It seems to me that even the bluntest word,
the bluntest letter is still more good-natured,
still more honest, than silence.
Those who remain silent are almost always
lacking in delicacy and politeness of the heart.
Silence is an objection,
and swallowing things down necessarily makes for a bad character
-it even upsets the digestion.
All who remain silent are dyspeptic.
Clearly, I would not have bluntness underestimated:
it is by far the most humane form of contradiction and,
amid modern pampering, one of our foremost virtues.
Ecce Homo (Behold The Man): How One Becomes What One Is
Cover of the 1908 Insel edition designed by Henry van de Velde.
I have learned over the years that silence is far more deadly than speaking your mind.
ReplyDeleteI'd rather take someone who is 'lacking in delicacy and politeness of the heart' but still chooses to speak rather than someone who just keeps score in their head and heart.