Quotes About Honesty

See that the mind is honest, first; the rest may follow or not as God wills. [That] the fundamental treason to the mind ... is the one fundamental treason which the scholar's mind must not allow is the bond uniting all the Oxford people in the last resort.

Perhaps you didn't say much about him, mother, but Gerald said lots - dreadful things!' 'Yes,' said the Duchess, 'he said what he thought. The present generation does, you know. To the uninitiated, I admit, dear, it does sound a little rude.

Detachment is a rare virtue, and very few people find it lovable, either in themselves or in others. If you ever find a person who likes you in spite of it-still more, because of it-that liking has very great value, because it is perfectly sincere, and because, with that person, you will never need to be anything but sincere yourself.

_'You shouldn't say thank you for a good review,' said Harriet. 'That would imply that one had done a favour to the author, whereas one has simply done justice to the book.'_

though I always think that the franker you are with people, the more you're likely to deceive 'em; so unused is the modern world to the open hand and the guileless heart, what?

honestly--then dishonestly.

Discretion plays a major part in making up the salesman's art, for truths that no one can believe are calculated to deceive.

The only ethical principle which has made science possible is that the truth shall be told all the time. If we do not penalise false statements made in error, we open up the way for false statements by intention. And a false statement of fact, made deliberately, is the most serious crime a scientist can commit.

of my own honesty.

Should they whisper false of you, never trouble to deny. Should the words they say be true, weep and storm and swear they lie!

Honest, I won't ever do it again. I'll go straight, after this. I'll never go to bed again, if I can only sleep now.

What do you want me to do, Peter? Chuck the ball back to me if it runs out of the circle. Not obviously. Just exercise your devastating talent for keeping to the point and speaking the truth. That sounds easy. It is--for you. That's what I love you for. --Gaudy Night

There is nothing to fear except the persistent refusal to find out the truth.

Words used carelessly, as if they did not matter in any serious way, often allowed otherwise well-guarded truths to seep through.

Why should I want to make anything up? Life's bad enough as it is without wanting to invent any more of it.

his horoscope had been pretty misleading as well. It had mentioned an unusual amount of planetary activity in his sign and had urged him to differentiate between what he thought he wanted and what he actually needed, and suggested that he should tackle emotional or work problems with determination and complete honesty, but had inexplicably failed to mention that he would be dead before the day was out.

To give real service you must add something which cannot be bought or measured with money, and that is sincerity and integrity.

old man who claimed repeatedly that nothing was true, though he was later discovered to be lying.

One of the cruelest things you can do to another person is pretend you care about them more than you really do.

Beyond a certain age, sincerity ceases to feel pornographic.

Our conversations are never easy, but as I-we-get older, we are finding that our conversations must bespoken. A need burns inside us to share with others what we are feeling Beyond a certain age, sincerity ceases to feel pornographic. It is as though the coolness that marked out youth is itself a type of retrovirus that can only leave you feeling empty. Full of holes.

When you see such photos, you can't help but wonder at just how sweet and sad and innocent all moments of life are rendered by the tripping of a camera's shutter, for at that point the future is still unknown and has yet to hurt us, and also for that brief moment, our poses are accepted as honest.

With the first drink comes the truth, with the second drink comes wishful thinking, and with the third drink come the lies.

Failure is authentic, and because it's authentic, it's real and genuine, and because of that, it's a pure state of being.