--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Truth, after all, wears a different face…" description: "\"Truth, after all, wears a different face to everybody, and it would be too tedious to wait till all were agreed. She is said to lie at the bottom of a ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d35/james-russell-lowell-561_bottom_truth-after-all-wears-a-different-face-t_3146625.png" --- # Truth, after all, wears a different face to everybody, and… ![“Truth, after all, wears a different face to everybody, and it would be too tedious to wait till all were agreed. She is said to lie at the bottom of a well, for the very reason, perhaps, that whoever looks down in search of her sees his own image at the bottom, and is persuaded not only that he…” quote by James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d35/james-russell-lowell-561_bottom_truth-after-all-wears-a-different-face-t_3146625.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d35/james-russell-lowell-561_bottom_truth-after-all-wears-a-different-face-t_3146625.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d35/james-russell-lowell-561_bottom_truth-after-all-wears-a-different-face-t_3146625.png) > “Truth, after all, wears a different face to everybody, and it would be too tedious to wait till all were agreed. She is said to lie at the bottom of a well, for the very reason, perhaps, that whoever looks down in search of her sees his own image at the bottom, and is persuaded not only that he has seen the goddess, but that she is far better looking than he had imagined.” [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Truth appears differently to each person; seeking it often reveals our own biases, making us think we have found something greater. **In simple terms:** Truth looks different to everyone. Key Takeaway Question your assumptions. Themes philosophy perception truth Mood contemplative inquisitive Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - personal introspection - debate - media consumption Key Concepts subjectivity self‑reflection illusion Questions to Reflect On - What does your “truth” reveal about you? - How can we recognize bias? A Different Perspective Our projections can distort reality. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Faces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faces/) [Goddess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goddess/) [Lying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) ## Related quotes > [You have to wear a different face when you're interacting with the larger culture. And you can be more of yourself at home or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nguyen-viet-thang/you-have-to-wear-a-different-face-when-you-re-interacting-with-the/) [Nguyen Viet Thang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nguyen-viet-thang/) > [O why was I born with a different face? Why was I not born like the rest of my race?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/o-why-was-i-born-with-a-different-face-why-was-i-not-born-like-the/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [Truth, after all, wears a different face to everybody, and it would be too tedious to wait till all were agreed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/truth-after-all-wears-a-different-face-to-everybody-and-it-would-be/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [The consequence of Mr. Bush's and Blair's historic lie that the reason for invading Iraq was weapons of mass destruction, is that everything is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walid-jumblatt/the-consequence-of-mr-bush-s-and-blair-s-historic-lie-that-the-reason/) [Walid Jumblatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walid-jumblatt/) > [There are some good people. But a good chunk of them will lie for no reason at all - it'll be ten o'clock and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cusack/there-are-some-good-people-but-a-good-chunk-of-them-will-lie-for-no/) [John Cusack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cusack/) > [Just because you have a blog doesn't mean that you should, like, lie for no reason.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sky-ferreira/just-because-you-have-a-blog-doesn-t-mean-that-you-should-like-lie/) [Sky Ferreira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sky-ferreira/) > [Good propaganda does not need to lie, indeed it may not lie. It has no reason to fear the truth. It is a mistake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-goebbels/good-propaganda-does-not-need-to-lie-indeed-it-may-not-lie-it-has-no/) [Joseph Goebbels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-goebbels/) > [“I don't think anybody'd remember and certainly do know everybody'd lie. The reason I'm so bitter and, as I said, 'in anguish,' nowadays, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/i-don-t-think-anybody-d-remember-and-certainly-do-know-everybody-d/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [I have no reason to lie and every reason not to. If I do lie, I will be prosecuted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lehrer/i-have-no-reason-to-lie-and-every-reason-not-to-if-i-do-lie-i-will-be/) [Jim Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lehrer/) > [All the important things in life lie beyond reason... and that's just the way things are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alister-e-mcgrath/all-the-important-things-in-life-lie-beyond-reason-and-that-s-just/) [Alister E. McGrath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alister-e-mcgrath/) > [“Behind every "Truth" there is always a "Lie", Behind every " Lie" there is always a "Reason", and behind every " Reason" there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shujoy-chowdhury/behind-every-truth-there-is-always-a-lie-behind-every-lie-there-is/) shujoy chowdhury > [Somewhere between the time you arrive and the time you go may lie a reason you were alive, but you'll never know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackson-browne/somewhere-between-the-time-you-arrive-and-the-time-you-go-may-lie-a/) [Jackson Browne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackson-browne/) > [LIE & EVE IS IN BELIEVE… Never Believe in what can be a LIE, because you don't know the true story. EVE BELIEVE IN…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elise/lie-eve-is-in-believe-never-believe-in-what-can-be-a-lie-because-you/) [Elise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elise/) > [Oh! why was I born with a different face? why was I not born like the rest of my race? when I look,each one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/oh-why-was-i-born-with-a-different-face-why-was-i-not-born-like-the/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [“When I arrive to a new place, it is no longer the place it was before my arrival. And I am not the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giannis-delimitsos/when-i-arrive-to-a-new-place-it-is-no-longer-the-place-it-was-before/) [Giannis Delimitsos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giannis-delimitsos/) ## More by James Russell Lowell > [We kind o' thought Christ went agin war an' pillage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/we-kind-o-thought-christ-went-agin-war-an-pillage/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [He gives only the worthless gold who gives from a sense of duty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/he-gives-only-the-worthless-gold-who-gives-from-a-sense-of-duty/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [As life runs on, the road grows strange with faces new - and near the end. The milestones into headstones change, Neath every one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/as-life-runs-on-the-road-grows-strange-with-faces-new-and-near-the/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [Where one person shapes their life by precept and example, there are a thousand who have shaped it by impulse and circumstances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/where-one-person-shapes-their-life-by-precept-and-example-there-are-a/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [Granting our wish is one of Fate's saddest jokes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/granting-our-wish-is-one-of-fate-s-saddest-jokes/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [Most religion-mongers have bated their paradises with a bit of toasted cheese. They have tempted the body with large promises of possessions in their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/most-religion-mongers-have-bated-their-paradises-with-a-bit-of/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [The thing we long for, that we are For one transcendent moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/the-thing-we-long-for-that-we-are-for-one-transcendent-moment/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [O reputation! dearer far than life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/o-reputation-dearer-far-than-life/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [Keats longed for fame, but longed above all to deserve it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/keats-longed-for-fame-but-longed-above-all-to-deserve-it/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [It is beginning to be doubtful whether Parliament and Congress sit in Westminster and Washington, or in the editorial rooms of the leading journals,--so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/it-is-beginning-to-be-doubtful-whether-parliament-and-congress-sit-in/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [ \[B\]ut in literature, it should be remembered, a thing always becomes his at last who says it best, and thus makes it his own. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/b-ut-in-literature-it-should-be-remembered-a-thing-always-becomes-his/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [It may be glorious to write Thoughts that shall glad the two or three High souls, like those far stars that come in sight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/it-may-be-glorious-to-write-thoughts-that-shall-glad-the-two-or-three/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [It is the vain endeavor to make ourselves what we are not that has strewn history with so many broken purposes and lives left…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/it-is-the-vain-endeavor-to-make-ourselves-what-we-are-not-that-has/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [Take winter as you find him, and he turns out to be a thoroughly honest fellow; with no nonsense in him, which is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/take-winter-as-you-find-him-and-he-turns-out-to-be-a-thoroughly/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [The intellect has only one failing, which, to be sure, is a very considerable one. It has no conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/the-intellect-has-only-one-failing-which-to-be-sure-is-a-very/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) [Explore all 471 James Russell Lowell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) ## More Bottom quotes > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [Filmmaking, like sex, isn't a polite enterprise. It involves a lot of mess and the bottom line is, if somebody ain't screaming, you're not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-woods/filmmaking-like-sex-isn-t-a-polite-enterprise-it-involves-a-lot-of/) [James Woods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-woods/) > [I was terrible student. I was capable, but I never like being told what to do, so I was always in the bottom class…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-lilley/i-was-terrible-student-i-was-capable-but-i-never-like-being-told-what/) [Chris Lilley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-lilley/) > [The contempt for law and the contempt for the human consequences of lawbreaking go from the bottom to the top of American society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-contempt-for-law-and-the-contempt-for-the-human-consequences-of/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [I plead with my Moonlight fans to give this show a chance if they let me give it a chance. I can’t do Moonlight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-o-loughlin/i-plead-with-my-moonlight-fans-to-give-this-show-a-chance-if-they-let/) [Alex O'Loughlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-o-loughlin/) > [Well, the bottom line is that I'm extremely pleased with 'The Stupids.' I'm pleased that it's coming out, and it should look good. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-landis/well-the-bottom-line-is-that-i-m-extremely-pleased-with-the-stupids-i/) [John Landis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-landis/) > [Search for the seed of good in every adversity. Master that principle and you will own a precious shield that will guard you well…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/og-mandino/search-for-the-seed-of-good-in-every-adversity-master-that-principle/) [Og Mandino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/og-mandino/) > [I would have had a clause in my contract; I would've definitely put some fine print in my contract that said, "If the president…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-budden/i-would-have-had-a-clause-in-my-contract-i-would-ve-definitely-put/) [Joe Budden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-budden/) > [Of course the Dharma-body of the Buddha was the hedge at the bottom of the garden. At the same time, and no less obviously,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/of-course-the-dharma-body-of-the-buddha-was-the-hedge-at-the-bottom/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [When I hit bottom, I can attack the problem and get to where I want to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-rodman/when-i-hit-bottom-i-can-attack-the-problem-and-get-to-where-i-want-to/) [Dennis Rodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-rodman/) > [If I had lost the popular vote but won the electoral college and in my first day as president the intelligence community came to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/if-i-had-lost-the-popular-vote-but-won-the-electoral-college-and-in/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [The bottom line, in the professional level, no matter where you go, there's going to be competition. That's what it is. At the end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-tolzien/the-bottom-line-in-the-professional-level-no-matter-where-you-go/) [Scott Tolzien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-tolzien/) > [Life is a climb and it's a struggle getting to the top but the drop to the bottom can be quick and so I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miley-cyrus/life-is-a-climb-and-it-s-a-struggle-getting-to-the-top-but-the-drop/) [Miley Cyrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miley-cyrus/) > [One thing you learned as a Cubs fan: when you bought you ticket, you could bank on seeing the bottom of the ninth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-garagiola/one-thing-you-learned-as-a-cubs-fan-when-you-bought-you-ticket-you/) [Joe Garagiola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-garagiola/) > [The political satirist usually votes against their own interests, but the bottom line is that it doesn't really matter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lizz-winstead/the-political-satirist-usually-votes-against-their-own-interests-but/) [Lizz Winstead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lizz-winstead/) Browse all 2,558 Bottom quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Truth, after all, wears a different face to everybody, and it would be too tedious to wait till all were agreed. She is said to lie at the bottom of a well, for the very reason, perhaps, that whoever looks down in search of her sees his own image at the bottom, and is persuaded not only that he has seen the goddess, but that she is far better looking than he had imagined.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "James Russell Lowell" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/truth-after-all-wears-a-different-face-to-everybody-and-it-would-be-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bottom" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/truth-after-all-wears-a-different-face-to-everybody-and-it-would-be-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d35/james-russell-lowell-561_bottom_truth-after-all-wears-a-different-face-t_3146625.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d35/james-russell-lowell-561_bottom_truth-after-all-wears-a-different-face-t_3146625.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d35/james-russell-lowell-561_bottom_truth-after-all-wears-a-different-face-t_3146625.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Truth, after all, wears a different face to everybody, and it would be too tedious to wait till all were…” — James Russell Lowell", "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": "James Russell Lowell", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Truth, after all, wears a different...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/truth-after-all-wears-a-different-face-to-everybody-and-it-would-be-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/truth-after-all-wears-a-different-face-to-everybody-and-it-would-be-2/#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 } } ] } ```