--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: That virtue which requires to be ever…" description: "\"That virtue which requires to be ever guarded is scarce worth the sentinel.\" — Oliver Goldsmith" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/929/oliver-goldsmith-772_guarded_that-virtue-which-requires-to-be-ever-gu_831657.png" --- # That virtue which requires to be ever guarded is scarce… ![“That virtue which requires to be ever guarded is scarce worth the sentinel.” quote by Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/929/oliver-goldsmith-772_guarded_that-virtue-which-requires-to-be-ever-gu_831657.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/929/oliver-goldsmith-772_guarded_that-virtue-which-requires-to-be-ever-gu_831657.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/929/oliver-goldsmith-772_guarded_that-virtue-which-requires-to-be-ever-gu_831657.png) > “That virtue which requires to be ever guarded is scarce worth the sentinel.” [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Guarded virtues are less valuable than those freely given; vigilance can diminish worth. **In simple terms:** Guarded virtues lose value. Key Takeaway Practice openness over excessive caution. Themes virtue guardianship value trust Mood thoughtful cautious Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - friendships - leadership - community building Key Concepts ethics philosophy human nature Questions to Reflect On - Is vigilance always protective? - When does caution become harmful? A Different Perspective Excessive guarding may stifle generosity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Guarded](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guarded/) [Guarded Scarce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guarded-scarce-563871/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Requires Guarded](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/requires-guarded-563873/) [Scarce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scarce/) [Scarce Worth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scarce-worth-563872/) [Sentinels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sentinels/) [Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virtue/) [Virtue Requires](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virtue-requires-333366/) ## Related quotes > [That theatrical kind of virtue, which requires publicity for its stage, and an applauding world for its audience, could not be depended on, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/that-theatrical-kind-of-virtue-which-requires-publicity-for-its-stage/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [Freedom requires virtue. Virtue requires faith. And faith, in turn, requires freedom. You can't have coerced state-sanctioned religion. It has to be utterly free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-metaxas/freedom-requires-virtue-virtue-requires-faith-and-faith-in-turn/) [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) > [“❤️Kindness is a virtue that requires the least amount of effort and which can make the greatest profound difference throughout humanity!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-pina/kindness-is-a-virtue-that-requires-the-least-amount-of-effort-and/) [Timothy Pina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-pina/) > [Humility is the virtue that requires the greatest amount of effort.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-philippine-duchesne/humility-is-the-virtue-that-requires-the-greatest-amount-of-effort/) [Rose Philippine Duchesne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-philippine-duchesne/) > [In your judgment virtue requires no reward, and is to be sought for itself, unaccompanied by external benefits. \[Lat., Judice te mercede caret, per…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/in-your-judgment-virtue-requires-no-reward-and-is-to-be-sought-for/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [“He was coming to understand why the other sentinels had nicknamed her Tricks. It wasn’t just because they had taught her all the dirty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thea-harrison/he-was-coming-to-understand-why-the-other-sentinels-had-nicknamed-her/) [Thea Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thea-harrison/) > [From camp to camp, through the foul womb of night, The hum of either army stilly sounds, That the fixed sentinels almost receive The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/from-camp-to-camp-through-the-foul-womb-of-night-the-hum-of-either/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“Sentinels died and wards fade, but I am everliving.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-guymer/sentinels-died-and-wards-fade-but-i-am-everliving/) [David Guymer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-guymer/) > [Your endowment is, to receive all those ordinances in the house of the Lord, which are necessary for you, after you have departed this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brigham-young/your-endowment-is-to-receive-all-those-ordinances-in-the-house-of-the/) [Brigham Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brigham-young/) > [We, especially those of us in depoliticized and pacified societies, need to cast a colder eye at our self-perceptions, now and in the past,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/we-especially-those-of-us-in-depoliticized-and-pacified-societies/) [Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/) > [How beautiful it is for a man to die Upon the walls of Zion! to be called Like a watch-worn and weary sentinel, To…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-parker-willis/how-beautiful-it-is-for-a-man-to-die-upon-the-walls-of-zion-to-be/) [Nathaniel Parker Willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-parker-willis/) > [It is a noble land that God has given us: a land that can feed and clothe the world; a land whose coastlines would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-j-beveridge/it-is-a-noble-land-that-god-has-given-us-a-land-that-can-feed-and/) [Albert J. Beveridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-j-beveridge/) > [So possible is it for us to roll ourselves up in wickedness, till we grow invulnerable by conscience; and that sentinel, once dozed, sleeps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-defoe/so-possible-is-it-for-us-to-roll-ourselves-up-in-wickedness-till-we/) [Daniel Defoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-defoe/) > [No person who has not spent a period of his life in those 'stark and sullen solitudes that sentinel the Pole' will understand fully…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-shackleton/no-person-who-has-not-spent-a-period-of-his-life-in-those-stark-and/) [Ernest Shackleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-shackleton/) > [“Sentinels of trees breathe life into bodies of earthly flesh As their mighty arms reach to the stars we join in their quest for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramon-ravenswood/sentinels-of-trees-breathe-life-into-bodies-of-earthly-flesh-as-their/) [Ramon Ravenswood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramon-ravenswood/) ## More by Oliver Goldsmith > [The fortunate circumstances of our lives are generally found, at last, to be of our own producing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/the-fortunate-circumstances-of-our-lives-are-generally-found-at-last/) [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) > [How happy he who crowns in shades like these, A youth of labour with an age of ease.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/how-happy-he-who-crowns-in-shades-like-these-a-youth-of-labour-with/) [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) > [One man is born with a silver spoon in his mouth, and the other with a wooden ladle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/one-man-is-born-with-a-silver-spoon-in-his-mouth-and-the-other-with-a/) [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) > [He cast off his friends as a huntsman his pack, For he knew when he pleas'd he could whistle them back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/he-cast-off-his-friends-as-a-huntsman-his-pack-for-he-knew-when-he/) [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) > [Even children follow'd with endearing wile, And pluck'd his gown, to share the good man's smile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/even-children-follow-d-with-endearing-wile-and-pluck-d-his-gown-to/) [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) > [The premises being thus settled, I proceed to observe that the concatenation of self-existence, proceeding in a reciprocal duplicate ratio, naturally produces a problematical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/the-premises-being-thus-settled-i-proceed-to-observe-that-the/) [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) > [Truth from his lips prevailed with double sway, and fools, who came to scoff, remained to pray.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/truth-from-his-lips-prevailed-with-double-sway-and-fools-who-came-to/) [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) > [Politics resemble religion; attempting to divest either of ceremony is the most certain mode of bringing either into contempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/politics-resemble-religion-attempting-to-divest-either-of-ceremony-is/) [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) > [To what fortuitous occurrence do we not owe every pleasure and convenience of our lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/to-what-fortuitous-occurrence-do-we-not-owe-every-pleasure-and/) [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) > [Every acknowledgment of gratitude is a circumstance of humiliation; and some are found to submit to frequent mortifications of this kind, proclaiming what obligations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/every-acknowledgment-of-gratitude-is-a-circumstance-of-humiliation/) [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) > [ \[T\]here are depths of thousands of miles which are hidden from our inquiry. The only tidings we have from those unfathomable regions are by… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/t-here-are-depths-of-thousands-of-miles-which-are-hidden-from-our/) [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) > [Like the bee, we should make our industry our amusement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/like-the-bee-we-should-make-our-industry-our-amusement/) [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) > [Age, that lessens the enjoyment of life, increases our desire of living](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/age-that-lessens-the-enjoyment-of-life-increases-our-desire-of-living/) [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) > [Thus let me hold thee to my heart, And every care resign: And we shall never, never part, My life-my all that's mine!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/thus-let-me-hold-thee-to-my-heart-and-every-care-resign-and-we-shall/) [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) > [Here lies David Garrick, describe me who can, An abridgment of all that was pleasant in man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/here-lies-david-garrick-describe-me-who-can-an-abridgment-of-all-that/) [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) [Explore all 375 Oliver Goldsmith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) ## More Guarded quotes > [And if the big dog ain't me, then the house won't get guarded - period.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaquille-o-neal/and-if-the-big-dog-ain-t-me-then-the-house-won-t-get-guarded-period/) [Shaquille O'Neal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaquille-o-neal/) > [Another success is the post-office, with its educating energy augmented by cheapness and guarded by a certain religious sentimentin mankind; so that the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/another-success-is-the-post-office-with-its-educating-energy/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [A lie is an excuse guarded](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-swift/a-lie-is-an-excuse-guarded/) [Jonathan Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-swift/) > [The streets, at least in this part of town, seemed impossibly clean in comparison to London. The public telephones were unvandalised. For a London…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-james/the-streets-at-least-in-this-part-of-town-seemed-impossibly-clean-in/) [Clive James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-james/) > [I'm a girl who has been tamping down her emotions and keeping them tightly guarded her whole life. And that works really well for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-patterson/i-m-a-girl-who-has-been-tamping-down-her-emotions-and-keeping-them/) [James Patterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-patterson/) > [“He was guarded behind a hundred fences of reserve and anger.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-zimmer-bradley/he-was-guarded-behind-a-hundred-fences-of-reserve-and-anger/) [Marion Zimmer Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-zimmer-bradley/) > [For every one pupil who needs to be guarded against a weak excess of sensibility there are three who need to be awakened from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-every-one-pupil-who-needs-to-be-guarded-against-a-weak-excess-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [That one never need to look beyond the love of money for explanation of human behavior is one of the most jealously guarded simplification…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/that-one-never-need-to-look-beyond-the-love-of-money-for-explanation/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [Now one of the most essential branches of English liberty, is the freedom of one's house. A man's house is his castle; and while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-otis/now-one-of-the-most-essential-branches-of-english-liberty-is-the/) [James Otis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-otis/) > [I'm the perfect amount of guarded. I don't reveal too much, and I never reveal who the songs are about. They are real life.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-clarkson/i-m-the-perfect-amount-of-guarded-i-don-t-reveal-too-much-and-i-never/) [Kelly Clarkson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-clarkson/) > [A group is as healthy as its 'social contract' is clear; a congregation as faithful as its covenant is mutually understood; a pastor as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-group-is-as-healthy-as-its-social-contract-is-clear-a-congregation/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I have always used rather large execution squads, since I declined to use men who were specialists for shots in the neck (Genickschussspezialisten). Each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-blobel/i-have-always-used-rather-large-execution-squads-since-i-declined-to/) [Paul Blobel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-blobel/) > [He travels safe and not unpleasantly who is guarded by poverty and guided by love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sidney/he-travels-safe-and-not-unpleasantly-who-is-guarded-by-poverty-and/) [Philip Sidney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sidney/) > [Pale and pinched-up faces hovered about the windows where was tempting food; hungry eyes wandered over the profusion guarded by one thin sheet of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/pale-and-pinched-up-faces-hovered-about-the-windows-where-was/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [We live in a world that has walls, and those walls have to be guarded by men with guns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-sorkin/we-live-in-a-world-that-has-walls-and-those-walls-have-to-be-guarded/) [Aaron Sorkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-sorkin/) [Browse all 278 Guarded quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guarded/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "That virtue which requires to be ever guarded is scarce worth the sentinel.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Oliver Goldsmith" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/that-virtue-which-requires-to-be-ever-guarded-is-scarce-worth-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Guarded" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/that-virtue-which-requires-to-be-ever-guarded-is-scarce-worth-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/929/oliver-goldsmith-772_guarded_that-virtue-which-requires-to-be-ever-gu_831657.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/929/oliver-goldsmith-772_guarded_that-virtue-which-requires-to-be-ever-gu_831657.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/929/oliver-goldsmith-772_guarded_that-virtue-which-requires-to-be-ever-gu_831657.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“That virtue which requires to be ever guarded is scarce worth the sentinel.” — Oliver Goldsmith", "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": "Oliver Goldsmith", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "That virtue which requires to be...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/that-virtue-which-requires-to-be-ever-guarded-is-scarce-worth-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/that-virtue-which-requires-to-be-ever-guarded-is-scarce-worth-the/#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 } } ] } ```