. " It means that you are going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/who-would-expect-less-she-said-you-re-a-wiggin-whatever-that-means-he/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [“When your wondering what to say, or how you look... just remember... she is already out with you. That means, she said yes, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-smith/when-your-wondering-what-to-say-or-how-you-look-just-remember-she-is/) [Will Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-smith/) > [“A simple acceptance of what comes to us, regarding it as neither bad nor good. “Werde, der du bist, as he would have it,”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-atkinson/a-simple-acceptance-of-what-comes-to-us-regarding-it-as-neither-bad/) [Kate Atkinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-atkinson/) > [“Nothing, not even dictionaries, can tell you what anything means," he said. "The reality of things is just sad, for the most part.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-rachman/nothing-not-even-dictionaries-can-tell-you-what-anything-means-he/) [Tom Rachman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-rachman/) > [This means nothing,” she said. “Less than nothing,” he lied. “I’ll hate myself later.” “I hate myself now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/this-means-nothing-she-said-less-than-nothing-he-lied-i-ll-hate/) [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) > [My heart jumps out of its cage to see what the fuss is about. Damn thing. Always so hopeful, but my voice hides it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-wylie/my-heart-jumps-out-of-its-cage-to-see-what-the-fuss-is-about-damn/) [Sarah Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-wylie/) > [While we've youth in our hearts, we can never grow old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/while-we-ve-youth-in-our-hearts-we-can-never-grow-old/) [Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/) > [“He held her like a new woman and what she felt felt almost as good as love had, and each of them called it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dunn/he-held-her-like-a-new-woman-and-what-she-felt-felt-almost-as-good-as/) [Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) > [Against his own will, almost, Will felt himself understanding; he would have done anything, he thought, told any lie, taken any risk, to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/against-his-own-will-almost-will-felt-himself-understanding-he-would/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) ## More by Gail Godwin > [“I contemplated how I was going to get through the rest of the day and felt the onset of a terror I thought I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/i-contemplated-how-i-was-going-to-get-through-the-rest-of-the-day-and/) [Gail Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/) > [“People commit thousands of small suicides every day that go unnoticed”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/people-commit-thousands-of-small-suicides-every-day-that-go-unnoticed/) [Gail Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/) > [There are two kinds of people. One kind, you can just tell by looking at them at what point they congealed into their final…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/there-are-two-kinds-of-people-one-kind-you-can-just-tell-by-looking/) [Gail Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/) > [Something's your vocation if it keeps making more of you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/something-s-your-vocation-if-it-keeps-making-more-of-you/) [Gail Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/) > [None of us suddenly becomes something overnight. The preparations have been in the making for lifetime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/none-of-us-suddenly-becomes-something-overnight-the-preparations-have/) [Gail Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/) > [The best antidote I have found is to yearn for something. As long as you yearn, you can't congeal: There is a forward motion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/the-best-antidote-i-have-found-is-to-yearn-for-something-as-long-as/) [Gail Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/) > [“Other people don’t exist when you’re not with them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/other-people-don-t-exist-when-you-re-not-with-them/) [Gail Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/) > [I read constantly. If I don't have a good book, I'm beside myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/i-read-constantly-if-i-don-t-have-a-good-book-i-m-beside-myself/) [Gail Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/) > [Dreams say what they mean, but they don't say it in daytime language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/dreams-say-what-they-mean-but-they-don-t-say-it-in-daytime-language/) [Gail Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/) > [The characters that I create are parts of myself and I send them on little missions to find out what I don’t know yet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/the-characters-that-i-create-are-parts-of-myself-and-i-send-them-on/) [Gail Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/) > [During the act of writing I have told myself something that I didn't know I knew.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/during-the-act-of-writing-i-have-told-myself-something-that-i-didn-t/) [Gail Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/) > [“Yes, if you believed in words, if you lived by words, you had better be careful which words you say and how you say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/yes-if-you-believed-in-words-if-you-lived-by-words-you-had-better-be/) [Gail Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/) > [I'm always aware that I risk being taken for a neurasthenic prima donna when I explain to someone who wants 'just a little' of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/i-m-always-aware-that-i-risk-being-taken-for-a-neurasthenic-prima/) [Gail Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/) > [I believe that with enough practice and good faith, you can learn to recognize when the work is achieved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/i-believe-that-with-enough-practice-and-good-faith-you-can-learn-to/) [Gail Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/) > [If there is such a thing as sin in this world, I think it must be shutting oneself up against hope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/if-there-is-such-a-thing-as-sin-in-this-world-i-think-it-must-be/) [Gail Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/) [Explore all 50 Gail Godwin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/) ## More Heart quotes > [Against his own will, almost, Will felt himself understanding; he would have done anything, he thought, told any lie, taken any risk, to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/against-his-own-will-almost-will-felt-himself-understanding-he-would/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [“He held her like a new woman and what she felt felt almost as good as love had, and each of them called it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dunn/he-held-her-like-a-new-woman-and-what-she-felt-felt-almost-as-good-as/) [Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) > [While we've youth in our hearts, we can never grow old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/while-we-ve-youth-in-our-hearts-we-can-never-grow-old/) [Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/) > [My heart jumps out of its cage to see what the fuss is about. Damn thing. Always so hopeful, but my voice hides it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-wylie/my-heart-jumps-out-of-its-cage-to-see-what-the-fuss-is-about-damn/) [Sarah Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-wylie/) > [I love because there is not enough room in my heart to hate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rena-kornreich-gelissen/i-love-because-there-is-not-enough-room-in-my-heart-to-hate/) Rena Kornreich Gelissen > [“He didn't break my heart. No one can break your heart except you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/he-didn-t-break-my-heart-no-one-can-break-your-heart-except-you/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) > [The United States cannot and should not discriminate on the basis of religion. The free exercise of religion is at the very heart of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-pence/the-united-states-cannot-and-should-not-discriminate-on-the-basis-of/) [Mike Pence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-pence/) > [Love is like that, fragile and light. No wonder it rests upon our hearts in intangible moments, bids us follow fleeting thoughts and ideas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-is-like-that-fragile-and-light-no-wonder-it-rests-upon-our/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When we are capable of living in the moment free from the tyranny of "shoulds," free from the nagging sensation that this moment isn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-z-borysenko/when-we-are-capable-of-living-in-the-moment-free-from-the-tyranny-of/) [Joan Z. Borysenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-z-borysenko/) > [My father longed for a better life for us, and when I was nine he got a job as a heart surgeon in Belfast.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-melua/my-father-longed-for-a-better-life-for-us-and-when-i-was-nine-he-got/) [Katie Melua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-melua/) > [O tiger's heart wrapped in a woman's hide!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/o-tiger-s-heart-wrapped-in-a-woman-s-hide/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Love will fan the flame, and that flame will warm the heart that's waiting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-w-smith/love-will-fan-the-flame-and-that-flame-will-warm-the-heart-that-s/) [Michael W. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-w-smith/) > [Always have the fear of God in your heart, and remember that God is always with you, everywhere, whether you are walking or sitting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gennadius-of-constantinople/always-have-the-fear-of-god-in-your-heart-and-remember-that-god-is/) [Gennadius of Constantinople](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gennadius-of-constantinople/) > [Set NOT your hearts on the flowers of this world. They shall fade and die. Prize the Rose of Sharon and the Lily of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/set-not-your-hearts-on-the-flowers-of-this-world-they-shall-fade-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“She couldn't break the orbit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-schwab/she-couldn-t-break-the-orbit/) [Victoria Schwab](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-schwab/) [Browse all 45,172 Heart quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I’m not sure I know what ‘simple-hearted’ means,” I said haughtily. “When there’s no deceit or malice in your heart. Most of us have some; it protects us. People without it are rare.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gail Godwin" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/i-m-not-sure-i-know-what-simple-hearted-means-i-said-haughtily-when/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Heart" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/i-m-not-sure-i-know-what-simple-hearted-means-i-said-haughtily-when/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04d/gail-godwin-13566_heart_i-m-not-sure-i-know-what-simple-hearted_2952388.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04d/gail-godwin-13566_heart_i-m-not-sure-i-know-what-simple-hearted_2952388.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04d/gail-godwin-13566_heart_i-m-not-sure-i-know-what-simple-hearted_2952388.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I’m not sure I know what ‘simple-hearted’ means,” I said haughtily. “When there’s no deceit or malice in…” — Gail Godwin", "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": "Gail Godwin", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I’m not sure I know what...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/i-m-not-sure-i-know-what-simple-hearted-means-i-said-haughtily-when/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/i-m-not-sure-i-know-what-simple-hearted-means-i-said-haughtily-when/#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 } } ] } ```