Quotes About Self-deception

A man is ridiculous less through the characteristics he has than through those he affects to have.

A man may sink by such slow degrees that, long after he is a devil, he may go on being a good churchman or a good dissenter and thinking himself a good Christian.

Men lie, and they lie to theirselves worst of all.

Many men spend their lives in gazing at their own shadows, and so dwindle away into shadows thereof.

A man often believes himself leader when he is led; as his mind endeavors to reach one goal, his heart insensibly drags him towards another.

Man creates what he calls history as a screen to conceal the workings of the apocalypse from himself.

Governments show thus how successfully men can be imposed on, even impose on themselves, for their own advantage.

To the generality of men you cannot give a stronger hint for them to impose upon you than by imposing upon yourself.

We have great power to see the truth when the truth is all we wish to see; but what is easier than to credit what we desire? and can a man deceive anyone so easily as himself?

Lies," Mr Solomon said the next morning as he walked into the classroom. "We tell them to our friends," he said. "We tell them to our enemies. And eventually...we tell them to ourselves.

I think the easiest people to fool are ourselves. Fooling ourselves may even be a necessary precondition for fooling others.

But then, anyone was capable of any manner of atrocities if they wanted something bad enough. People could justify anything to themselves if they wanted it bad enough. No one was immune to that.

And you take care, too, Shahara. Remember the lies we tell ourselves to survive seldom bring peace to our souls. (Nero)

I had my eyes closed in the dark, I sighed a million sighs, I told a million lies, to myself, to myself.

We are more often treacherous through weakness than through calculation.

Far more crucial than what we know or do not know is what we do not want to know.

To lie to yourself, and thereby to everyone else.

Lying is an art, if you can convince yourself with lie, then you are a master.

When someone is delusional, he or she can do anything to justify his or her beliefs.

People always have been and they always will be stupid victims of deceit and self-deception in politics.

The human brain is a complex organ with the wonderful power of enabling man to find reasons for continuing to believe whatever it is that he wants to believe.

A hypocrite despises those whom he deceives, but has no respect for himself. He would make a dupe of himself, too, if he could.

There are few things in which we deceive ourselves more than in the esteem we profess to entertain for our firends. It is little better than a piece of quackery. The truth is, we think of them as we please, that is, as they please or displease us.

There are few things in which we deceive ourselves more than in the esteem we profess to entertain for our friends. It is little better than a piece of quackery. The truth is, we think of them as we please — that is as they please or displease us.