--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Good sense is both the first principal…" description: "\"Good sense is both the first principal and the parent source of good writing.\" — Horace" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be3/horace-172_firsts_good-sense-is-both-the-first-principal-a_703942.jpg" --- # Good sense is both the first principal and the parent… ![“Good sense is both the first principal and the parent source of good writing.” quote by Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be3/horace-172_firsts_good-sense-is-both-the-first-principal-a_703942.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be3/horace-172_firsts_good-sense-is-both-the-first-principal-a_703942.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be3/horace-172_firsts_good-sense-is-both-the-first-principal-a_703942.jpg) > “Good sense is both the first principal and the parent source of good writing.” [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Effective writing stems from sound judgment and the foundational principles that guide expression. **In simple terms:** Good writing needs good sense. Key Takeaway Cultivate clear thinking before writing. Themes writing principles clarity Mood thoughtful analytical Type advice educational When to use this quote - essay drafting - editing - teaching writing - public speaking Key Concepts Rhetoric critical thinking Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance judgment with imagination? - When does strict adherence to principles hinder expression? A Different Perspective Good sense alone may not guarantee creativity or originality. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Good sense](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-sense/) [Good writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-writing/) [Parent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parent/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Principal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/principal/) [Principal Parent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/principal-parent-5566347/) [Sense](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sense/) [Sense Principal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sense-principal-5566346/) [Source](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/source/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [The secret of all good writing is sound judgment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/the-secret-of-all-good-writing-is-sound-judgment/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [ Knowledge is the foundation and source of good writing. \[Lat., Scibendi recte sapere est et principium et fons.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/knowledge-is-the-foundation-and-source-of-good-writing-lat-scibendi/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [What prevents a man's speaking good sense with a smile on his face?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/what-prevents-a-man-s-speaking-good-sense-with-a-smile-on-his-face/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [The combination of landing the biggest interview of my career and having a drill in my back reminds me that God only gives us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-roberts/the-combination-of-landing-the-biggest-interview-of-my-career-and/) [Robin Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-roberts/) > [Honestly, I'm blessed with good genes and a good sense of discipline - I eat whatever I want, but I eat very controlled portions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-greczyn/honestly-i-m-blessed-with-good-genes-and-a-good-sense-of-discipline-i/) [Alice Greczyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-greczyn/) > [“It felt really good to do something that made no sense at all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-m-danforth/it-felt-really-good-to-do-something-that-made-no-sense-at-all/) [Emily M. 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I guess I have a good sense of sisterhood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dolly-parton/for-some-reason-i-have-better-luck-when-i-work-with-women-i-guess-i/) [Dolly Parton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dolly-parton/) > [I love Andre 3000 from OutKast. I think we'd complement each other, but I'm hoping he's got a good sense of humour.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paloma-faith/i-love-andre-3000-from-outkast-i-think-we-d-complement-each-other-but/) [Paloma Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paloma-faith/) > [I am persuaded myself that the good sense of the people will always be found to be the best army. They may be led…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/i-am-persuaded-myself-that-the-good-sense-of-the-people-will-always/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [So there you have it: Nature is a rotten mess. But that's only the beginning. 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I don't have the talent for painting, but I have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-bisset/i-am-a-great-lover-of-art-in-many-forms-paintings-objets-textiles-i/) [Jacqueline Bisset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-bisset/) ## More by Horace > [Strange - is it not? That of the myriads who Before us passed the door of Darkness through, Not one returns to tell us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/strange-is-it-not-that-of-the-myriads-who-before-us-passed-the-door/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [“Finxerunt animi, raro et perpauca loquentis. (To action little, less to words inclinded.)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/finxerunt-animi-raro-et-perpauca-loquentis-to-action-little-less-to/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [No verse can give pleasure for long, nor last, that is written by drinkers of water.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/no-verse-can-give-pleasure-for-long-nor-last-that-is-written-by/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [Fate with impartial hand turns out the doom of high and low; her capacious urn is constantly shaking the names of all mankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/fate-with-impartial-hand-turns-out-the-doom-of-high-and-low-her/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [A word, once sent abroad, flies irrevocably.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/a-word-once-sent-abroad-flies-irrevocably/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [“Natales grate numeras? (Do you count your birthdays with gratitude?)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/natales-grate-numeras-do-you-count-your-birthdays-with-gratitude/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [ In a moment comes either death or joyful victory. \[Lat., Horae Momento cita mors venit aut victoria laeta.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/in-a-moment-comes-either-death-or-joyful-victory-lat-horae-momento/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori - It is a sweet and becoming thing to die for ones country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/dulce-et-decorum-est-pro-patria-mori-it-is-a-sweet-and-becoming-thing/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [ Neither men, nor gods, nor booksellers' shelves permit ordinary poets to exist. \[Lat., Mediocribus esse poetis Non homines, non di, non concessere columnae.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/neither-men-nor-gods-nor-booksellers-shelves-permit-ordinary-poets-to/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [Don't yield to that alluring witch, laziness, or else be prepared to surrender all that you have won in your better moments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/don-t-yield-to-that-alluring-witch-laziness-or-else-be-prepared-to/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [Avoid inquisitive persons, for they are sure to be gossips, their ears are open to hear, but they will not keep what is entrusted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/avoid-inquisitive-persons-for-they-are-sure-to-be-gossips-their-ears/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [“You may drive out Nature with a pitchfork, yet she still will hurry back.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/you-may-drive-out-nature-with-a-pitchfork-yet-she-still-will-hurry/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [There is a proper measure in all things, certain limits beyond which and short of which right is not to be found. 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Now the hardest part about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-alexis/the-biggest-change-for-me-as-a-mom-was-realizing-i-needed-to-put/) [Kim Alexis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-alexis/) > [When I first started, my message was about joy, but I didn't really have the vocabulary and life experience to fully deliver it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-mraz/when-i-first-started-my-message-was-about-joy-but-i-didn-t-really/) [Jason Mraz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-mraz/) > [I'm very used to working with first time actors - you can just look back at 'E.T.' with Drew Barrymore, and Christian Bale from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-spielberg/i-m-very-used-to-working-with-first-time-actors-you-can-just-look/) [Steven Spielberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-spielberg/) > [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. 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