His [Diego Rivera's] supposed mythomania is in direct relation to his tremendous imagination. That is to say, he is as much of a liar as the poets or as the children who have not yet been turned into idiots by school or mothers. I have heard him tell all kinds of lies: from the most innocent, to the most complicated stories about people whom his imagination combined in a fantastic situation or actions, always with a great sense of humor and a marvelous critical sense; but I have never heard him say a single stupid or banal lie. Lying, or playing at lying, he unmasks many people, he learns the interior mechanism of others, who are much more ingenuously liars than he, and the most curious thing about the supposed lies of Diego, is that in the long and short of it, those who are involved in the imaginary combination become angry, not because of the lie, but because of the truth contained in the lie, that always comes to the surface.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Imaginative storytelling reveals truth and uncovers human nature despite being technically lies.
- In plain terms
- Lie stories that use imagination can tell the truth better than plain facts.
- What can you take from it?
- Sometimes lies reveal deeper truths about people.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Can a lie tell the truth?
- What does a person gain by lying?
Another view
Deliberate lying can damage trust regardless of intent.
More from Frida Kahlo
I paint self-portraits because I am so often alone, because I am the person I know best.
Permalink to quote #3 I have suffered two grave accidents in my life, one in which a streetcar knocked me down... The other accident is Diego.
Permalink to quote #5 I drank because I wanted to drown my sorrows, but now the damned things have learned to swim.
Permalink to quote #2
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