Literary notes about conscientious (AI summary)
Literary authors deploy the term to highlight an exacting commitment to duty and moral rectitude. It often characterizes individuals who exhibit diligence and ethical consistency, whether in roles as varied as clergymen, officials, or educators ([1], [2], [3]). At times, the word underscores a carefully measured behavior or scrupulous avoidance of dubious actions—as when contrasting inherently ethical conduct with more unscrupulous behaviors ([4], [5]). In other contexts, it symbolizes an internal guide for moral decision-making, reflecting the personal struggles and choices inherent to a life of conscientious endeavor ([6], [7], [8]).
- 'Sir, the life of a parson, of a conscientious clergyman, is not easy.
— from Boswell's Life of Johnson by James Boswell - As a soldier we have seen that Marcus was both capable and successful; as an administrator he was prudent and conscientious.
— from Meditations by Emperor of Rome Marcus Aurelius - He was a most estimable old man, and the most careful and conscientious doctor in the province.
— from The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky - And sometimes the more unscrupulous man is better esteemed than the more conscientious, because he has not equally deceived expectations.
— from Gorgias by Plato - Well, I have not intercepted your confidence, and yet I know all that as well as you, and I have no conscientious scruples.
— from The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas and Auguste Maquet - There is no satisfaction like that which comes from the steady, persistent, honest, conscientious pursuit of a noble aim.
— from Pushing to the Front by Orison Swett Marden - He would not, however, yield immediately to the young man’s request, but made a few conscientious objections.
— from The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas and Auguste Maquet - Before you can be really happy, my friend, you must be able to look back upon a well-spent past, a conscientious, unselfish past.
— from Pushing to the Front by Orison Swett Marden
