Quotes About Truth

The moment of truth, the sudden emergence of a new insight, is an act of intuition. Such intuitions give the appearance of miraculous flashes, or short-circuits of reasoning. In fact they may be likened to an immersed chain, of which only the beginning and the end are visible above the surface of consciousness. The dive vanishes at one end of the chain and comes up at the other end, guided by invisible links.

Truth is what is useful to humanity, falsehood what is harmful.

And yet if it be sometimes necessary to conceal facts with words, then it should be done in such manner that it shall not appear; or should it be observed, then a defense should be promptly ready. Niccolò Machiavelli, "Confidential Instructions" to Raffaello Girolami (trans. C. Detmold) But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil. Matthew 5:37 1.

Die Geschichte hat uns gelehrt, dass man ihr häufiger mit der Lüge als mit der Wahrheit dienen muss, denn ihr Material, der Mensch, ist träge und muss vor jeder neuen Stufe seiner Entwicklung erst vierzig Jahre durch die Wüste geführt werden. Und man muss ihn durch die Wüste treiben mit Drohungen und Lockungen, mit erlogenen Schrecken und erlogenem Trost, damit er sich nicht vorzeitig zur Ruhe setzt und mit der Anbetung goldener Kälber vergnügt.

Without the hard little bits of marble which are called 'facts' or 'data' one cannot compose a mosaic; what matters, however, are not so much of the individual bits, but the successive patterns into which you arrange them, then break them up and rearrange them.

The two together-intellectual illumination and emotional catharsis-are the essence of the aesthetic experience. The first constitutes the moment of truth; the second provides the experience of beauty. The two are complementary aspects of an indivisible process-that 'earthing' process where 'the infinite is made to blend itself with the finite, to stand visible, as it were, attainable there' (Carlyle).

Whoever proves right in the end must first be and do wrong. But it is only after the fact that we learn who was right to begin with.

History has taught us that it must be served more frequently with lies than with the truth, because its human material is by nature sluggish: before every new stage of development the people must first be led through the wilderness for forty years—driven on with threats and enticements, with false frights and feigned consolation, so that they do not stop to rest and entertain themselves with the worship of golden calves.

Nu puteai fi sigur; puteai doar s? recurgi la acel oracol batjocoritor care se numeÈ™te istorie È™i care pronun?? sentinÈ›a abia dup? ce gura celui care-l consult? s-a umplut de mult cu ??rân?.

Peace. It is a providence, and no great change; we are only what we always were, but naked now.

Will you let me go for Christ's sake? Will you take that phony dream and burn it before something happens?

See, Biff, everybody around me is so false that I'm constantly lowering my ideals...

he'll come back. We all come back, Kate. These private little revolutions always die. The compromise is always made. In a peculiar way. Frank is right-- every man does have a star. The star of one's honesty. And you spend your life groping for it, but once it's out it never lights again. I don't think he went very far. He probably just wanted to be alone to watch his star go out.

PROCTOR, his mind wild, breathless: I say--I say--God is dead!

If she is innocent! Why do you never wonder if Parris be innocent, or Abigail? Is the accuser always holy now? Were they born this morning as clean as God's fingers? I'll tell you what's walking Salem—vengeance is walking Salem. We are what we always were in Salem, but now the little crazy children are jangling the keys of the kingdom, and common vengeance writes the law!

Bir inanç ortal??? kana boyuyorsa, o inanca sar?l?p kalmay?n, insan? can?ndan eden bir yasa yanl?? bir yasad?r.YaÅŸam, kad?n?m, yaÅŸam. Tanr?n?n en deÄŸerli lütfudur bize. Hiçbir ilke ne kadar yüksek, ne kadar parlak olursa olsun, kimseye can almak hakk?n? vermez.

I look for John Proctor that took me from my sleep and put knowledge in my heart! I never knew what pretence Salem was, I never knew the lying lessons I was taught by all these Christian women and their covenanted men! And now you bid me tear the light out of my eyes! I will not, I cannot! You loved me, John Proctor, and whatever sin it is, you love me yet!

PROCTOR--he knows it is insane: No, it is not the same! What others say and what i sign to is not the same!

See, Biff, everybody around me is so false that I'm constantly lowering my ideals . . .

We burn a hot fire here; it melts down all concealment.

Arthur Miller

I realized what a ridiculous lie my whole life has been..

Most of the time now we settle for half and I like it better. But the truth is holy, and even as I known how wrong he was, and his death useless, I tremble, for I confess that something perversely pure calls to me from his memory- not purely good, but himself purely, for he allowed himself to be wholly known and for that I think I will love him more than all my sensible clients. And yet, it is better to settle for half, it must be! And so I mourn him- I admit -with a certain... alarm.

John Proctor: I will fall like an ocean on that court!