--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Whosoever does not know how to recognize…" description: "\"Whosoever does not know how to recognize the faults of great men is incapable of estimating their perfections.\" — Voltaire" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3d/voltaire-173_doe_whosoever-does-not-know-how-to-recognize_2629702.png" --- # Whosoever does not know how to recognize the faults of… ![“Whosoever does not know how to recognize the faults of great men is incapable of estimating their perfections.” quote by Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3d/voltaire-173_doe_whosoever-does-not-know-how-to-recognize_2629702.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3d/voltaire-173_doe_whosoever-does-not-know-how-to-recognize_2629702.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3d/voltaire-173_doe_whosoever-does-not-know-how-to-recognize_2629702.png) > “Whosoever does not know how to recognize the faults of great men is incapable of estimating their perfections.” [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He warns that without recognizing flaws in great people, we cannot truly appreciate their virtues. **In simple terms:** Seeing faults helps value perfections. Key Takeaway Critically assess role models. Themes philosophy ethics criticism human nature Mood thoughtful analytical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - leadership assessment - historical analysis - personal growth - education Key Concepts Virtue fallibility evaluation Questions to Reflect On - What qualities do you admire in leaders? - How do you balance criticism with appreciation? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on faults can breed cynicism. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Estimating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/estimating/) [Great men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-men/) [Greatness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greatness/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Perfection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perfection/) ## Related quotes > [I have seen men incapable of the sciences, but never any incapable of virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/i-have-seen-men-incapable-of-the-sciences-but-never-any-incapable-of/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Freedom can exist only in the society of knowledge. Without learning, men are incapable of knowing their rights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/freedom-can-exist-only-in-the-society-of-knowledge-without-learning/) [Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) > [We are great and our faults are great and therefore our problems great and great are our consolations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-isaac-kook/we-are-great-and-our-faults-are-great-and-therefore-our-problems/) [Abraham Isaac Kook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-isaac-kook/) > [This body, full of faults, Has yet one great quality: Whatever it encounters in this temporal life depends upon one's actions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/this-body-full-of-faults-has-yet-one-great-quality-whatever-it/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The faults of great authors are generally excellences carried to an excess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-taylor-coleridge/the-faults-of-great-authors-are-generally-excellences-carried-to-an/) [Samuel Taylor Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-taylor-coleridge/) > [“Only small men are incapable of seeing something greater than themselves”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-cameron/only-small-men-are-incapable-of-seeing-something-greater-than/) Christian Cameron > [The perfect disinterestedness and self-devotion of which men seem incapable, but which is sometimes found in women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-b-macaulay/the-perfect-disinterestedness-and-self-devotion-of-which-men-seem/) [Thomas B. 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