Virginia Woolf, writer: "If you do not tell the truth about yourself, you cannot tell it about other people"

The human being is full of mistakes and moments that lead them to analyze their own actions in depth . This is a requirement in order to, over time, grow and move toward a more honest path of self-care and self-knowledge that helps maintain coherence, identity, and go through life without filters or masks that hide the truth about oneself.

Virginia Woolf , one of the most celebrated British writers of all time, is one of the people who most strongly defends this idea, and proof of this is her famous quote: “If you do not tell the truth about yourself, you cannot tell it about other people” .

The need not to deceive oneself

This reflection has several aspects to take into account, beginning with the need to ‘lay bare’ your own soul before yourself . Knowing and accepting your own fears, weaknesses, and strengths helps you be more truthful and allows you to portray the human condition better. This, according to Woolf, is very important in a writer's work.

Another relevant point is that, according to the British writer's phrase, no one can express criticism or judgment about someone unless they have first done so about themselves . If one does not examine, accept, and know their own mistakes, something that in any case makes us human, they are disqualified from expressing them about others in a legitimate way.

Likewise, Woolf maintains that masks in front of society are not compatible with a writer , since only someone who goes without filters or walls and shows themselves as they are can and has the ability to see the reality of others. Thus, looking inward before speaking about others is essential, since empathy is born from this and allows reality to be described more faithfully through literature.