--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Man prefers to believe what he prefers to…" description: "\"Man prefers to believe what he prefers to be true.\" — Francis Bacon" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/446/francis-bacon-297_being-true_man-prefers-to-believe-what-he-prefers-t_3236328.jpg" --- # Man prefers to believe what he prefers to be true. ![“Man prefers to believe what he prefers to be true.” quote by Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/446/francis-bacon-297_being-true_man-prefers-to-believe-what-he-prefers-t_3236328.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/446/francis-bacon-297_being-true_man-prefers-to-believe-what-he-prefers-t_3236328.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/446/francis-bacon-297_being-true_man-prefers-to-believe-what-he-prefers-t_3236328.jpg) > “Man prefers to believe what he prefers to be true.” [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People tend to accept ideas that align with their desires rather than objective truth. **In simple terms:** We favor beliefs that suit us. Key Takeaway Question your assumptions. Themes bias perception truth Mood reflective critical Type philosophical psychological When to use this quote - personal relationships - political discourse - media consumption - decision making Key Concepts cognitive bias motivational reasoning Questions to Reflect On - What belief do you hold because it feels comfortable? - How does desire shape your perception of facts? A Different Perspective Beliefs can be self‑deceptive and hinder learning. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Being true](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being-true/) [Belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/) [Believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe/) [Believe Prefers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe-prefers-6141515/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Man Prefers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-prefers-641746/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Prefers Believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prefers-believe-6141514/) [Prefers True](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prefers-true-6141516/) [True friend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/true-friend/) ## Related quotes > [The man who prefers not be taken seriously is often times the same who rues being taken for granted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-man-who-prefers-not-be-taken-seriously-is-often-times-the-same/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Every man prefers belief to the exercise of judgment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/every-man-prefers-belief-to-the-exercise-of-judgment/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The man who prefers his country before any other duty shows the same spirit as the man who surrenders every right to the state.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-acton/the-man-who-prefers-his-country-before-any-other-duty-shows-the-same/) [Lord Acton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-acton/) > [Whatever a man prefers to God, that he makes a god to himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyprian/whatever-a-man-prefers-to-god-that-he-makes-a-god-to-himself/) [Cyprian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyprian/) > [When the man was disgraced and told to go away, he was allowed to ask all the animals whether any of them would come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-adams/when-the-man-was-disgraced-and-told-to-go-away-he-was-allowed-to-ask/) [Richard Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-adams/) > [A good man prefers to suffer rather than overcome injustice with evil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sallust/a-good-man-prefers-to-suffer-rather-than-overcome-injustice-with-evil/) [Sallust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sallust/) > [Every man prefers virtue, when there is not some strong incitement to transgress its precepts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/every-man-prefers-virtue-when-there-is-not-some-strong-incitement-to/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Every man prefers to look at a well-shaped woman instead of a rubber ball.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katarina-witt/every-man-prefers-to-look-at-a-well-shaped-woman-instead-of-a-rubber/) [Katarina Witt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katarina-witt/) > [The critic is a man who prefers the indolence of opinion to the trials of action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mason-brown/the-critic-is-a-man-who-prefers-the-indolence-of-opinion-to-the/) [John Mason Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mason-brown/) > [My man prefers meat over the bone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shakira/my-man-prefers-meat-over-the-bone/) [Shakira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shakira/) > [That's what real love amounts to - letting a person be what he really is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-morrison/that-s-what-real-love-amounts-to-letting-a-person-be-what-he-really-is/) [Jim Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-morrison/) > [Hear our humble prayer, O God. Make us, ourselves, to be true friends to the animals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/hear-our-humble-prayer-o-god-make-us-ourselves-to-be-true-friends-to/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) > [For what a man would like to be true, that he more readily believes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/for-what-a-man-would-like-to-be-true-that-he-more-readily-believes/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [Nothing opens the heart like a true friend, to whom you may impart griefs, joys, fears, hopes...and whatever lies upon the heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/nothing-opens-the-heart-like-a-true-friend-to-whom-you-may-impart/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [Life as we know it is fundamentally unsatisfying. I think most folks feel this to be true. They know that a life of aimless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-yates/life-as-we-know-it-is-fundamentally-unsatisfying-i-think-most-folks/) [Michael Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-yates/) ## More by Francis Bacon > [Princes are like heavenly bodies, which cause good or evil times, and which have much veneration, but no rest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/princes-are-like-heavenly-bodies-which-cause-good-or-evil-times-and/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [The best preservative to keep the mind in health is the faithful admonition of a friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/the-best-preservative-to-keep-the-mind-in-health-is-the-faithful/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [Since custom is the principal magistrate of man's life, let men by all means endeavor to obtain good customs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/since-custom-is-the-principal-magistrate-of-man-s-life-let-men-by-all/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [Painting today is pure intuition and luck and taking advantage of what happens when you splash the stuff down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/painting-today-is-pure-intuition-and-luck-and-taking-advantage-of/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [I usually accept bribes from both sides so that tainted money can never influence my decision.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/i-usually-accept-bribes-from-both-sides-so-that-tainted-money-can/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [Much bending breaks the bow; much unbending the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/much-bending-breaks-the-bow-much-unbending-the-mind/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [When Christ came into the world, peace was sung; and when He went out of the world, peace was bequeathed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/when-christ-came-into-the-world-peace-was-sung-and-when-he-went-out/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [...neither is it possible to discover the more remote and deeper parts of any science, if you stand but upon the level of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/neither-is-it-possible-to-discover-the-more-remote-and-deeper-parts/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [The divisions of science are not like different lines that meet in one angle, but rather like the branches of trees that join in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/the-divisions-of-science-are-not-like-different-lines-that-meet-in/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [The human understanding, when any preposition has been once laid down... forces everything else to add fresh support and confirmation; and although more cogent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/the-human-understanding-when-any-preposition-has-been-once-laid-down/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [I should have been, I don't know, a con-man, a robber or a prostitute. But it was vanity that made me choose painting, vanity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/i-should-have-been-i-don-t-know-a-con-man-a-robber-or-a-prostitute/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [Wounds cannot be cured without searching.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/wounds-cannot-be-cured-without-searching/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [The French are wiser than they seem, and the Spaniards seem wiser than they are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/the-french-are-wiser-than-they-seem-and-the-spaniards-seem-wiser-than/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [When a man laughs at his troubles he loses a great many friends. They never forgive the loss of their prerogative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/when-a-man-laughs-at-his-troubles-he-loses-a-great-many-friends-they/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [Believing that I was born for the service of mankind, and regarding the care of the commonwealth as a kind of common property which,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/believing-that-i-was-born-for-the-service-of-mankind-and-regarding/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) [Explore all 711 Francis Bacon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) ## More Being true quotes > [Life as we know it is fundamentally unsatisfying. I think most folks feel this to be true. They know that a life of aimless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-yates/life-as-we-know-it-is-fundamentally-unsatisfying-i-think-most-folks/) [Michael Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-yates/) > [Whatever your conscious mind assumes and believes to be true, your subconscious mind will accept and bring to pass. Believe in good fortune, divine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-murphy/whatever-your-conscious-mind-assumes-and-believes-to-be-true-your/) [Joseph Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-murphy/) > [Some article called me the most feared man in Silicon Valley. Good Lord! Why? My teenage boys got a kick out of it: 'Dad,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/some-article-called-me-the-most-feared-man-in-silicon-valley-good/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [So Americans understand the costs of war. Yet as a country, we will never tolerate our security being threatened, nor stand idly by when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-americans-understand-the-costs-of-war-yet-as-a-country-we-will/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Intuitionists think that there are cases in which, say, some identity statement between real numbers is neither true nor false, even though we know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-f-heck/intuitionists-think-that-there-are-cases-in-which-say-some-identity/) [Richard F. Heck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-f-heck/) > [Don't be pretentious is my first advice to young writers. This is the big problem - just because you're getting an MFA doesn't mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/don-t-be-pretentious-is-my-first-advice-to-young-writers-this-is-the/) [Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/) > [There is no normal. I've never met a normal person. The concept is flawed. It implies that there is only one way people are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-johnson/there-is-no-normal-i-ve-never-met-a-normal-person-the-concept-is/) [Maureen Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-johnson/) > [I learned a tremendous amount about what was important to me as a head coach in that I was not in charge. I didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-carroll/i-learned-a-tremendous-amount-about-what-was-important-to-me-as-a/) [Pete Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-carroll/) > [Life is all about being true to yourself and what you believe in](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-biersack/life-is-all-about-being-true-to-yourself-and-what-you-believe-in/) [Andy Biersack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-biersack/) > [I have spent most of my life unlearning things that were proved not to be true](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-buckminster-fuller/i-have-spent-most-of-my-life-unlearning-things-that-were-proved-not/) [R. Buckminster Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-buckminster-fuller/) > [It seemed too good to be true. That's grace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judah-smith/it-seemed-too-good-to-be-true-that-s-grace/) [Judah Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judah-smith/) > [You create the happiness and the balance that you have, and your own power. This is one thing that I know to be true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-raitt/you-create-the-happiness-and-the-balance-that-you-have-and-your-own/) [Bonnie Raitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-raitt/) > [Being true to yourself means living in truth with each person in your life. It means refusing to say or do something that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tracy/being-true-to-yourself-means-living-in-truth-with-each-person-in-your/) [Brian Tracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tracy/) > [History is nothing but gossip about the past, with the hope that it might be true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/history-is-nothing-but-gossip-about-the-past-with-the-hope-that-it/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [It is not the responsibility of the enlightened teacher to bring the student to enlightenment. That may be true in the classroom, but in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/it-is-not-the-responsibility-of-the-enlightened-teacher-to-bring-the/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) [Browse all 1,447 Being true quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being-true/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Man prefers to believe what he prefers to be true.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Francis Bacon" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/man-prefers-to-believe-what-he-prefers-to-be-true/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Being true" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/man-prefers-to-believe-what-he-prefers-to-be-true/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/446/francis-bacon-297_being-true_man-prefers-to-believe-what-he-prefers-t_3236328.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/446/francis-bacon-297_being-true_man-prefers-to-believe-what-he-prefers-t_3236328.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/446/francis-bacon-297_being-true_man-prefers-to-believe-what-he-prefers-t_3236328.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Man prefers to believe what he prefers to be true.” — Francis Bacon", "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": "Francis Bacon", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Man prefers to believe what he...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/man-prefers-to-believe-what-he-prefers-to-be-true/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/man-prefers-to-believe-what-he-prefers-to-be-true/#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 } } ] } ```