proverb · Words worth keeping
Good harvests make men prodigal, bad ones provident.
Good harvests make men prodigal, bad ones provident.
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
Plenty may encourage careless use, while scarcity can encourage caution about what is available. The harvest comparison describes possible changes in behaviour, without proving that either condition determines someone’s character or that hardship is desirable.
Example
A school art room has many spare sheets and initially uses them freely, then starts checking offcuts when the supply runs low instead of assuming another box is available.
Deeper explanation and when to use it
The good harvest makes resources seem plentiful, while the bad one makes their limits difficult to ignore. Prodigal contrasts with provident: one response uses freely, and the other looks ahead. Applied beyond harvests, the saying asks whether an apparent surplus has reduced attention to how resources are used. It also recognises that a tighter situation may make planning more visible. Neither response is inevitable. People can use abundance thoughtfully, and shortages can limit choices rather than improve judgement. The comparison is best treated as an observation about changing expectations, not a rule that plenty corrupts or that deprivation makes people responsible.
When to use it
Use it when changing availability appears to be changing how a shared resource is treated.
Keep in mind
Plenty and scarcity do not fix behaviour; avoid praising deprivation or blaming people whose choices are constrained.
An interpretation of the words, not a claim about their earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Date unknown
- Culture
- English