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Heart Quote by Marcel Proust

“But she was wrong; it was what gave her away; she had not taken into account that this fragmentary detail of the truth had sharp edges which could not be made to fit in, except to those contiguous fragments of the truth from which she had arbitrarily detached it, edges which, whatever the…” quote by Marcel Proust
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““But she was wrong; it was what gave her away; she had not taken into account that this fragmentary detail of the truth had sharp edges which could not be made to fit in, except to those contiguous fragments of the truth from which she had arbitrarily detached it, edges which, whatever the fictitious details in which she might embed it, would continue to shew, by their overlapping angles and by the gaps which she had forgotten to fill, that its proper place was elsewhere.””

Marcel Proust

About This Quote

The passage warns that isolating a fragment of truth without its surrounding context creates mismatched edges, revealing inconsistencies and exposing the fragment's falsehood.

In simple terms: Truth cannot be isolated without context.

Key Takeaway

Partial truths betray themselves.

Themes

truth context fragmentation perception logic

Mood

analytical cautious skeptical

Type

philosophical literary cautionary

When to use this quote

  • analyzing evidence
  • detecting deception
  • critical reading
  • historical research
  • forensic investigation

Key Concepts

fragmentary detail sharp edges contiguous fragments overlapping angles gaps

Practical Applications

  • evaluating arguments
  • building coherent narratives

Questions to Reflect On

  • How does context shape our understanding of facts?
  • What risks arise from presenting isolated data?
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