--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Innocence is not virtue. Virtue demands…" description: "\"Innocence is not virtue. Virtue demands the active employment of an ardent mind in the promotion of the general good. No man can be eminently virtuous ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/854/william-godwin-1978_character_innocence-is-not-virtue-virtue-demands-t_1374777.png" --- # Innocence is not virtue. Virtue demands the active… ![“Innocence is not virtue. Virtue demands the active employment of an ardent mind in the promotion of the general good. No man can be eminently virtuous who is not accustomed to an extensive range of reflection.” quote by William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/854/william-godwin-1978_character_innocence-is-not-virtue-virtue-demands-t_1374777.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/854/william-godwin-1978_character_innocence-is-not-virtue-virtue-demands-t_1374777.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/854/william-godwin-1978_character_innocence-is-not-virtue-virtue-demands-t_1374777.png) > “Innocence is not virtue. Virtue demands the active employment of an ardent mind in the promotion of the general good. No man can be eminently virtuous who is not accustomed to an extensive range of reflection.” [William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Virtue requires active, thoughtful effort toward the common good, not mere innocence. **In simple terms:** Virtue is active good, not innocence. Key Takeaway Actively pursue the common good. Themes ethics philosophy social responsibility Mood thoughtful serious Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - community leadership - policy making - personal development Key Concepts moral agency reflection public good Questions to Reflect On - How can we balance reflection with decisive action? - What practices foster active virtue? A Different Perspective Virtue alone may not guarantee ethical outcomes without reflection. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Innocence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/innocence/) [Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Reflection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reflection/) [Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virtue/) ## Related quotes > [But whoso is heroic must find crises to try his edge. Human virtue demands her champions and martyrs, and the trial of persecution always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/but-whoso-is-heroic-must-find-crises-to-try-his-edge-human-virtue/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [No person, no matter how clever and deceitful, can indefinitely hide a character that is rotten and out of tune with God. John Calvin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/no-person-no-matter-how-clever-and-deceitful-can-indefinitely-hide-a/) [John Macarthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) > [“Ignorance is a place where innocence is not always a virtue.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chriscinthia-blount/ignorance-is-a-place-where-innocence-is-not-always-a-virtue/) [Chriscinthia Blount](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chriscinthia-blount/) > [No acquisitions of guilt can compensate the loss of that solid inward comfort of mind, which is the sure companion of innocence and virtue;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-fielding/no-acquisitions-of-guilt-can-compensate-the-loss-of-that-solid-inward/) [Henry Fielding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-fielding/) > [“Innocence is only a virtue, lass, when it is temporary. You must pass from it to look back and recognize its unsullied purity. To…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-erikson/innocence-is-only-a-virtue-lass-when-it-is-temporary-you-must-pass/) [Steven Erikson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-erikson/) > [What innocence, may I ask, is being played here when it is known that this virtuous damsel has already got a dozen illegitimate children?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikita-khrushchev/what-innocence-may-i-ask-is-being-played-here-when-it-is-known-that/) [Nikita Khrushchev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikita-khrushchev/) > [Virtue could see to do what Virtue would by her own radiant light, though sun and moon where in the flat sea sunk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/virtue-could-see-to-do-what-virtue-would-by-her-own-radiant-light-2/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [When we see a special reformer we feel like asking him, What right have you, sir, to your own virtue? Is virtue piecemeal?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/when-we-see-a-special-reformer-we-feel-like-asking-him-what-right/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Any of us can achieve virtue, if by virtue we merely mean the avoidance of the vices that do not attract us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-staughton-lynd/any-of-us-can-achieve-virtue-if-by-virtue-we-merely-mean-the/) [Robert Staughton Lynd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-staughton-lynd/) > [O let us still the secret joy partake, To follow virtue even for virtue's sake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/o-let-us-still-the-secret-joy-partake-to-follow-virtue-even-for/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [The only reward of virtue is virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-only-reward-of-virtue-is-virtue/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Virtue could see to do what virtue would By her own radiant light, though sun and moon Were in the flat sea sunk. 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