Accidents Quote by Moderata Fonte
“Do you really believe ... that everything historians tell us about men – or about women – is actually true? You ought to consider the fact that these histories have been written by men, who never tell the truth except by accident.”
About This Quote
Source Treat: The Worth of Women, 1600
Historical narratives are biased, often reflecting the gender of their authors, so truth is filtered through perspective.
In simple terms: History is shaped by who writes it.
Key Takeaway
Question the source of historical claims.
Themes
history
gender
bias
Mood
critical
inquisitive
Type
analytical
skeptical
When to use this quote
- academic research
- education
- media literacy
- policy analysis
Key Concepts
feminist theory
epistemology
Questions to Reflect On
- Whose voices are missing in this history?
- How can we uncover hidden perspectives?
A Different Perspective
Even male authors can be honest; bias persists.
![“This pre-eminence is something [men] have unjustly arrogated to themselves. And when it's said that women must be subject to men, the phrase should be understood in the same sense as when we say we are subject to natural disasters, diseases, and all the other accidents of this life: it's not a…” quote by Moderata Fonte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/027/moderata-fonte-42110_accidents_this-pre-eminence-is-something-men-have_491835.jpg)
![“[M]en, though they know full well how much women are worth and how great the benefits we bring them, nonetheless seek to destroy us out of envy for our merits. It's just like the crow, when it produces white nestlings: it is so stricken by envy, knowing how black it is itself, that it kills its…” quote by Moderata Fonte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/18f/moderata-fonte-42110_benefits_m-en-though-they-know-full-well-how-much_1290337.jpg)
![“[I]t was with a good end in mind – that of acquiring the knowledge of good and evil – that Eve allowed herself to be carried away and eat the forbidden fruit. But Adam was not moved by this desire for knowledge, but simply by greed: he ate it because he heard Eve say it tasted good.” quote by Moderata Fonte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/580/moderata-fonte-42110_adam_i-t-was-with-a-good-end-in-mind-that-of_2691016.jpg)
