It is not [the biographer's] business to be complimentary; it is his business to lay bare the facts of the case, as he understands them...dispassionately, impartially, and without ulterior motives.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- A biographer's duty is to present facts dispassionately and impartially rather than to flatter the subject.
- In plain terms
- Biographers should tell the truth about facts without trying to be nice to the person they write about.
- What can you take from it?
- Biography requires impartial fact presentation over complimentary flattery.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Can you ever be truly impartial?
- Should biographers be critics?
Another view
Complete impartiality is rarely achievable due to human bias.
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