Thoreau argues that the significance of an action should not be judged only by its immediate scale. A small act carried out according to principle can still have lasting value, even when it appears unlikely to change wider circumstances at once. The emphasis is on the quality and moral purpose of the action rather than on its size.

Within Resistance to Civil Government, the idea supports Thoreau’s wider defence of individual responsibility. He maintains that people should act according to conscience even when they stand alone or when their resistance seems politically insignificant. The phrase “done for ever” suggests that a just action retains its meaning once it has been taken, regardless of whether it produces an immediate victory. The quote therefore presents principled action as worthwhile in itself and as a possible starting point for broader change.