---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Whether a man hides his bad qualities and…"
description: "\"Whether a man hides his bad qualities and vices or confesses them openly, his vanity wants to gain an advantage by it in both cases: just note how subt..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2cf/friedrich-nietzsche-15_advantage_whether-a-man-hides-his-bad-qualities-an_2728879.jpg"
---

#  Whether a man hides his bad qualities and vices or…

![“Whether a man hides his bad qualities and vices or confesses them openly, his vanity wants to gain an advantage by it in both cases: just note how subtly he distinguishes between those he will hide his bad qualities from and those he will face honestly and candidly.” quote by Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2cf/friedrich-nietzsche-15_advantage_whether-a-man-hides-his-bad-qualities-an_2728879.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2cf/friedrich-nietzsche-15_advantage_whether-a-man-hides-his-bad-qualities-an_2728879.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2cf/friedrich-nietzsche-15_advantage_whether-a-man-hides-his-bad-qualities-an_2728879.jpg)

> “Whether a man hides his bad qualities and vices or confesses them openly, his vanity wants to gain an advantage by it in both cases: just note how subtly he distinguishes between those he will hide his bad qualities from and those he will face honestly and candidly.”

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

People hide or reveal flaws strategically; vanity drives selective honesty.

**In simple terms:** Vanity leads to selective honesty about flaws.

Key Takeaway

Practice authentic self-disclosure.

Themes

vanity honesty self-presentation

Mood

critical introspective

Type

philosophical practical

When to use this quote

- personal development
- relationship counseling
- public speaking

Key Concepts

ethics psychology

Questions to Reflect On

- When is selective honesty justified?
- How does vanity influence your truth-telling?

A Different Perspective

Complete honesty can be socially risky.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Advantage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/advantage/) [Bad qualities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-qualities/) [Cases](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cases/) [Confesses Openly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confesses-openly-2939685/) [Faces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faces/) [Gains](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gains/) [Honestly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honestly/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Notes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/notes/) [Openly Vanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/openly-vanity-2939684/) [Pride](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pride/) [Qualities Vices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/qualities-vices-2939683/) [Quality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quality/) [Subtly Distinguishes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/subtly-distinguishes-2939687/) [Vanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vanity/) [Vices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vices/) [Vices Confesses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vices-confesses-2939686/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/)

## Related quotes

> [Love is putting up with someone's bad qualities because they somehow complete you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-is-putting-up-with-someone-s-bad-qualities-because-they-somehow/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Everybody has bad qualities. We don't have to pretend that we're perfect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-povitsky/everybody-has-bad-qualities-we-don-t-have-to-pretend-that-we-re/)

[Esther Povitsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-povitsky/)

> [Of course, man is also a weak creature with many bad qualities. And it depends on which of his qualities will in a certain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/of-course-man-is-also-a-weak-creature-with-many-bad-qualities-and-it/)

[Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/)

> [For me, everyone has good and bad qualities. I feel you must not always look at the bad qualities but also focus on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-winget/for-me-everyone-has-good-and-bad-qualities-i-feel-you-must-not-always/)

[Jennifer Winget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-winget/)

> [I find that the only way to make my characters really interesting to children is to exaggerate all their good or bad qualities, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roald-dahl/i-find-that-the-only-way-to-make-my-characters-really-interesting-to/)

[Roald Dahl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roald-dahl/)

> [A man's hatred is always concentrated upon that which makes him conscious of his bad qualities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/a-man-s-hatred-is-always-concentrated-upon-that-which-makes-him/)

[Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/)

> [In order to succeed in a profession, a person not only needs to have its good, but also its bad qualities. The former are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-grillparzer/in-order-to-succeed-in-a-profession-a-person-not-only-needs-to-have/)

[Franz Grillparzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-grillparzer/)

> [Give up all bad qualities in you, banish the ego and develop the spirit of surrender. You will then experience Bliss.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sathya-sai-baba/give-up-all-bad-qualities-in-you-banish-the-ego-and-develop-the/)

[Sathya Sai Baba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sathya-sai-baba/)

> [We confess our bad qualities to others out of fear of appearing naive or ridiculous by not being aware of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-brenan/we-confess-our-bad-qualities-to-others-out-of-fear-of-appearing-naive/)

[Gerald Brenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-brenan/)

> [If we want to eliminate bad qualities like hatred, envy, pride and ostentation, we have to employ Sathya, Dharma, Santhi and Prema and Ahimsa…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sathya-sai-baba/if-we-want-to-eliminate-bad-qualities-like-hatred-envy-pride-and/)

[Sathya Sai Baba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sathya-sai-baba/)

> [There sometimes wants only a stroke of fortune to discover numberless latent good or bad qualities, which would otherwise have been eternally concealed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greville-janner-baron-janner-of-braunstone/there-sometimes-wants-only-a-stroke-of-fortune-to-discover-numberless/)

[Greville Janner, Baron Janner of Braunstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greville-janner-baron-janner-of-braunstone/)

> [We are convinced that certain people have all the bad qualities we do not know in ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/we-are-convinced-that-certain-people-have-all-the-bad-qualities-we-do/)

[Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/)

> [I am old enough to know only too well my good and bad qualities, which were often one in the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-see/i-am-old-enough-to-know-only-too-well-my-good-and-bad-qualities-which/)

[Lisa See](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-see/)

> [Even though I have bad qualities in my personal life, as an athlete, I can turn it on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-jones/even-though-i-have-bad-qualities-in-my-personal-life-as-an-athlete-i/)

[Jon Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-jones/)

> [The ego is a very bad quality. Ego sees everything as sep­arate; it sees everything as dual. You must remove this ego and see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sathya-sai-baba/the-ego-is-a-very-bad-quality-ego-sees-everything-as-sep-arate-it/)

[Sathya Sai Baba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sathya-sai-baba/)

## More by Friedrich Nietzsche

> [Animals know nothing of themselves, and they also know nothing of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/animals-know-nothing-of-themselves-and-they-also-know-nothing-of-the/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [“Every select man strives instinctively for a citadel and a privacy, where he is FREE from the crowd, the many, the majority-- where he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/every-select-man-strives-instinctively-for-a-citadel-and-a-privacy/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [“It breaks my heart. Better than your words, your eye tells me all your peril. You are not yet free, you still search for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/it-breaks-my-heart-better-than-your-words-your-eye-tells-me-all-your/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [“79. A soul which knows that it is loved, but does not itself love, betrays its sediment: its dregs come up.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/79-a-soul-which-knows-that-it-is-loved-but-does-not-itself-love/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [We deceive ourselves when giving respect to the person for whom we have surrendered ourselves, when we respectively expect them to be as we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/we-deceive-ourselves-when-giving-respect-to-the-person-for-whom-we/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [“The great periods of our life occur when we gain the courage to rechristen what is bad about us as what is best.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/the-great-periods-of-our-life-occur-when-we-gain-the-courage-to/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [“What is life? Life - that is: continually shedding something that wants to die. Life - that is: being cruel and inexorable against everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/what-is-life-life-that-is-continually-shedding-something-that-wants/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [It is thus only this personal feeling of misery that we get rid of by acts of pity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/it-is-thus-only-this-personal-feeling-of-misery-that-we-get-rid-of-by/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [“Writers whose thoughts are expressed with clarity and precision are assumed by readers to be superficial. Where the meaning is obscured, then readers give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/writers-whose-thoughts-are-expressed-with-clarity-and-precision-are/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [“he does not wear a twitching, mobile, human face, but rather a mask, as it were, with its features in dignified equilibrium; he does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/he-does-not-wear-a-twitching-mobile-human-face-but-rather-a-mask-as/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [Chastity is a virtue with some, but with many it is almost a vice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/chastity-is-a-virtue-with-some-but-with-many-it-is-almost-a-vice/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [The earth is like the breasts of a woman: useful as well as pleasing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/the-earth-is-like-the-breasts-of-a-woman-useful-as-well-as-pleasing/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [“Of all that is written I love only what a man has written in his own blood.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/of-all-that-is-written-i-love-only-what-a-man-has-written-in-his-own/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [No shepherd and one herd! Everybody wants the same, everybody is the same: whoever feels different goes voluntarily into a madhouse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/no-shepherd-and-one-herd-everybody-wants-the-same-everybody-is-the/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [Pain makes hens and poets cackle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/pain-makes-hens-and-poets-cackle/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

[Explore all 3,486 Friedrich Nietzsche quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

## More Advantage quotes

> [Dogmatists have one advantage: they are poor listeners.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/dogmatists-have-one-advantage-they-are-poor-listeners/)

[Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/)

> [ Next came the Patent laws. These began in England in 1624; and, in this country, with the adoption of our constitution. Before then \[these?\],… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/next-came-the-patent-laws-these-began-in-england-in-1624-and-in-this/)

[Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/)

> [Talented people can predict with great accuracy what's about to happen just a tiny bit ahead of their competitors. It might be two seconds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-maney/talented-people-can-predict-with-great-accuracy-what-s-about-to/)

[Kevin Maney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-maney/)

> [All I ever wanted was an unfair advantage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrison-wynn/all-i-ever-wanted-was-an-unfair-advantage/)

[Garrison Wynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrison-wynn/)

> [Part of the advantage, and part of the result of trying to be a producer and director, are the practical things, you find. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/campbell-scott/part-of-the-advantage-and-part-of-the-result-of-trying-to-be-a/)

[Campbell Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/campbell-scott/)

> [I was born with a silver microphone in my mouth, and that was an advantage. My father wrote books and was also a great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-dimbleby/i-was-born-with-a-silver-microphone-in-my-mouth-and-that-was-an/)

[Jonathan Dimbleby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-dimbleby/)

> [Like funny men, skilled diners are apparently perceived to have an evolutionary advantage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-goodyear/like-funny-men-skilled-diners-are-apparently-perceived-to-have-an/)

[Dana Goodyear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-goodyear/)

> [For some reason when I decide to pursue something, I never have any fear that it won't happen. I think it's just ingrained in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-blatz/for-some-reason-when-i-decide-to-pursue-something-i-never-have-any/)

[Kelly Blatz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-blatz/)

> [I think I have good hands, so I try to use them to my advantage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bianca-andreescu/i-think-i-have-good-hands-so-i-try-to-use-them-to-my-advantage/)

[Bianca Andreescu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bianca-andreescu/)

> [My influences are jazz, blues, European classical music; they are rock music and pop music. So many kinds of music. World music from different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rokia-traore/my-influences-are-jazz-blues-european-classical-music-they-are-rock/)

[Rokia Traore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rokia-traore/)

> [Baseball needs to put the steroids era behind it by having and enforcing tough rules against all kinds of artificial advantages, so that spring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-olasky/baseball-needs-to-put-the-steroids-era-behind-it-by-having-and/)

[Marvin Olasky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-olasky/)

> [Daily contact with some teachers is itself all-sided ethical education for the child without a spoken precept. Here, too, the real advantage of male…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-stanley-hall/daily-contact-with-some-teachers-is-itself-all-sided-ethical/)

[G. Stanley Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-stanley-hall/)

> [ If \[Donald\] Trump throws 20 million off of health care, that's going to be - if he handles this badly - and it's very… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/van-jones/if-donald-trump-throws-20-million-off-of-health-care-that-s-going-to/)

[Van Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/van-jones/)

> [Live in the world you inhabit. Look upon things as they are. Take them as you find them. Make the best of them. Turn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-e-lee/live-in-the-world-you-inhabit-look-upon-things-as-they-are-take-them/)

[Robert E. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-e-lee/)

> [I always tell women that the fact that you're different and that you're noticed, because there are few of us in the tech industry,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/padmasree-warrior/i-always-tell-women-that-the-fact-that-you-re-different-and-that-you/)

[Padmasree Warrior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/padmasree-warrior/)

[Browse all 3,503 Advantage quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/advantage/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Whether a man hides his bad qualities and vices or confesses them openly, his vanity wants to gain an advantage by it in both cases: just note how subtly he distinguishes between those he will hide his bad qualities from and those he will face honestly and candidly.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Friedrich Nietzsche"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/whether-a-man-hides-his-bad-qualities-and-vices-or-confesses-them/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Advantage"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/whether-a-man-hides-his-bad-qualities-and-vices-or-confesses-them/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2cf/friedrich-nietzsche-15_advantage_whether-a-man-hides-his-bad-qualities-an_2728879.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2cf/friedrich-nietzsche-15_advantage_whether-a-man-hides-his-bad-qualities-an_2728879.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2cf/friedrich-nietzsche-15_advantage_whether-a-man-hides-his-bad-qualities-an_2728879.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Whether a man hides his bad qualities and vices or confesses them openly, his vanity wants to gain an…” — Friedrich Nietzsche",
                "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": "Friedrich Nietzsche",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Whether a man hides his bad...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/whether-a-man-hides-his-bad-qualities-and-vices-or-confesses-them/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/whether-a-man-hides-his-bad-qualities-and-vices-or-confesses-them/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
