“ If great criminals told the truth—which, being great criminals, they do not—they would very rarely tell of their struggles against the crime. ”
Charles Dickens, Our Mutual Friend (1865). copy citation
| Author | Charles Dickens |
|---|---|
| Source | Our Mutual Friend |
| Topic | truth crime |
| Date | 1865 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | |
| Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/files/883/883-h/883-h.htm |
Context
“Tied up all day with his disciplined show upon him, subdued to the performance of his routine of educational tricks, encircled by a gabbling crowd, he broke loose at night like an ill-tamed wild animal. Under his daily restraint, it was his compensation, not his trouble, to give a glance towards his state at night, and to the freedom of its being indulged. If great criminals told the truth—which, being great criminals, they do not—they would very rarely tell of their struggles against the crime. Their struggles are towards it. They buffet with opposing waves, to gain the bloody shore, not to recede from it. This man perfectly comprehended that he hated his rival with his strongest and worst forces, and that if he tracked him to Lizzie Hexam, his so doing would never serve himself with her, or serve her.”
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