“In order for us to maintain our way of living, we must, in a broad sense, tell lies to each other, and especially to ourselves. It is not necessary that the lies be particularly believable. The lies act as barriers to truth. These barriers to truth are necessary because without them many deplorable acts would become impossibilities.”

“They had learned how to listen for the sense of the meeting, not the voice of the loudest. They had learned that they must judge each time whether obedience was necessary and right, or misplaced and wrong. They had learned that the act of violence is the act of weakness, and that the spirit’s strength lies in holding fast to the truth.”

“Truth is a risky proposition. It's the nature of mediocre human beings to believe that lies are necessary, that they serve a purpose, that truth is subversive, that candor is dangerous, that the very scaffold of communal life is supported by lies.”

“We make our own truths and lies…. Truths are often lies and lies truths…”

“To enforce the lies of the present, it is necessary to erase the truths of the past.”

“Man must act in such a way that the whole of his individuality lies in each moment.”

“The lies we tell other people are nothing to the lies we tell ourselves.”

“Lies are as important as truth, for without lies, the truth is worthless.”

“We know how to tell many believable lies,
But also, when we want to, how to speak the plain truth.”

“Writing fiction is the act of weaving a series of lies to arrive at a greater truth.”