--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Nature never deceives us; it is we who…" description: "\"Nature never deceives us; it is we who deceive ourselves.\" — Jean-Jacques Rousseau" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f98/jean-jacques-rousseau-418_deceive_nature-never-deceives-us-it-is-we-who-de_1613512.png" --- # Nature never deceives us; it is we who deceive ourselves. ![“Nature never deceives us; it is we who deceive ourselves.” quote by Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f98/jean-jacques-rousseau-418_deceive_nature-never-deceives-us-it-is-we-who-de_1613512.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f98/jean-jacques-rousseau-418_deceive_nature-never-deceives-us-it-is-we-who-de_1613512.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f98/jean-jacques-rousseau-418_deceive_nature-never-deceives-us-it-is-we-who-de_1613512.png) > “Nature never deceives us; it is we who deceive ourselves.” [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human nature is honest, but self-deception distorts our perception of reality. **In simple terms:** We lie to ourselves. Key Takeaway Seek truth within. Themes self-awareness truth human nature Mood introspective serious Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - personal growth - ethical decision making - education - media consumption Key Concepts philosophy psychology Questions to Reflect On - What truths are you avoiding? - How can you uncover hidden biases? A Different Perspective Self-deception can be unconscious and hard to recognize. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Deceive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deceive/) [Deceives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deceives/) [Deceives Deceive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deceives-deceive-4739483/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Nature Deceives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-deceives-3026288/) ## Related quotes > [Nature never deceives us; it is always we who deceive ourselves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/nature-never-deceives-us-it-is-always-we-who-deceive-ourselves/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [When we see an effect happen always in the same manner, we infer that it takes place by a natural necessity; as, for instance,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/when-we-see-an-effect-happen-always-in-the-same-manner-we-infer-that/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [A liar is a man who does now know how to deceive, a flatterer one who only deceives fools: he who knows how to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luc-de-clapiers/a-liar-is-a-man-who-does-now-know-how-to-deceive-a-flatterer-one-who/) [Luc de Clapiers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luc-de-clapiers/) > [Reason deceives us; conscience, never.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/reason-deceives-us-conscience-never/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [One is never deceived; one deceives oneself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/one-is-never-deceived-one-deceives-oneself/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [He who imagines he can do without the world deceives himself much; but he who fancies the world cannot do without him is still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/he-who-imagines-he-can-do-without-the-world-deceives-himself-much-but/) [Francois de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/) > [“Everything that deceives also enchants.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/everything-that-deceives-also-enchants/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“Guard yourself from lying; there is he who deceives and there is he who is deceived.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sextus/guard-yourself-from-lying-there-is-he-who-deceives-and-there-is-he/) [Sextus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sextus/) > [“If someone deceives and victimizes another, understand that he would do, at least, the same to you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-william-manley/if-someone-deceives-and-victimizes-another-understand-that-he-would/) [D William Manley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-william-manley/) > [The thought of death deceives us; for it causes us to neglect to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luc-de-clapiers/the-thought-of-death-deceives-us-for-it-causes-us-to-neglect-to-live/) [Luc de Clapiers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luc-de-clapiers/) > [Pretence about anything sometimes deceives the wisest and shrewdest man, but, however cunningly it is hidden, a child of the meanest capacity feels it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/pretence-about-anything-sometimes-deceives-the-wisest-and-shrewdest/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [Amusement allures and deceives us and leads us down imperceptibly in thoughtlessness to the grave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/amusement-allures-and-deceives-us-and-leads-us-down-imperceptibly-in/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [Whoever commits a fraud is guilty not only of the particular injury to him who he deceives, but of the diminution of that confidence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/whoever-commits-a-fraud-is-guilty-not-only-of-the-particular-injury/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Amusement that is excessive and followed only for its own sake, allures and deceives us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/amusement-that-is-excessive-and-followed-only-for-its-own-sake/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [“Anyone who believes that new benefits make men of high station forget old injuries deceives himself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niccolo-machiavelli/anyone-who-believes-that-new-benefits-make-men-of-high-station-forget/) [Niccolò Machiavelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niccolo-machiavelli/) ## More by Jean-Jacques Rousseau > [Her dignity consists in being unknown to the world; her glory is in the esteem of her husband; her pleasures in the happiness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/her-dignity-consists-in-being-unknown-to-the-world-her-glory-is-in/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [Take the course opposite to custom and you will almost always do well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/take-the-course-opposite-to-custom-and-you-will-almost-always-do-well/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [Everything we do not have at our birth and which we need when we are grown is given to us by education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/everything-we-do-not-have-at-our-birth-and-which-we-need-when-we-are/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [The first person who, having enclosed a plot of land, took it into his head to say this is mine and found people simple…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/the-first-person-who-having-enclosed-a-plot-of-land-took-it-into-his/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [...in respect of riches, no citizen shall ever be wealthy enough to buy another, and none poor enough to be forced to sell himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/in-respect-of-riches-no-citizen-shall-ever-be-wealthy-enough-to-buy/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [Take from the philosopher the pleasure of being heard and his desire for knowledge ceases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/take-from-the-philosopher-the-pleasure-of-being-heard-and-his-desire/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [Men, in general, are not this or that, they are what they are made to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/men-in-general-are-not-this-or-that-they-are-what-they-are-made-to-be/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [I would rather be a man of paradoxes than a man of prejudices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/i-would-rather-be-a-man-of-paradoxes-than-a-man-of-prejudices/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [“O Fabricius! What would your great soul have thought, if to your own misfortune you had been called back to life and had seen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/o-fabricius-what-would-your-great-soul-have-thought-if-to-your-own/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [“The sword wears out its sheath, as it is sometimes said. That is my story. My passions have made me live, and my passions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/the-sword-wears-out-its-sheath-as-it-is-sometimes-said-that-is-my/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [Whence do I get my rules of conduct? I find them in my heart. Whatever I feel to be good is good. Whatever I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/whence-do-i-get-my-rules-of-conduct-i-find-them-in-my-heart-whatever/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [“If one divided all of human science into two parts - the one common to all men, the other particular to the learned -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/if-one-divided-all-of-human-science-into-two-parts-the-one-common-to/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [The social compact sets up among the citizens as equality of such kind, that they all bind themselves to observe the same conditions and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/the-social-compact-sets-up-among-the-citizens-as-equality-of-such/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [I do not know is a phrase which becomes us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/i-do-not-know-is-a-phrase-which-becomes-us/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [“How could I become wicked, when I had nothing but examples of gentleness before my eyes, and none around me but the best people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/how-could-i-become-wicked-when-i-had-nothing-but-examples-of/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) [Explore all 518 Jean-Jacques Rousseau quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) ## More Deceive quotes > [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/) > [“She knows she's deceiving herself about that, but she prefers to deceive herself. She desperately needs to believe such pure joy is still possible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/she-knows-she-s-deceiving-herself-about-that-but-she-prefers-to/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“To recklessly excuse a failure is to believe that I’ve effectively erased it from the story of my life, when I’ve actually imprinted it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/to-recklessly-excuse-a-failure-is-to-believe-that-i-ve-effectively/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [A woman one loves rarely suffices for all our needs, so we deceive her with another whom we do not love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/a-woman-one-loves-rarely-suffices-for-all-our-needs-so-we-deceive-her/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [“Looks sure can be deceiving: not every ‘ugly’ person is a ‘bad’ person (or is guilty of whatever it is that they are accused…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/looks-sure-can-be-deceiving-not-every-ugly-person-is-a-bad-person-or/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [“When people say they do not care what others thing of them, for the most part they deceive themselves”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/when-people-say-they-do-not-care-what-others-thing-of-them-for-the/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [Nothing is so easy as to deceive oneself; for what we wish, we readily believe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demosthenes/nothing-is-so-easy-as-to-deceive-oneself-for-what-we-wish-we-readily/) [Demosthenes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demosthenes/) > [No, it's not that they're bad. It's that they're obliged to pretend they're good. They've been brought up to deceive and be cunning, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/no-it-s-not-that-they-re-bad-it-s-that-they-re-obliged-to-pretend/) [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) > [“In my opinion, a lie is a physical act, verbal statement, or omission, deliberately designed to deceive another of the truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-craig/in-my-opinion-a-lie-is-a-physical-act-verbal-statement-or-omission/) [David Craig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-craig/) > [“When you slice the truth too thin, you deceive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eileen-wilks/when-you-slice-the-truth-too-thin-you-deceive/) [Eileen Wilks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eileen-wilks/) > [Those who try to achieve success without hard work ultimately deceive themselves-or worse-deceive others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-cook/those-who-try-to-achieve-success-without-hard-work-ultimately-deceive/) [Tim Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-cook/) > [Even when they are trying to deceive the voters, the Democrats are incompetent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-hilton/even-when-they-are-trying-to-deceive-the-voters-the-democrats-are/) [Steve Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-hilton/) > [Trust the story ... the storyteller may dissemble and deceive, the story can't: the story can only ever be itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-robertson/trust-the-story-the-storyteller-may-dissemble-and-deceive-the-story/) [James Robertson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-robertson/) > [Oh, what a tangled web we weave...when first we practice to deceive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/oh-what-a-tangled-web-we-weave-when-first-we-practice-to-deceive/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We often shed tears that deceive ourselves after deceiving others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/we-often-shed-tears-that-deceive-ourselves-after-deceiving-others/) [Francois de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/) [Browse all 340 Deceive quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deceive/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Nature never deceives us; it is we who deceive ourselves.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jean-Jacques Rousseau" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/nature-never-deceives-us-it-is-we-who-deceive-ourselves/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Deceive" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/nature-never-deceives-us-it-is-we-who-deceive-ourselves/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f98/jean-jacques-rousseau-418_deceive_nature-never-deceives-us-it-is-we-who-de_1613512.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f98/jean-jacques-rousseau-418_deceive_nature-never-deceives-us-it-is-we-who-de_1613512.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f98/jean-jacques-rousseau-418_deceive_nature-never-deceives-us-it-is-we-who-de_1613512.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Nature never deceives us; it is we who deceive ourselves.” — Jean-Jacques Rousseau", "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": "Jean-Jacques Rousseau", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Nature never deceives us; it is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/nature-never-deceives-us-it-is-we-who-deceive-ourselves/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/nature-never-deceives-us-it-is-we-who-deceive-ourselves/#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 } } ] } ```