Emerson argues against maintaining an opinion simply because it matches something one has said or believed before. By calling such consistency “foolish”, he distinguishes it from principled reliability. His criticism is directed at the habit of preserving an earlier position even when present judgement, experience or evidence points elsewhere.

Within Self-Reliance, the statement supports Emerson’s wider defence of independent thought. He suggests that concern about appearing inconsistent can make people subordinate their current convictions to their past statements or to the expectations of others. His references to statesmen, philosophers and divines broaden the criticism to public and intellectual life, where reputation may encourage rigid positions. The quotation therefore presents a willingness to revise one’s views as compatible with intellectual independence. Emerson’s point is not that consistency has no value, but that loyalty to consistency should not take precedence over honest judgement.