---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The truth is a snare: you cannot have it…"
description: "\"The truth is a snare: you cannot have it, without being caught. You cannot have the truth in such a way that you catch it, but only in such a way that ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb1/soren-kierkegaard-578_snare_the-truth-is-a-snare-you-cannot-have-it_2476036.jpg"
---

#  The truth is a snare: you cannot have it, without being…

![“The truth is a snare: you cannot have it, without being caught. You cannot have the truth in such a way that you catch it, but only in such a way that it catches you.” quote by Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb1/soren-kierkegaard-578_snare_the-truth-is-a-snare-you-cannot-have-it_2476036.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb1/soren-kierkegaard-578_snare_the-truth-is-a-snare-you-cannot-have-it_2476036.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb1/soren-kierkegaard-578_snare_the-truth-is-a-snare-you-cannot-have-it_2476036.jpg)

> “The truth is a snare: you cannot have it, without being caught. You cannot have the truth in such a way that you catch it, but only in such a way that it catches you.”

[Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Truth eludes capture; it ensnares the seeker rather than being possessed.

**In simple terms:** Truth catches you, not you.

Key Takeaway

Accept truth’s elusive nature.

Themes

truth philosophy existence

Mood

contemplative serious

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- personal reflection
- theological study
- ethical decision making
- creative writing

Key Concepts

existentialism paradox

Questions to Reflect On

- How does confronting truth affect your life?
- Can you let go of controlling truth?

A Different Perspective

Truth can be unsettling.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Caught Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/caught-truth-812991/) [Snare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/snare/) [Snare Caught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/snare-caught-812992/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Truth is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-is/) [Truth Snare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-snare-812990/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/)

## Related quotes

> [Back back back it up, can't no one compete. If I was a snare she's the kick to my beat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-latimore/back-back-back-it-up-can-t-no-one-compete-if-i-was-a-snare-she-s-the/)

[Jacob Latimore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-latimore/)

> [Then I tried out for the Fontana High School drum line, in Riverside, and I did really well. I got second chair, and played…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/travis-barker/then-i-tried-out-for-the-fontana-high-school-drum-line-in-riverside/)

[Travis Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/travis-barker/)

> [A vow is a snare for sin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/a-vow-is-a-snare-for-sin/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Let them fall into the snare which they have laid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/latin-proverb/let-them-fall-into-the-snare-which-they-have-laid/)

[Latin Proverb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/latin-proverb/)

> [I've always liked a very dry snare and, like everyone else, a very dry bass drum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mason/i-ve-always-liked-a-very-dry-snare-and-like-everyone-else-a-very-dry/)

[Nick Mason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mason/)

> [“All good looks are a snare. They are a snare that every sensible man would like to be caught in.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/all-good-looks-are-a-snare-they-are-a-snare-that-every-sensible-man/)

[Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/)

> [“A magpie, seeing some light-colored object conspicuous on the empty slope, flew closer to look. but all that lay there was a splintered peg…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-adams/a-magpie-seeing-some-light-colored-object-conspicuous-on-the-empty/)

[Richard Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-adams/)

> [I hear a sudden cry of pain! There is a rabbit in a snare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-stephens/i-hear-a-sudden-cry-of-pain-there-is-a-rabbit-in-a-snare/)

[James Stephens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-stephens/)

> [Since I first picked up the violin, I've been very interested in tone and texture: I would have very visceral reactions to the texture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-bird/since-i-first-picked-up-the-violin-i-ve-been-very-interested-in-tone/)

[Andrew Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-bird/)

> [If I could make a record in two minutes and thirty seconds, I'd do it. I want the creativity, and I don't give a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikki-sixx/if-i-could-make-a-record-in-two-minutes-and-thirty-seconds-i-d-do-it/)

[Nikki Sixx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikki-sixx/)

> [He can best avoid a snare who knows how to set one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/publilius-syrus/he-can-best-avoid-a-snare-who-knows-how-to-set-one/)

[Publilius Syrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/publilius-syrus/)

> [When we was making a song called 'Bring Da Ruckus,' we took the snare, and we put it in an elevator shaft and recorded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rza/when-we-was-making-a-song-called-bring-da-ruckus-we-took-the-snare/)

[Rza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rza/)

> [“Be aware for there is a snare ready for a serpent”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sania-athar/be-aware-for-there-is-a-snare-ready-for-a-serpent/)

[Sania Athar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sania-athar/)

> [Devil’s Snare, Devil’s Snare . . . what did Professor Sprout say? — it likes the dark and the damp —” “So light a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/devil-s-snare-devil-s-snare-what-did-professor-sprout-say-it-likes/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Every wicked act is a snare.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/every-wicked-act-is-a-snare/)

[Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/)

## More by Soren Kierkegaard

> [Christianity does not oppose debauchery and uncontrollable passions and the like as much as it opposes... flat mediocrity, this nauseating atmosphere, this homey, civil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/christianity-does-not-oppose-debauchery-and-uncontrollable-passions/)

[Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/)

> [Christians remind me of schoolboys who want to look up the answers to their math problems in the back of the book rather than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/christians-remind-me-of-schoolboys-who-want-to-look-up-the-answers-to/)

[Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/)

> [People commonly travel the world over to see rivers and mountains, new stars, garish birds, freak fish, grotesque breeds of human; they fall into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/people-commonly-travel-the-world-over-to-see-rivers-and-mountains-new/)

[Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/)

> [“A strange thing happened to me in my dream. I was rapt into the Seventh Heaven. There sat all the gods assembled. As a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/a-strange-thing-happened-to-me-in-my-dream-i-was-rapt-into-the/)

[Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/)

> [That which is truly human no generation learns from the one before it. No generation learns from another how to love. No generation has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/that-which-is-truly-human-no-generation-learns-from-the-one-before-it/)

[Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/)

> [A man may perform astonishing feats and comprehend a vast amount of knowledge, and yet have no understanding of himself. But suffering directs a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/a-man-may-perform-astonishing-feats-and-comprehend-a-vast-amount-of/)

[Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/)

> [Be that self which one truly is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/be-that-self-which-one-truly-is/)

[Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/)

> [I go fishing for a thousand monsters in the depths of my own self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/i-go-fishing-for-a-thousand-monsters-in-the-depths-of-my-own-self/)

[Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/)

> [In addition to my other numerous acquaintances, I have one more intimate confidant… My depression is the most faithful mistress I have known —…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/in-addition-to-my-other-numerous-acquaintances-i-have-one-more/)

[Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/)

> [The greatest danger to Christianity is, I contend, not heresies, not heterodoxies, not atheists, not profane secularism - no, but the kind of orthodoxy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/the-greatest-danger-to-christianity-is-i-contend-not-heresies-not/)

[Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/)

> [Future is everything that past has forgotten.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/future-is-everything-that-past-has-forgotten/)

[Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/)

> [Without risk, faith is an impossibility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/without-risk-faith-is-an-impossibility/)

[Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/)

> [I have only one confidant, and that is the silence of night.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/i-have-only-one-confidant-and-that-is-the-silence-of-night/)

[Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/)

> [A road well begun is the battle half won. The important thing is to make a beginning and get under way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/a-road-well-begun-is-the-battle-half-won-the-important-thing-is-to/)

[Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/)

> [I have, I believe, the courage to doubt everything; I have, I believe, the courage to fight against everything; but I do not have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/i-have-i-believe-the-courage-to-doubt-everything-i-have-i-believe-the/)

[Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/)

[Explore all 462 Soren Kierkegaard quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/)

## More Snare quotes

> [Back back back it up, can't no one compete. If I was a snare she's the kick to my beat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-latimore/back-back-back-it-up-can-t-no-one-compete-if-i-was-a-snare-she-s-the/)

[Jacob Latimore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-latimore/)

> [Devil’s Snare, Devil’s Snare . . . what did Professor Sprout say? — it likes the dark and the damp —” “So light a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/devil-s-snare-devil-s-snare-what-did-professor-sprout-say-it-likes/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Be aware for there is a snare ready for a serpent”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sania-athar/be-aware-for-there-is-a-snare-ready-for-a-serpent/)

[Sania Athar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sania-athar/)

> [When we was making a song called 'Bring Da Ruckus,' we took the snare, and we put it in an elevator shaft and recorded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rza/when-we-was-making-a-song-called-bring-da-ruckus-we-took-the-snare/)

[Rza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rza/)

> [He can best avoid a snare who knows how to set one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/publilius-syrus/he-can-best-avoid-a-snare-who-knows-how-to-set-one/)

[Publilius Syrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/publilius-syrus/)

> [If I could make a record in two minutes and thirty seconds, I'd do it. I want the creativity, and I don't give a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikki-sixx/if-i-could-make-a-record-in-two-minutes-and-thirty-seconds-i-d-do-it/)

[Nikki Sixx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikki-sixx/)

> [Since I first picked up the violin, I've been very interested in tone and texture: I would have very visceral reactions to the texture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-bird/since-i-first-picked-up-the-violin-i-ve-been-very-interested-in-tone/)

[Andrew Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-bird/)

> [I hear a sudden cry of pain! There is a rabbit in a snare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-stephens/i-hear-a-sudden-cry-of-pain-there-is-a-rabbit-in-a-snare/)

[James Stephens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-stephens/)

> [“A magpie, seeing some light-colored object conspicuous on the empty slope, flew closer to look. but all that lay there was a splintered peg…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-adams/a-magpie-seeing-some-light-colored-object-conspicuous-on-the-empty/)

[Richard Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-adams/)

> [“All good looks are a snare. They are a snare that every sensible man would like to be caught in.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/all-good-looks-are-a-snare-they-are-a-snare-that-every-sensible-man/)

[Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/)

> [I've always liked a very dry snare and, like everyone else, a very dry bass drum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mason/i-ve-always-liked-a-very-dry-snare-and-like-everyone-else-a-very-dry/)

[Nick Mason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mason/)

> [Let them fall into the snare which they have laid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/latin-proverb/let-them-fall-into-the-snare-which-they-have-laid/)

[Latin Proverb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/latin-proverb/)

> [A vow is a snare for sin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/a-vow-is-a-snare-for-sin/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Then I tried out for the Fontana High School drum line, in Riverside, and I did really well. I got second chair, and played…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/travis-barker/then-i-tried-out-for-the-fontana-high-school-drum-line-in-riverside/)

[Travis Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/travis-barker/)

> [“Every wicked act is a snare.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/every-wicked-act-is-a-snare/)

[Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/)

[Browse all 31 Snare quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/snare/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "The truth is a snare: you cannot have it, without being caught. You cannot have the truth in such a way that you catch it, but only in such a way that it catches you.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Soren Kierkegaard"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/the-truth-is-a-snare-you-cannot-have-it-without-being-caught-you/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Snare"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/the-truth-is-a-snare-you-cannot-have-it-without-being-caught-you/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb1/soren-kierkegaard-578_snare_the-truth-is-a-snare-you-cannot-have-it_2476036.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb1/soren-kierkegaard-578_snare_the-truth-is-a-snare-you-cannot-have-it_2476036.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb1/soren-kierkegaard-578_snare_the-truth-is-a-snare-you-cannot-have-it_2476036.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The truth is a snare: you cannot have it, without being caught. You cannot have the truth in such a way that…” — Soren Kierkegaard",
                "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": "Soren Kierkegaard",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "The truth is a snare: you...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/the-truth-is-a-snare-you-cannot-have-it-without-being-caught-you/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/the-truth-is-a-snare-you-cannot-have-it-without-being-caught-you/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```