--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A great error is more easily propagated…" description: "\"A great error is more easily propagated than a great truth, because it is easier to believe, than to reason, and because people prefer the marvels of r..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebc/charles-francois-dupuis-78368_atheism_a-great-error-is-more-easily-propagated_1745318.jpg" --- # A great error is more easily propagated than a great… ![“A great error is more easily propagated than a great truth, because it is easier to believe, than to reason, and because people prefer the marvels of romances to the simplicity of history.” quote by Charles-Francois Dupuis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebc/charles-francois-dupuis-78368_atheism_a-great-error-is-more-easily-propagated_1745318.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebc/charles-francois-dupuis-78368_atheism_a-great-error-is-more-easily-propagated_1745318.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebc/charles-francois-dupuis-78368_atheism_a-great-error-is-more-easily-propagated_1745318.jpg) > “A great error is more easily propagated than a great truth, because it is easier to believe, than to reason, and because people prefer the marvels of romances to the simplicity of history.” [Charles-Francois Dupuis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-francois-dupuis/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Errors spread faster than truth because they are more appealing and align with human love of romance over factual simplicity. **In simple terms:** Mistakes travel quicker than facts. Key Takeaway Question beliefs, seek evidence. Themes cognition truth belief communication Mood skeptical reflective Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - media consumption - education - public discourse - personal decision making Key Concepts psychology epistemology social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How do you verify information before accepting it? - What makes a story more compelling than facts? A Different Perspective Truth requires effort and may be less attractive; people may resist it. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Atheism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheism/) [Believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe/) [Believe Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe-reason/) [Easier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/easier/) [Easier Believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/easier-believe/) [Error Easily](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/error-easily-1556305/) [Errors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/errors/) [Great Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-truth/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Romance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/romance/) [Simplicity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/simplicity/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Truth Easier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-easier-966076/) [Truth is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-is/) ## Related quotes > [The less time you spend with Truth, the easier it is to believe lies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lecrae/the-less-time-you-spend-with-truth-the-easier-it-is-to-believe-lies/) [LeCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lecrae/) > [The first sentence of the truth is always the hardest. Each of us had a first sentence, and most of us found the strength…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/the-first-sentence-of-the-truth-is-always-the-hardest-each-of-us-had/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [Once ...Why ...lie? ...when ...truth is ...the easier path](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/once-why-lie-when-truth-is-the-easier-path/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [It's easier to tell a lie, than to tell the truth. It's easier to kill a fly, than it is to turn it loose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-harrison/it-s-easier-to-tell-a-lie-than-to-tell-the-truth-it-s-easier-to-kill/) [George Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-harrison/) > [The truth is, it's easier for me to write than talk... to express the state I'm in at any time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/the-truth-is-it-s-easier-for-me-to-write-than-talk-to-express-the/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [“sometimes you have to force-feed yourself the truth. It’s easier to swallow down the road.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kailyn-lowry/sometimes-you-have-to-force-feed-yourself-the-truth-it-s-easier-to/) [Kailyn Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kailyn-lowry/) > [The truth is easier when you leavin' it out. Like when you "5 minutes away" but you're just leavin your house?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/the-truth-is-easier-when-you-leavin-it-out-like-when-you-5-minutes/) [William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/) > [“We will make them tell us what it is," said Poirot. "Third degree?" said Colonel Carbury. "No." Poirot shook his head. "Just ordinary conversation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agatha-christie/we-will-make-them-tell-us-what-it-is-said-poirot-third-degree-said/) [Agatha Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agatha-christie/) > [Nothing in this world is harder than speaking the truth, nothing easier than flattery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/nothing-in-this-world-is-harder-than-speaking-the-truth-nothing/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [Telling the truth is easier than lying. And forcing yourself to tell the truth means that you'll be motivated to make better choices when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/telling-the-truth-is-easier-than-lying-and-forcing-yourself-to-tell/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Always tell the truth, it's easier to remember.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reza-mashayekhi/always-tell-the-truth-it-s-easier-to-remember/) [Reza Mashayekhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reza-mashayekhi/) > [The truth is always easier than a lie or an evasion - easier to deal with and easier to live with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-always-easier-than-a-lie-or-an-evasion-easier-to-deal/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Part of history is facts. The other part is what we find easier to believe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-darby-bannard/part-of-history-is-facts-the-other-part-is-what-we-find-easier-to/) [Walter Darby Bannard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-darby-bannard/) > [It is easier to believe that there was nothing before there was something than that there was something before there was nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-huxley/it-is-easier-to-believe-that-there-was-nothing-before-there-was/) [Julian Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-huxley/) > [It's easier to believe in yourself after someone else has believed in you first.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle/it-s-easier-to-believe-in-yourself-after-someone-else-has-believed-in/) [Gabrielle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle/) ## More by Charles-Francois Dupuis > [The genius of a man capable of explaining religion seems to me to be of a higher order than that of a founder of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-francois-dupuis/the-genius-of-a-man-capable-of-explaining-religion-seems-to-me-to-be/) [Charles-Francois Dupuis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-francois-dupuis/) > [The book known by the name of the Apocalypse, has seemed to be until now unintelligible, merely because people persisted to see in it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-francois-dupuis/the-book-known-by-the-name-of-the-apocalypse-has-seemed-to-be-until/) [Charles-Francois Dupuis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-francois-dupuis/) [Explore all 3 Charles-Francois Dupuis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-francois-dupuis/) ## More Atheism quotes > [From Augustine down, theologians have tried to compel people to accept their special interpretation of the Scripture, and the tortures of the inquisition, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matilda-joslyn-gage/from-augustine-down-theologians-have-tried-to-compel-people-to-accept/) [Matilda Joslyn Gage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matilda-joslyn-gage/) > [“What I have a problem with is not so much religion or god, but faith. When you say you believe something in your heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/what-i-have-a-problem-with-is-not-so-much-religion-or-god-but-faith/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [No philosophy, no religion, has ever brought so glad a message to the world as this good news of Atheism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-besant/no-philosophy-no-religion-has-ever-brought-so-glad-a-message-to-the/) [Annie Besant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-besant/) > [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/) [John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [God speaks through me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/god-speaks-through-me/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [A knowledge of the existence of something we cannot penetrate, of the manifestations of the profoundest reason and the most radiant beauty - it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/a-knowledge-of-the-existence-of-something-we-cannot-penetrate-of-the/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [You cannot ... transmute some incoherent mixture of words into sense merely by introducing the three-letter word "God" to be its grammatical subject.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antony-flew/you-cannot-transmute-some-incoherent-mixture-of-words-into-sense/) [Antony Flew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antony-flew/) > [Many humanists have argued that happiness involves a combination of hedonism and creative moral development; that an exuberant life fuses excellence and enjoyment, meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kurtz/many-humanists-have-argued-that-happiness-involves-a-combination-of/) [Paul Kurtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kurtz/) > [If, with all the time at my disposal, with all the wealth of the resources of this vast universe, to do with as I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/if-with-all-the-time-at-my-disposal-with-all-the-wealth-of-the/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [Do you think that was kind? Do you think it was godlike? What would you think of a physician, if a woman came to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-h-gardener/do-you-think-that-was-kind-do-you-think-it-was-godlike-what-would-you/) [Helen H. Gardener](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-h-gardener/) > [Science can destroy religion by ignoring it as well as by disproving its tenets. No one ever demonstrated, so far as I am aware,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/science-can-destroy-religion-by-ignoring-it-as-well-as-by-disproving/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [Honest investigation is utterly impossible within the pale of any church, for the reason, that if you think the church is right you will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/honest-investigation-is-utterly-impossible-within-the-pale-of-any/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) [Browse all 4,769 Atheism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheism/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A great error is more easily propagated than a great truth, because it is easier to believe, than to reason, and because people prefer the marvels of romances to the simplicity of history.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Charles-Francois Dupuis" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-francois-dupuis/a-great-error-is-more-easily-propagated-than-a-great-truth-because-it/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Atheism" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-francois-dupuis/a-great-error-is-more-easily-propagated-than-a-great-truth-because-it/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebc/charles-francois-dupuis-78368_atheism_a-great-error-is-more-easily-propagated_1745318.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebc/charles-francois-dupuis-78368_atheism_a-great-error-is-more-easily-propagated_1745318.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebc/charles-francois-dupuis-78368_atheism_a-great-error-is-more-easily-propagated_1745318.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A great error is more easily propagated than a great truth, because it is easier to believe, than to reason…” — Charles-Francois Dupuis", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Charles-Francois Dupuis", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-francois-dupuis/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "A great error is more easily...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-francois-dupuis/a-great-error-is-more-easily-propagated-than-a-great-truth-because-it/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-francois-dupuis/a-great-error-is-more-easily-propagated-than-a-great-truth-because-it/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```