---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: No man, however enslaved to his…"
description: "\"No man, however enslaved to his appetites, or hurried by his passions, can, while he preserves his intellects unimpaired, please himself with promoting..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11a/samuel-johnson-50_appetite_no-man-however-enslaved-to-his-appetites_562723.jpg"
---

#  No man, however enslaved to his appetites, or hurried by…

![“No man, however enslaved to his appetites, or hurried by his passions, can, while he preserves his intellects unimpaired, please himself with promoting the corruption of others. He whose merit has enlarged his influence would surely wish to exert it for the benefit of mankind. Yet such will be the…” quote by Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11a/samuel-johnson-50_appetite_no-man-however-enslaved-to-his-appetites_562723.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11a/samuel-johnson-50_appetite_no-man-however-enslaved-to-his-appetites_562723.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11a/samuel-johnson-50_appetite_no-man-however-enslaved-to-his-appetites_562723.jpg)

> “No man, however enslaved to his appetites, or hurried by his passions, can, while he preserves his intellects unimpaired, please himself with promoting the corruption of others. He whose merit has enlarged his influence would surely wish to exert it for the benefit of mankind. Yet such will be the effect of his reputation, while he suffers himself to indulge in any favourite fault, that they who have no hope to reach his excellence will catch at his failings, and his virtues will be cited to justify the copiers of his vices.”

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Intellect and virtue should guide actions, not selfish desires, yet personal flaws can tarnish a reputation and influence others negatively.

**In simple terms:** Virtue must guide actions, not selfishness.

Key Takeaway

Cultivate integrity and avoid hypocrisy.

Themes

ethics leadership integrity

Mood

reflective serious

Type

ethical philosophical

When to use this quote

- political leadership
- business management
- education
- community service

Key Concepts

philosophy psychology

Questions to Reflect On

- How do personal flaws affect public influence?
- Can reputation outweigh personal merit?

A Different Perspective

Even virtuous people can be misused as examples of vice.

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[Appetite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appetite/) [Copiers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/copiers/) [Corruption](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corruption/) [Excellence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/excellence/) [Influence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/influence/) [Intellect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intellect/) [Mankind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mankind/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [No hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/no-hope/) [Passion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passion/) [Reputation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reputation/) [Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering/) [Vices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vices/) [Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virtue/) [Wish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wish/)

## Related quotes

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> [The authour who imitates his predecessors only by furnishing himself with thoughts and elegances out of the same general magazine of literature, can with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-authour-who-imitates-his-predecessors-only-by-furnishing-himself/)

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> [I am just a copier, an impostor. I wait, I read magazines. After a while my brain sends me a product.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philippe-starck/i-am-just-a-copier-an-impostor-i-wait-i-read-magazines-after-a-while/)

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> [The power of a text when it is read is different from the power it has when it is copied out. Only the copied…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-benjamin/the-power-of-a-text-when-it-is-read-is-different-from-the-power-it/)

[Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/)

> [Several years ago we had an intern who was none too swift. One day he was typing and turned to a secretary and said,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-barry/several-years-ago-we-had-an-intern-who-was-none-too-swift-one-day-he/)

[Dave Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-barry/)

> [Once the Xerox copier was invented, private diplomacy died. There's no such thing as secrecy. It's just a question of whether it's leaked or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-young/once-the-xerox-copier-was-invented-private-diplomacy-died-there-s-no/)

[Andrew Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-young/)

> [...when we perfect 3-D copiers and they reproduce tissue, we'll have a million Marilyns walking around with no souls...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-we-perfect-3-d-copiers-and-they-reproduce-tissue-we-ll-have-a/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Nature in no case cometh short of art, for the arts are copiers of natural forms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/nature-in-no-case-cometh-short-of-art-for-the-arts-are-copiers-of/)

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> [A mere copier of nature can never produce anything great.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-reynolds/a-mere-copier-of-nature-can-never-produce-anything-great/)

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> [It's obvious why the copiers, they copy this, soon as my data processes Y2K they floppy disk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rakim/it-s-obvious-why-the-copiers-they-copy-this-soon-as-my-data-processes/)

[Rakim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rakim/)

> [When a copier sales person cold calls a purchasing manager whom he has never met is it any surprise that the purchasing manager will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-turner/when-a-copier-sales-person-cold-calls-a-purchasing-manager-whom-he/)

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> [We are stereotyped creatures, imitators and copiers of our past selves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/we-are-stereotyped-creatures-imitators-and-copiers-of-our-past-selves/)

[William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/)

> [The power of a text is different when it is read from when it is copied out. Only the copied text thus commands the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-benjamin/the-power-of-a-text-is-different-when-it-is-read-from-when-it-is/)

[Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/)

## More by Samuel Johnson

> [The size of a man's understanding might always be justly measured by his mirth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-size-of-a-man-s-understanding-might-always-be-justly-measured-by/)

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> [Pound St. Paul's Church into atoms, and consider any single atom; it is to be sure, good for nothing; but put all these atoms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/pound-st-paul-s-church-into-atoms-and-consider-any-single-atom-it-is/)

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> [You can never be wise unless you love reading.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/you-can-never-be-wise-unless-you-love-reading/)

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> [If our aim is to praise, we should forget to criticize; if our aim is to criticize, we should remember to praise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/if-our-aim-is-to-praise-we-should-forget-to-criticize-if-our-aim-is/)

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> [All theory is against free will; all experience is for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/all-theory-is-against-free-will-all-experience-is-for-it/)

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> [Had I learned to fiddle, I should have done nothing else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/had-i-learned-to-fiddle-i-should-have-done-nothing-else/)

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> [It is as foolish to make experiments upon the constancy of a friend, as upon the chastity of a wife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/it-is-as-foolish-to-make-experiments-upon-the-constancy-of-a-friend/)

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> [Resolve not to be poor: whatever you have, spend less. Poverty is a great enemy to human happiness; it certainly destroys liberty, and it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/resolve-not-to-be-poor-whatever-you-have-spend-less-poverty-is-a/)

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> [The basis of all excellence is truth: he that professes love ought to feel its power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-basis-of-all-excellence-is-truth-he-that-professes-love-ought-to/)

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## More Appetite quotes

> [I could not limit my values and pursuits to what makes others comfortable. Being possessed by a promise I live without options. I will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-johnson/i-could-not-limit-my-values-and-pursuits-to-what-makes-others/)

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> [the appetite for thinking must be regulated, as all sensible people know, for it may stifle one's life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/the-appetite-for-thinking-must-be-regulated-as-all-sensible-people/)

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> [The plain fact is that education is itself a form of propaganda - a deliberate scheme to outfit the pupil, not with the capacity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-plain-fact-is-that-education-is-itself-a-form-of-propaganda-a/)

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> [“You should also eat eggs. Not “one egg per week” or some such non-physiologic restriction. Eat what your body tells you to eat, since…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-davis/you-should-also-eat-eggs-not-one-egg-per-week-or-some-such-non/)

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