--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The only real ill-doing is the…" description: "\"The only real ill-doing is the deprivation of knowledge.\" — Plato" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/743/plato-103_deprivation_the-only-real-ill-doing-is-the-deprivati_1044208.jpg" --- # The only real ill-doing is the deprivation of knowledge. ![“The only real ill-doing is the deprivation of knowledge.” quote by Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/743/plato-103_deprivation_the-only-real-ill-doing-is-the-deprivati_1044208.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/743/plato-103_deprivation_the-only-real-ill-doing-is-the-deprivati_1044208.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/743/plato-103_deprivation_the-only-real-ill-doing-is-the-deprivati_1044208.jpg) > “The only real ill-doing is the deprivation of knowledge.” [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Depriving others of knowledge is the most serious wrongdoing, as it hinders growth and virtue. **In simple terms:** Stealing knowledge is the worst crime. Key Takeaway Promote education and share information. Themes education justice knowledge ethics Mood thoughtful inspirational Type philosophical ethical When to use this quote - Teaching - policy making - community outreach - digital content creation - academic research Key Concepts Philosophy epistemology morality Questions to Reflect On - What responsibilities do we have to share knowledge? - How can societies ensure equitable access? A Different Perspective Access to knowledge can be restricted by power structures. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Deprivation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deprivation/) [Deprivation Knowledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deprivation-knowledge-2458388/) [Doing Deprivation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doing-deprivation-2458389/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Ignorance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ignorance/) [Ill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ill/) [Knowledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowledge/) [Poverty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poverty/) [Real](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real/) [Real Ill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real-ill-1231675/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) ## Related quotes > [I had a dream and so I made a move...A real ill kid who just so happen to stay in school.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-had-a-dream-and-so-i-made-a-move-a-real-ill-kid-who-just-so-happen/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > ['Dragon's Lair' was real ill.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prodigy/dragon-s-lair-was-real-ill/) [Prodigy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prodigy/) > [Love is an intermediate state between possession and deprivation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/love-is-an-intermediate-state-between-possession-and-deprivation/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [When men speak ill of thee, live so that nobody will believe them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/when-men-speak-ill-of-thee-live-so-that-nobody-will-believe-them/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Neither do the ignorant love wisdom or desire to become wise; for this is the grievous thing about ignorance, that those who are neither…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/neither-do-the-ignorant-love-wisdom-or-desire-to-become-wise-for-this/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Let no-one ignorant of geometry enter. Said to have been inscribed above the door of Plato's Academy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/let-no-one-ignorant-of-geometry-enter-said-to-have-been-inscribed/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Many low-income children face chronic stress from nutritional deprivation or persistent violence at home or in the community. By addressing their medical, emotional and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irwin-redlener/many-low-income-children-face-chronic-stress-from-nutritional/) [Irwin Redlener](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irwin-redlener/) > [“Suicide is nothing, but an act of depriving the soul from it's very right to liberation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aniruddha-sastikar/suicide-is-nothing-but-an-act-of-depriving-the-soul-from-it-s-very/) [Aniruddha Sastikar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aniruddha-sastikar/) > [What government has been doing, we've got major programmes now, of billions of pounds, which are directed by central government into these areas of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-prescott/what-government-has-been-doing-we-ve-got-major-programmes-now-of/) [John Prescott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-prescott/) > [My mother suffers mental health problems and has a learning deprivation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-rayner/my-mother-suffers-mental-health-problems-and-has-a-learning/) [Angela Rayner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-rayner/) > [It should surprise no one that the life of the writer - such as it is - is colorless to the point of sensory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/it-should-surprise-no-one-that-the-life-of-the-writer-such-as-it-is/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [Capitalism has created a situation called scarcity. And that scarcity is not natural, it's socially induced. Along with that sense of scarcity, or feeling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-bookchin/capitalism-has-created-a-situation-called-scarcity-and-that-scarcity/) [Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-bookchin/) > [“We have created a manic world nauseous with the pursuit of material wealth. Many also bear their cross of imagined deprivation, while their fellow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthon-st-maarten/we-have-created-a-manic-world-nauseous-with-the-pursuit-of-material/) [Anthon St. Maarten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthon-st-maarten/) > [“SOME OF THE HARDEST parts of parenting never change—like sleep deprivation, which, according to researchers at Queen’s University in Ontario, can in some respects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-senior/some-of-the-hardest-parts-of-parenting-never-change-like-sleep/) [Jennifer Senior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-senior/) > [Deprivation is for me what daffodils were for Wordsworth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/deprivation-is-for-me-what-daffodils-were-for-wordsworth/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) ## More by Plato > [Each man is capable of doing one thing well. If he attempts several, he will fail to achieve distinction in any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/each-man-is-capable-of-doing-one-thing-well-if-he-attempts-several-he/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [You may be sure, dear Crito, that inaccurate language is not only in itself a mistake: it implants evil in men's souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/you-may-be-sure-dear-crito-that-inaccurate-language-is-not-only-in/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“If men learn this, it will implant forgetfulness in their souls; they will cease to exercise memory because they rely on that which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/if-men-learn-this-it-will-implant-forgetfulness-in-their-souls-they/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Knowledge which is acquired under compulsion obtains no hold on the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/knowledge-which-is-acquired-under-compulsion-obtains-no-hold-on-the/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [I do not think it is permitted that a better man be harmed by a worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/i-do-not-think-it-is-permitted-that-a-better-man-be-harmed-by-a-worse/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Any city, however small, is in fact divided into two, one the city of the poor, the other of the rich; these are at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/any-city-however-small-is-in-fact-divided-into-two-one-the-city-of/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [When men speak ill of thee, live so as nobody may believe them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/when-men-speak-ill-of-thee-live-so-as-nobody-may-believe-them/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“The love of man to woman is a thing common and of course, and at first partakes more of instinct and passion than of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-love-of-man-to-woman-is-a-thing-common-and-of-course-and-at-first/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Strange times are these in which we live when old and young are taught in falsehood's school, and the one man that dares to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/strange-times-are-these-in-which-we-live-when-old-and-young-are/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“He was a wise man who invented God.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/he-was-a-wise-man-who-invented-god/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [For let me tell you, that the more the pleasures of the body fade away, the greater to me is the pleasure and charm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/for-let-me-tell-you-that-the-more-the-pleasures-of-the-body-fade-away/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“What shall we say about those spectators, then, who can see a plurality of beautiful things, but not beauty itself, and who are incapable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/what-shall-we-say-about-those-spectators-then-who-can-see-a-plurality/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Geometry existed before creation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/geometry-existed-before-creation/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [When men speak ill of thee, live so that nobody will believe them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/when-men-speak-ill-of-thee-live-so-that-nobody-will-believe-them/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [We must, if we are to be consistent, and if we re to have a real pedigree herd, mate the best of our men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/we-must-if-we-are-to-be-consistent-and-if-we-re-to-have-a-real/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) [Explore all 1,278 Plato quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) ## More Deprivation quotes > [Deprivation is for me what daffodils were for Wordsworth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/deprivation-is-for-me-what-daffodils-were-for-wordsworth/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [“SOME OF THE HARDEST parts of parenting never change—like sleep deprivation, which, according to researchers at Queen’s University in Ontario, can in some respects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-senior/some-of-the-hardest-parts-of-parenting-never-change-like-sleep/) [Jennifer Senior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-senior/) > [“We have created a manic world nauseous with the pursuit of material wealth. Many also bear their cross of imagined deprivation, while their fellow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthon-st-maarten/we-have-created-a-manic-world-nauseous-with-the-pursuit-of-material/) [Anthon St. Maarten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthon-st-maarten/) > [Capitalism has created a situation called scarcity. And that scarcity is not natural, it's socially induced. Along with that sense of scarcity, or feeling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-bookchin/capitalism-has-created-a-situation-called-scarcity-and-that-scarcity/) [Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-bookchin/) > [It should surprise no one that the life of the writer - such as it is - is colorless to the point of sensory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/it-should-surprise-no-one-that-the-life-of-the-writer-such-as-it-is/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [My mother suffers mental health problems and has a learning deprivation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-rayner/my-mother-suffers-mental-health-problems-and-has-a-learning/) [Angela Rayner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-rayner/) > [What government has been doing, we've got major programmes now, of billions of pounds, which are directed by central government into these areas of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-prescott/what-government-has-been-doing-we-ve-got-major-programmes-now-of/) [John Prescott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-prescott/) > [“Suicide is nothing, but an act of depriving the soul from it's very right to liberation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aniruddha-sastikar/suicide-is-nothing-but-an-act-of-depriving-the-soul-from-it-s-very/) [Aniruddha Sastikar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aniruddha-sastikar/) > [Many low-income children face chronic stress from nutritional deprivation or persistent violence at home or in the community. By addressing their medical, emotional and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irwin-redlener/many-low-income-children-face-chronic-stress-from-nutritional/) [Irwin Redlener](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irwin-redlener/) > [Inactivity and deprivation of all accustomed stimulus is not rest; it is a preparation for the tomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/inactivity-and-deprivation-of-all-accustomed-stimulus-is-not-rest-it/) [Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/) > [As soon as you lay down, that's when the most bizarre things start coming out of her mouth. 'Goodnight, baby.' 'Do you think we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ferrara/as-soon-as-you-lay-down-that-s-when-the-most-bizarre-things-start/) [Adam Ferrara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-ferrara/) > [State governments seek local remedies for the globally fabricated deprivations and miseries in vain - just as the individuals-by-the-decree-of-fate (read: by the impact of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zygmunt-bauman/state-governments-seek-local-remedies-for-the-globally-fabricated/) [Zygmunt Bauman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zygmunt-bauman/) > [Discrimination and multiple deprivations of human rights are also frequently part of the problem, sentencing entire populations to poverty... It is surely a matter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/navi-pillay/discrimination-and-multiple-deprivations-of-human-rights-are-also/) [Navi Pillay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/navi-pillay/) > [This lifestyle is not about deprivation. It's about living inspired.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-baur/this-lifestyle-is-not-about-deprivation-it-s-about-living-inspired/) [Gene Baur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-baur/) > [Strong convictions are the secret of surviving deprivation; your spirit can be full even when your stomach is empty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/strong-convictions-are-the-secret-of-surviving-deprivation-your/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) [Browse all 258 Deprivation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deprivation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The only real ill-doing is the deprivation of knowledge.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Plato" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-only-real-ill-doing-is-the-deprivation-of-knowledge/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Deprivation" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-only-real-ill-doing-is-the-deprivation-of-knowledge/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/743/plato-103_deprivation_the-only-real-ill-doing-is-the-deprivati_1044208.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/743/plato-103_deprivation_the-only-real-ill-doing-is-the-deprivati_1044208.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/743/plato-103_deprivation_the-only-real-ill-doing-is-the-deprivati_1044208.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The only real ill-doing is the deprivation of knowledge.” — Plato", "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": "Plato", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The only real ill-doing is the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-only-real-ill-doing-is-the-deprivation-of-knowledge/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-only-real-ill-doing-is-the-deprivation-of-knowledge/#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 } } ] } ```