--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: By a lie a man throws away and, as it…" description: "\"By a lie a man throws away and, as it were, annihilates his dignity as a man. A man who himself does not believe what he tells another ... has even les..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ee/immanuel-kant-532_appearance_by-a-lie-a-man-throws-away-and-as-it-wer_941701.jpg" --- # By a lie a man throws away and, as it were, annihilates… ![“By a lie a man throws away and, as it were, annihilates his dignity as a man. A man who himself does not believe what he tells another ... has even less worth than if he were a mere thing. ... makes himself a mere deceptive appearance of man, not man himself.” quote by Immanuel Kant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ee/immanuel-kant-532_appearance_by-a-lie-a-man-throws-away-and-as-it-wer_941701.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ee/immanuel-kant-532_appearance_by-a-lie-a-man-throws-away-and-as-it-wer_941701.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ee/immanuel-kant-532_appearance_by-a-lie-a-man-throws-away-and-as-it-wer_941701.jpg) > “By a lie a man throws away and, as it were, annihilates his dignity as a man. A man who himself does not believe what he tells another ... has even less worth than if he were a mere thing. ... makes himself a mere deceptive appearance of man, not man himself.” [Immanuel Kant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-kant/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Kant claims that lying destroys a person’s dignity, reducing them to a mere object rather than a moral being. **In simple terms:** Lying degrades human dignity, making one less than human. Key Takeaway Speak truth to preserve dignity. Themes ethics human dignity truthfulness Mood reflective serious Type ethical philosophical When to use this quote - personal relationships - legal testimony - public discourse Key Concepts dehumanization integrity respect Questions to Reflect On - Can truth ever be harmful? - When is lying justified? A Different Perspective Truth may sometimes cause harm, challenging absolute honesty. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Annihilates Dignity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/annihilates-dignity-1560086/) [Appearance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appearance/) [Appearance Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appearance-man-1291864/) [Believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe/) [Deceptive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deceptive/) [Dignity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dignity/) [Dignity Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dignity-man-346358/) [Doe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doe/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Lying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Mere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mere/) [Mere Deceptive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mere-deceptive-1613359/) [Respect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/respect/) ## Related quotes > [By a lie, a man... annihilates his dignity as a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immanuel-kant/by-a-lie-a-man-annihilates-his-dignity-as-a-man/) [Immanuel Kant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-kant/) > [By a lie a man throws away and, as it were, annihilates his dignity as a man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immanuel-kant/by-a-lie-a-man-throws-away-and-as-it-were-annihilates-his-dignity-as/) [Immanuel Kant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-kant/) > [Fight the good fight; and always call to mind that it is not you who are mortal, but this body of ours. 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But every man knows what unconfessable things pass within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luigi-pirandello/each-of-us-when-he-appears-before-his-fellows-is-clothed-in-a-certain/) [Luigi Pirandello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luigi-pirandello/) > [We must build a new world, a far better world - one in which the eternal dignity of man is respected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/we-must-build-a-new-world-a-far-better-world-one-in-which-the-eternal/) [Harry S. 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Supere aude! Dare to use your own understanding!is thus the motto of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immanuel-kant/enlightenment-is-the-liberation-of-man-from-his-self-caused-state-of/) [Immanuel Kant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-kant/) > [The ideal of the supreme being is nothing but a regulative principle of reason which directs us to look upon all connection in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immanuel-kant/the-ideal-of-the-supreme-being-is-nothing-but-a-regulative-principle/) [Immanuel Kant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-kant/) > [“Jeg skal alltid handle slik at den regelen jeg handler etter kunne gjelde som allmenn lov.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immanuel-kant/jeg-skal-alltid-handle-slik-at-den-regelen-jeg-handler-etter-kunne/) [Immanuel Kant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-kant/) > [Deaths, births, and marriages, considering how much they are separately dependent on the freedom of the human will, should seem to be subject to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immanuel-kant/deaths-births-and-marriages-considering-how-much-they-are-separately/) [Immanuel Kant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-kant/) > [It is precisely in knowing its limits that philosophy consists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immanuel-kant/it-is-precisely-in-knowing-its-limits-that-philosophy-consists/) [Immanuel Kant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-kant/) > [A society that is not willing to demand a life of somebody who has taken somebody else’s life is simply immoral.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immanuel-kant/a-society-that-is-not-willing-to-demand-a-life-of-somebody-who-has/) [Immanuel Kant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-kant/) > [. . . as to moral feeling, this supposed special sense, the appeal to it is indeed superficial when those who cannot think believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immanuel-kant/as-to-moral-feeling-this-supposed-special-sense-the-appeal-to-it-is/) [Immanuel Kant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-kant/) [Explore all 476 Immanuel Kant quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-kant/) ## More Appearance quotes > [Your looks don't make you pretty, it's the person inside who makes you pretty!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-chan/your-looks-don-t-make-you-pretty-it-s-the-person-inside-who-makes-you/) [Aaron Chan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-chan/) > [I just worried about my weight. 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