--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Why in fact should one tell the truth?…" description: "\"“Why in fact should one tell the truth? What obliges us to do it? And why do we consider telling the truth to be a virtue? Imagine that you meet a madm..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c1/milan-kundera-120_telling-the-truth_why-in-fact-should-one-tell-the-truth-wh_2151024.jpg" --- # Why in fact should one tell the truth? What obliges us to… ![“Why in fact should one tell the truth? What obliges us to do it? And why do we consider telling the truth to be a virtue? Imagine that you meet a madman, who claims that he is a fish and that we are all fish. Are you going to argue with him? Are you going to undress in front of him and show him…” quote by Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c1/milan-kundera-120_telling-the-truth_why-in-fact-should-one-tell-the-truth-wh_2151024.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c1/milan-kundera-120_telling-the-truth_why-in-fact-should-one-tell-the-truth-wh_2151024.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c1/milan-kundera-120_telling-the-truth_why-in-fact-should-one-tell-the-truth-wh_2151024.jpg) > ““Why in fact should one tell the truth? What obliges us to do it? And why do we consider telling the truth to be a virtue? Imagine that you meet a madman, who claims that he is a fish and that we are all fish. Are you going to argue with him? Are you going to undress in front of him and show him that you don't have fins? Are you going to say to his face what you think?...If you told him the whole truth and nothing but the truth, only what you thought, you would enter into a serious conversation with a madman and you yourself would become mad. And it is the same way with the world that surrounds us. If I obstinately told the truth to its face, it would mean that I was taking it seriously. And to take seriously something so unserious means to lose all one's own seriousness. I have to lie, if I don't want to take madmen seriously and become a madman myself.”” [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Truth-telling to absurdity leads to madness; sometimes lying preserves sanity. **In simple terms:** Truth can be dangerous with madness. Key Takeaway Choose when honesty serves or harms. Themes truth madness seriousness Mood cautious philosophical Type literary thought‑provoking When to use this quote - debates - political discourse - personal relationships Key Concepts existentialism ethics Questions to Reflect On - When is honesty essential? - What are the costs of lying? A Different Perspective Truth is vital for trust and societal function. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Telling the truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/telling-the-truth/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) ## Related quotes > [To tell you the truth, I never thought of myself as much of a success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-lee/to-tell-you-the-truth-i-never-thought-of-myself-as-much-of-a-success/) [Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) > [I think the most important thing I learned from my dad is the importance of telling the truth...treat other people well, work hard at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-mcdonough/i-think-the-most-important-thing-i-learned-from-my-dad-is-the/) Sean McDonough > [Tell the truth and nothing but the truth. Those who are mad at you for telling the truth are those who are living a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/tell-the-truth-and-nothing-but-the-truth-those-who-are-mad-at-you-for/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [“These white folk have newspapers, magazines, radios, spokesmen to get their ideas across. If they want to tell the world a lie, they can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-ellison/these-white-folk-have-newspapers-magazines-radios-spokesmen-to-get/) [Ralph Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-ellison/) > [Telling the truth is easier than lying. And forcing yourself to tell the truth means that you'll be motivated to make better choices when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/telling-the-truth-is-easier-than-lying-and-forcing-yourself-to-tell/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The President's biggest problem right now is he's gotta tell the truth. And we've seen this in New Jersey. I've told lots of hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-christie/the-president-s-biggest-problem-right-now-is-he-s-gotta-tell-the/) [Chris Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-christie/) > [It’s not enough to be able to lie with a straight face; anybody with enough gall to raise on a busted flush can do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/it-s-not-enough-to-be-able-to-lie-with-a-straight-face-anybody-with/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [Start telling the truth now and never stop. Begin by telling the truth to yourself about yourself. Then tell the truth to yourself about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neale-donald-walsch/start-telling-the-truth-now-and-never-stop-begin-by-telling-the-truth/) [Neale Donald Walsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neale-donald-walsch/) > [“I thought when I was a young man that I would conquer the world with truth. 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Even in the most repressive medieval kingdoms, they understood the need for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-randazzo/satire-must-always-accompany-any-free-society-it-is-an-absolute/) Joe Randazzo [Browse all 1,345 Telling the truth quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/telling-the-truth/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Why in fact should one tell the truth? What obliges us to do it? And why do we consider telling the truth to be a virtue? Imagine that you meet a madman, who claims that he is a fish and that we are all fish. Are you going to argue with him? Are you going to undress in front of him and show him that you don't have fins? Are you going to say to his face what you think?...If you told him the whole truth and nothing but the truth, only what you thought, you would enter into a serious conversation with a madman and you yourself would become mad. And it is the same way with the world that surrounds us. 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