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lies quotes

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“Above all, don’t lie to yourself. The man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to such a pass that he cannot distinguish the truth within him, or around him, and so loses all respect for himself and for others.” Fyodor Dostoyevsky, The Brothers Karamazov
“Political language — and with variations this is true of all political parties, from Conservatives to Anarchists — is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind.” George Orwell, Politics and the English Language
“Sometimes it is easier to see clearly into the liar than into the man who tells the truth. Truth, like light, blinds. Falsehood, on the contrary, is a beautiful twilight that enhances every object.” Albert Camus, The Fall
“Only lies offend me, never honest counsel.” George R. R. Martin, A Storm of Swords
“Some truths did not bear saying, and some lies were necessary.” George R. R. Martin, A Game of Thrones
“Let there be gall enough in thy ink; though thou write with a goose-pen, no matter.” William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night
“The most common sort of lie is that by which a man deceives himself: the deception of others is a relatively rare offence.” Friedrich Nietzsche, The Antichrist
“You know I hate, detest, and can't bear a lie, not because I am straighter than the rest of us, but simply because it appalls me.” Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness
“A liar only lies when he hopes to be believed.” Rudyard Kipling, The Second Jungle Book
“O, what a goodly outside falsehood hath!” William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice
“And having no respect he ceases to love, and in order to occupy and distract himself without love he gives way to passions and coarse pleasures, and sinks to bestiality in his vices, all from continual lying to other men and to himself.” Fyodor Dostoyevsky, The Brothers Karamazov
“In wartime . . . truth is so precious that she should always be attended by a bodyguard of lies.” Winston Churchill, The Second World War
“magic! I try to give that to people. I misrepresent things to them. I don't tell truth, I tell what ought to be truth. And if that is sinful, then let me be damned for it!” Tennessee Williams, A Streetcar Named Desire
“All of the true things I am about to tell you are shameless lies.” Kurt Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle
“Whose tongue soe'er speaks false, not truly speaks; who speaks not truly, lies.” William Shakespeare, King John
“you guys are going to have to come up with a lot of wonderful new lies, or people just aren't going to want to go on living.” Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse-Five
“O, what a tangled web we weave, When first we practise to deceive!” Walter Scott, Marmion
“And Justice will overtake fabricators of lies and false witnesses.” Heraclitus, On Nature
“You have nice manners for a thief and a liar” J. R. R. Tolkien, The Hobbit
“I wanted to ask a thousand questions, but there was no one to ask. Besides I knew that people only told lies to children—lies about everything from soup to Santa Claus.” Marilyn Monroe, My Story
“It is Homer who has chiefly taught other poets the art of telling lies skilfully.” Aristotle, Poetics
“But he that sows lies in the end shall not lack of a harvest, and soon he may rest from toil indeed while others reap and sow in his stead.” J. R. R. Tolkien, The Silmarillion
“The man who lies to himself can be more easily offended than any one.” Fyodor Dostoyevsky, The Brothers Karamazov
“Greatness inspires envy, envy engenders spite, spite spawns lies.” J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
“When one fib becomes due as it were, you must forge another to take up the old acceptance; and so the stock of your lies in circulation inevitably multiplies, and the danger of detection increases every day.” William Makepeace Thackeray, Vanity Fair
“The truth may be out there, but lies are inside your head.” Terry Pratchett, Hogfather
“Ask us no questions and we’ll tell you no lies, Hermione.” J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
“He drew the dagger and laid it on the table between them; a length of dragonbone and Valyrian steel, as sharp as the difference between right and wrong, between true and false, between life and death.” George R. R. Martin, A Game of Thrones
“Sometimes lies were more dependable than the truth.” Orson Scott Card, Ender's Game

Related topics

truth honesty falsehood self respect deception questions life death fear writing war art justice living politics greatness light poetry sin

Related authors

William Shakespeare (3)
George R. R. Martin (3)
Fyodor Dostoyevsky (3)
J. R. R. Tolkien (2)
J. K. Rowling (2)
Kurt Vonnegut (2)
George Orwell (1)
Friedrich Nietzsche (1)
Albert Camus (1)
Aristotle (1)
Terry Pratchett (1)
Winston Churchill (1)
Orson Scott Card (1)
Joseph Conrad (1)
Heraclitus (1)
William Makepeace Thackeray (1)
Tennessee Williams (1)
Marilyn Monroe (1)
Rudyard Kipling (1)
Walter Scott (1)

Related sources

The Brothers Karamazov (3)
A Game of Thrones (2)
The Fall (1)
Twelfth Night (1)
The Hobbit (1)
The Merchant of Venice (1)
Vanity Fair (1)
A Storm of Swords (1)
On Nature (1)
Heart of Darkness (1)
Slaughterhouse-Five (1)
My Story (1)
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (1)
Hogfather (1)
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (1)
King John (1)
The Second World War (1)
A Streetcar Named Desire (1)
Poetics (1)
The Second Jungle Book (1)