He is honest in spite of himself?, The Mechanics of Virtue, aphorism 228

228

He is honest in spite of himself?  This man is honest because appearing honest for the sake of honesty lends him a sense of dignity through his appeal to others’ religious and scientific sentiments.  He appears honest in spite of himself because he wants to flatter himself with what he imagines they are thinking.  He can even flatter himself with what he imagines the dead would have thought about his extreme honesty.


But this other man wanted to flatter himself with an identity superior to their sentiments. With his honesty he is not flattered by what they are thinking, but only by surpassing what they are capable of thinking.  It is the exposure of their ignorance that proves his superiority.  He is most honest when he shocks the living and rankles the dead.  Now he is honest in spite of himself and in spite of them too.



A Human Strategy ** The Mechanics of Virtue ** Post-Atheism



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