--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When a man becomes a conformist, he is…" description: "\"When a man becomes a conformist, he is sacrificing the richness of independent thinking.\" — Ralph Waldo Emerson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a1/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_conformist_when-a-man-becomes-a-conformist-he-is-sa_2823705.png" --- # When a man becomes a conformist, he is sacrificing the… ![“When a man becomes a conformist, he is sacrificing the richness of independent thinking.” quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a1/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_conformist_when-a-man-becomes-a-conformist-he-is-sa_2823705.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a1/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_conformist_when-a-man-becomes-a-conformist-he-is-sa_2823705.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a1/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_conformist_when-a-man-becomes-a-conformist-he-is-sa_2823705.png) > “When a man becomes a conformist, he is sacrificing the richness of independent thinking.” [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Conformity suppresses the depth and creativity that come from independent thought. **In simple terms:** Giving up personal thinking limits richness. Key Takeaway Cultivate independent thinking. Themes individualism creativity conformity Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - education - workplace decision-making - artistic creation - political activism Key Concepts self-reliance critical thinking Questions to Reflect On - How does conformity affect your personal growth? - When have you chosen independence over ease? A Different Perspective Conformity can provide social safety but may stifle innovation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conformist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conformist/) [Conformist Sacrificing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conformist-sacrificing-3608158/) [Independent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/independent/) [Independent thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/independent-thinking/) [Man Conformist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-conformist-1282541/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Richness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/richness/) [Sacrifice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sacrifice/) [Sacrificing Richness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sacrificing-richness-3608159/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [The average man is a conformist, accepting miseries and disasters with the stoicism of a cow standing in the rain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-wilson/the-average-man-is-a-conformist-accepting-miseries-and-disasters-with/) [Colin Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-wilson/) > [“Most people do not have a problem with you thinking for yourself, as long as your conclusions are the same as or at least…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/most-people-do-not-have-a-problem-with-you-thinking-for-yourself-as/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [A man must consider what a rich realm he abdicates when he becomes a conformist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-man-must-consider-what-a-rich-realm-he-abdicates-when-he-becomes-a/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“A man must consider what rich realms he abdicates when he becomes a conformist”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-man-must-consider-what-rich-realms-he-abdicates-when-he-becomes-a/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [You must pay for conformity. All goes well as long as you run with conformists. But you, who are honest men in other particulars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/you-must-pay-for-conformity-all-goes-well-as-long-as-you-run-with/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [He who would be a man must therefore be a non-conformist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/he-who-would-be-a-man-must-therefore-be-a-non-conformist/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/whoso-would-be-a-man-must-be-a-nonconformist/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“From our first day alive on this planet, they began teaching society everything it knows and experiences. It was all brainwashing bullshit. Their trio…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoltan-istvan/from-our-first-day-alive-on-this-planet-they-began-teaching-society/) [Zoltan Istvan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoltan-istvan/) > [“Once out of the mailroom, I began to learn more about fear. As soon as fear begins to ascend, anatomically, from the pit of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/once-out-of-the-mailroom-i-began-to-learn-more-about-fear-as-soon-as/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [“Let us not be content with merely ‘formatting’ generations, but instead, focus on cultivating and enlightening them, ensuring independent thinking where acceptance is in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-pevernagie/let-us-not-be-content-with-merely-formatting-generations-but-instead/) [Erik Pevernagie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-pevernagie/) > [Flags are bits of colored cloth that governments use first to shrink-wrap people’s brains and then as ceremonial shrouds to bury the dead. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/flags-are-bits-of-colored-cloth-that-governments-use-first-to-shrink/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [“I do not know by what extraordinary mental accident modern writers so constantly connect the idea of progress with the idea of independent thinking.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/i-do-not-know-by-what-extraordinary-mental-accident-modern-writers-so/) [G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/) > [Merciless criticism and independent thinking are the two necessary traits of revolutionary thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bhagat-singh/merciless-criticism-and-independent-thinking-are-the-two-necessary/) [Bhagat Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bhagat-singh/) > [“Autonomous people assert themselves against the status quo. They don't accept the prevailing opinion just because it's the one given to them. Nothing creative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-brito/autonomous-people-assert-themselves-against-the-status-quo-they-don-t/) [Maria Brito](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-brito/) > [“Everybody goes where everybody goes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-vato/everybody-goes-where-everybody-goes/) [Thomas Vato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-vato/) ## More by Ralph Waldo Emerson > [The history of mankind interests us only as it exhibits a steady gain of truth and right, in the incessant conflict which it records…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-history-of-mankind-interests-us-only-as-it-exhibits-a-steady-gain/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [If we will not interfere with our thought, but will act entirely, or see how the thing stands in God, we know the particular…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-we-will-not-interfere-with-our-thought-but-will-act-entirely-or/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [A man cannot speak but he judges himself. With his will or against his will he draws his portrait to the eye of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-man-cannot-speak-but-he-judges-himself-with-his-will-or-against-his/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Consideration is the soil in which wisdom may be expected to grow, and strength be given to every up-springing plant of duty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/consideration-is-the-soil-in-which-wisdom-may-be-expected-to-grow-and/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“There is then creative reading as well as creative writing. When the mind is braced by labor and invention, the page of whatever book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/there-is-then-creative-reading-as-well-as-creative-writing-when-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The order of things consents to virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-order-of-things-consents-to-virtue/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Life only avails, not the having lived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/life-only-avails-not-the-having-lived/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [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 child reminds us that playtime is an essential part of our daily routine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-child-reminds-us-that-playtime-is-an-essential-part-of-our-daily/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [No man can be criticised but by a greater than he. Do not, then, read the reviews.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/no-man-can-be-criticised-but-by-a-greater-than-he-do-not-then-read/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Coal lay in ledges under the ground since the Flood, until a laborer with pick and windlass brings it to the surface. We may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/coal-lay-in-ledges-under-the-ground-since-the-flood-until-a-laborer/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [I am; therefore, I had nothing better to do than to think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/i-am-therefore-i-had-nothing-better-to-do-than-to-think/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [In a library we are surrounded by many hundreds of dear friends, but they are imprisoned by an enchanter in these paper and leathern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/in-a-library-we-are-surrounded-by-many-hundreds-of-dear-friends-but/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The compensations of calamity are made apparent to the understanding also, after long intervals of time. A fever, a mutilation, a cruel disappointment, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-compensations-of-calamity-are-made-apparent-to-the-understanding/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) [Explore all 4,802 Ralph Waldo Emerson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) ## More Conformist quotes > [Today it is the skeptics who are the social conformists, though because of powerful intellectual propaganda they continue to enjoy thinking of themselves as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dallas-willard/today-it-is-the-skeptics-who-are-the-social-conformists-though/) [Dallas Willard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dallas-willard/) > [Education, for most people, means trying to lead the child to resemble the typical adult of his society . . . but for me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-piaget/education-for-most-people-means-trying-to-lead-the-child-to-resemble/) [Jean Piaget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-piaget/) > [While my dad is a rebel at heart, I am a conformist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivaan-shah/while-my-dad-is-a-rebel-at-heart-i-am-a-conformist/) [Vivaan Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivaan-shah/) > [Our legal system, including the police, is anti-Dalit and anti-poor. The death penalty laws' wrathful majesty, in blood-shot equality, deals the fatal blow on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v-r-krishna-iyer/our-legal-system-including-the-police-is-anti-dalit-and-anti-poor-the/) [V. R. Krishna Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/v-r-krishna-iyer/) > [Only conformists are ever adored.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-breillat/only-conformists-are-ever-adored/) [Catherine Breillat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-breillat/) > [The American people...have a stake in non-conformity. For they know that the American genius is non-conformist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-steele-commager/the-american-people-have-a-stake-in-non-conformity-for-they-know-that/) [Henry Steele Commager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-steele-commager/) > [The first step in freeing yourself from social restrictions is the realization that there is no such thing as a safe code of conduct…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-browne/the-first-step-in-freeing-yourself-from-social-restrictions-is-the/) [Harry Browne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-browne/) > [I think it killed my sister as the times she was living in were so conformist. This is a subject I really want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nan-goldin/i-think-it-killed-my-sister-as-the-times-she-was-living-in-were-so/) [Nan Goldin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nan-goldin/) > [Not long ago, a hat was a conformist accessory. Then the 1960s came along, and young people didn't want to wear hats.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-treacy/not-long-ago-a-hat-was-a-conformist-accessory-then-the-1960s-came/) [Philip Treacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-treacy/) > [It's the non-conformist who gives color to history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-fuldheim/it-s-the-non-conformist-who-gives-color-to-history/) [Dorothy Fuldheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-fuldheim/) > [“Mom and Dad liked to make a big point about never surrendering to fear or to prejudice or to the narrow-minded conformist sticks-in-the-mud who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeannette-walls/mom-and-dad-liked-to-make-a-big-point-about-never-surrendering-to/) [Jeannette Walls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeannette-walls/) > [Woe to him inside a non-conformist clique who does not conform to non-conformity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/woe-to-him-inside-a-non-conformist-clique-who-does-not-conform-to-non/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Schools are generally feminine places, institutions where conformity is valued, taught largely by conformist women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-m-bardwick/schools-are-generally-feminine-places-institutions-where-conformity/) [Judith M Bardwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-m-bardwick/) > [The courage to be as oneself within the atmosphere of Enlightenment is the courage to affirm oneself as a bridge from a lower to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tillich/the-courage-to-be-as-oneself-within-the-atmosphere-of-enlightenment/) [Paul Tillich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tillich/) > [ \[F\]or the most part football these days is the opium of the people, not to speak of their crack cocaine. Its icon is the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-eagleton/f-or-the-most-part-football-these-days-is-the-opium-of-the-people-not/) [Terry Eagleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-eagleton/) [Browse all 143 Conformist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conformist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When a man becomes a conformist, he is sacrificing the richness of independent thinking.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ralph Waldo Emerson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/when-a-man-becomes-a-conformist-he-is-sacrificing-the-richness-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Conformist" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/when-a-man-becomes-a-conformist-he-is-sacrificing-the-richness-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a1/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_conformist_when-a-man-becomes-a-conformist-he-is-sa_2823705.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a1/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_conformist_when-a-man-becomes-a-conformist-he-is-sa_2823705.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a1/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_conformist_when-a-man-becomes-a-conformist-he-is-sa_2823705.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When a man becomes a conformist, he is sacrificing the richness of independent thinking.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson", "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": "Ralph Waldo Emerson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When a man becomes a conformist,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/when-a-man-becomes-a-conformist-he-is-sacrificing-the-richness-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/when-a-man-becomes-a-conformist-he-is-sacrificing-the-richness-of/#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 } } ] } ```