--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There are odious virtues; such as…" description: "\"There are odious virtues; such as inflexible severity, and an integrity that accepts of no favor.\" — Tacitus" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b1/tacitus-1552_accepting_there-are-odious-virtues-such-as-inflexi_1328180.jpg" --- # There are odious virtues; such as inflexible severity, and… ![“There are odious virtues; such as inflexible severity, and an integrity that accepts of no favor.” quote by Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b1/tacitus-1552_accepting_there-are-odious-virtues-such-as-inflexi_1328180.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b1/tacitus-1552_accepting_there-are-odious-virtues-such-as-inflexi_1328180.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b1/tacitus-1552_accepting_there-are-odious-virtues-such-as-inflexi_1328180.jpg) > “There are odious virtues; such as inflexible severity, and an integrity that accepts of no favor.” [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Rigid moral codes can become oppressive when they ignore context and flexibility. **In simple terms:** Strict virtues can be harmful. Key Takeaway Balance principle with compassion. Themes ethics rigidity power integrity Mood reflective serious Type philosophical historical When to use this quote - legal judgments - leadership decisions - personal conduct - policy drafting Key Concepts moral philosophy political theory Questions to Reflect On - When does integrity become inflexibility? - How to temper severity with mercy? A Different Perspective Strictness may alienate allies and hinder justice. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Accepting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accepting/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Favors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/favors/) [Inflexible Severity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inflexible-severity-4448265/) [Integrity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/integrity/) [Odious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/odious/) [Odious Virtues](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/odious-virtues-4448262/) [Severity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/severity/) [Severity Integrity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/severity-integrity-4448264/) [Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virtue/) [Virtues Inflexible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virtues-inflexible-4448263/) ## Related quotes > [“coparisons are odious”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/archbishop-boiardo/coparisons-are-odious/) [Archbishop Boiardo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/archbishop-boiardo/) > [Comparisons are odious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/comparisons-are-odious/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“little. What an odious thing it is to be a woman, to be always ready, when you would rather not, when you want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-oliphant/little-what-an-odious-thing-it-is-to-be-a-woman-to-be-always-ready/) [Margaret Oliphant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-oliphant/) > [ The same is true of ranking him thus against any work of literature. \[Bob Dylan\] has been made, through no fault of his own,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bennun/the-same-is-true-of-ranking-him-thus-against-any-work-of-literature/) [David Bennun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bennun/) > [“The word 'love,' used in connection with the reproduction of our species, is the most odious blasphemy taught in our times.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/honor-de-balzac/the-word-love-used-in-connection-with-the-reproduction-of-our-species/) [Honoré de Balzac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/honor-de-balzac/) > [“Philosophy is odious and obscure; Both law and physic are for petty wits; Divinity is basest of the three, Unpleasant, harsh, contemptible, and vile.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-marlowe/philosophy-is-odious-and-obscure-both-law-and-physic-are-for-petty/) [Christopher Marlowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-marlowe/) > [But most of us are apt to settle within ourselves that the man who blocks our way is odious, and not to mind causing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/but-most-of-us-are-apt-to-settle-within-ourselves-that-the-man-who/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [I really found this campaign odious. I couldn't get up for it. The quality of the candidates and the campaign, I just found the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-germond/i-really-found-this-campaign-odious-i-couldn-t-get-up-for-it-the/) [Jack Germond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-germond/) > [“Oh, there you are, you odious little prawn...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/oh-there-you-are-you-odious-little-prawn/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) > [The U.S. invaded the wrong country, destroying an odious government that was not responsible for 9/11. I don't know how you recover from invading…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-engel/the-u-s-invaded-the-wrong-country-destroying-an-odious-government/) [Richard Engel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-engel/) > [What is odious but . . . people . . . who toast their feet on the register. . . .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsilio-ficino/what-is-odious-but-people-who-toast-their-feet-on-the-register/) [Marsilio Ficino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsilio-ficino/) > [One is not superior merely because one sees the world as odious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fran-ois-ren-de-chateaubriand/one-is-not-superior-merely-because-one-sees-the-world-as-odious/) [François-René de Chateaubriand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fran-ois-ren-de-chateaubriand/) > [What makes tar sands particularly odious is that the energy you get out in the end, per unit carbon dioxide, is poor. It's equivalent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/what-makes-tar-sands-particularly-odious-is-that-the-energy-you-get/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [When you see the misogyny of hip-hop, it's so horrible, it's so putrid, it's so, you know, odious, that we know, we smell, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-eric-dyson/when-you-see-the-misogyny-of-hip-hop-it-s-so-horrible-it-s-so-putrid/) [Michael Eric Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-eric-dyson/) > [All false practices and affections of knowledge are more odious to God, and deserve to be so to men, than any want or defect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sprat/all-false-practices-and-affections-of-knowledge-are-more-odious-to/) [Thomas Sprat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sprat/) ## More by Tacitus > [Benefits received are a delight to us as long as we think we can requite them; when that possibility is far exceeded, they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/benefits-received-are-a-delight-to-us-as-long-as-we-think-we-can/) [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) > [Rumor does not always err; it sometimes even elects a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/rumor-does-not-always-err-it-sometimes-even-elects-a-man/) [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) > [ None mourn more ostentatiously than those who most rejoice at it \[a death\]. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/none-mourn-more-ostentatiously-than-those-who-most-rejoice-at-it-a/) [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) > [So true is it that all transactions of preeminent importance are wrapt in doubt and obscurity; while some hold for certain facts the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/so-true-is-it-that-all-transactions-of-preeminent-importance-are/) [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) > [Be assured those will be thy worst enemies, not to whom thou hast done evil, but who have done evil to thee. And those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/be-assured-those-will-be-thy-worst-enemies-not-to-whom-thou-hast-done/) [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) > [Christianity is a pestilent superstition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/christianity-is-a-pestilent-superstition/) [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) > [Indeed, the crowning proof of their valour and their strength is that they keep up their superiority without harm to others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/indeed-the-crowning-proof-of-their-valour-and-their-strength-is-that/) [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) > [Formerly we suffered from crimes; now we suffer from laws.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/formerly-we-suffered-from-crimes-now-we-suffer-from-laws/) [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) > [ None mourn more ostentatiously over the death of Germanicus than those who most rejoice at it \[a death\]. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/none-mourn-more-ostentatiously-over-the-death-of-germanicus-than/) [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) > [Once killing starts, it is difficult to draw the line.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/once-killing-starts-it-is-difficult-to-draw-the-line/) [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) > [The lust of dominion burns with a flame so fierce as to overpower all other affections of the human breast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/the-lust-of-dominion-burns-with-a-flame-so-fierce-as-to-overpower-all/) [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) > [“It is a principle of nature to hate those whom you have injured.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/it-is-a-principle-of-nature-to-hate-those-whom-you-have-injured/) [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) > [Kindness, so far as we can return it, is agreeable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/kindness-so-far-as-we-can-return-it-is-agreeable/) [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) > [Posterity gives every man his true value.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/posterity-gives-every-man-his-true-value/) [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) > [The most detestable race of enemies are flatterers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/the-most-detestable-race-of-enemies-are-flatterers/) [Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) [Explore all 227 Tacitus quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/) ## More Accepting quotes > [From Augustine down, theologians have tried to compel people to accept their special interpretation of the Scripture, and the tortures of the inquisition, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matilda-joslyn-gage/from-augustine-down-theologians-have-tried-to-compel-people-to-accept/) [Matilda Joslyn Gage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matilda-joslyn-gage/) > [Laughing, laughing, laughing, laughing! It is the jester! A voice from the Void, to cheer poor Cicero! I accept your gift, dearest Night Mother.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/laughing-laughing-laughing-laughing-it-is-the-jester-a-voice-from-the/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) > [This duo inside of me causes the perfect opportunity to live and learn twice as fast as those who choose to accept simplicity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tupac-shakur/this-duo-inside-of-me-causes-the-perfect-opportunity-to-live-and/) [Tupac Shakur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tupac-shakur/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/) [Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/) > [We only enter into the full life if our faith gives thanks. Because how else do we accept His free gift of salvation if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/we-only-enter-into-the-full-life-if-our-faith-gives-thanks-because/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [Don't be bitter. Everybody suffers. If you can accept your suffering then you will understand other people better. Be grateful for pain. Love life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/don-t-be-bitter-everybody-suffers-if-you-can-accept-your-suffering/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [It takes an unusually philosophic mind to accept that all one’s suffering might be to no end, really, in the larger scheme of things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-takes-an-unusually-philosophic-mind-to-accept-that-all-one-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [No nation being under another nation can accept gifts, and kick at the responsibility attached to those gifts, imposed by the conquering nation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/no-nation-being-under-another-nation-can-accept-gifts-and-kick-at-the/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [Even with clothing naked animals, there were people who wanted to send in money. A woman in Santa Barbara, California, sent a $40,000 check.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-abel/even-with-clothing-naked-animals-there-were-people-who-wanted-to-send/) [Alan Abel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-abel/) > [Society understands the architecture of academia and knows there are relevant qualifications in different fields, and the media accepts the idea of specialisations and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-griffiths/society-understands-the-architecture-of-academia-and-knows-there-are/) [Jay Griffiths](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-griffiths/) > [Whatever your conscious mind assumes and believes to be true, your subconscious mind will accept and bring to pass. Believe in good fortune, divine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-murphy/whatever-your-conscious-mind-assumes-and-believes-to-be-true-your/) [Joseph Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-murphy/) > [Losing someone is easy, but accepting it is hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/losing-someone-is-easy-but-accepting-it-is-hard/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [… and so he tried to accept the ache in his heart as what Dr. Larch would call the common symptoms of normal life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/and-so-he-tried-to-accept-the-ache-in-his-heart-as-what-dr-larch/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [I think what was special about 'Music by Prudence' was the classic story of the title subject's life path - from being an outcast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-think-what-was-special-about-music-by-prudence-was-the-classic/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [As my films are born at the moment when they are reflected into another person's mind and memories, there are no misconceptions. I totally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pirjo-honkasalo/as-my-films-are-born-at-the-moment-when-they-are-reflected-into/) [Pirjo Honkasalo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pirjo-honkasalo/) [Browse all 6,788 Accepting quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accepting/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There are odious virtues; such as inflexible severity, and an integrity that accepts of no favor.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Tacitus" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/there-are-odious-virtues-such-as-inflexible-severity-and-an-integrity/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Accepting" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/there-are-odious-virtues-such-as-inflexible-severity-and-an-integrity/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b1/tacitus-1552_accepting_there-are-odious-virtues-such-as-inflexi_1328180.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b1/tacitus-1552_accepting_there-are-odious-virtues-such-as-inflexi_1328180.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b1/tacitus-1552_accepting_there-are-odious-virtues-such-as-inflexi_1328180.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There are odious virtues; such as inflexible severity, and an integrity that accepts of no favor.” — Tacitus", "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": "Tacitus", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "There are odious virtues; such as...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/there-are-odious-virtues-such-as-inflexible-severity-and-an-integrity/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/there-are-odious-virtues-such-as-inflexible-severity-and-an-integrity/#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 } } ] } ```