(on A History of Western Philosophy) I was sometimes accused by reviewers of writing not a true history but a biased account of the events that I arbitrarily chose to write of. But to my mind, a man without a bias cannot write interesting history - if, indeed, such man exists.
Interpretation
Bias is inherent in history writing, making it more compelling.
In this quote, Bertrand Russell expresses the idea that history is subjective and that a historian's biases shape the narrative they present. He challenges the notion that one can write an objective history, arguing instead that personal perspectives bring depth and interest to historical accounts, suggesting that a historian without bias may not truly exist, as personal beliefs inevitably color their portrayal of events.
In practice
In a debate about historical accuracy, one might reference this quote to highlight the role of bias in history.
St. Paul introduced an entirely novel view of marriage, that it existed primarily to prevent the sin of fornication. It is just as if one were to maintain that the sole reason for baking bread is to prevent people from stealing cake.
Freedom comes only to those who no longer ask of life that it shall yield them any of those personal goods that are subject to the mutations of time.
Of these austerer virtues the love of truth is the chief, and in mathematics, more than elsewhere, the love of truth may find encouragement for waning faith. Every great study is not only an end in itself, but also a means of creating and sustaining a lofty habit of mind; and this purpose should be kept always in view throughout the teaching and learning of mathematics.
At all times, except when a monarch could enforce his will, war has been facilitated by the fact that vigorous males, confident of victory, enjoyed it, while their females admired them for their prowess.
Moreover, the attitude that one ought to believe such and such a proposition, independently of the question whether there is evidence in its favor, is an attitude which produces hostility to evidence and causes us to close our minds to every fact that does not suit our prejudices.
Extreme hopes are born from extreme misery.
The unlike is joined together, and from differences results the most beautiful harmony.
I may say that the only differences I expect to see revealed between the behavior of the rat and man (aside from enormous differences of complexity) lie in the field of verbal behavior.
[T]he more clamour we make about 'the women's point of view', the more we rub it into people that the women's point of view is different, and frankly I do not think it is -- at least in my job. The line I always want to take is, that there is the 'point of view' of the reasonably enlightened human brain, and that this is the aspect of the matter which I am best fitted to uphold.
I can speak of slavery only so far as it came under my own observation - only so far as I have known and experienced it in my own person.
You are making an inopportune rejection of what Nature has given you today, if all your mind is set on what men will say of you tomorrow.
The splinter in your eye is the best magnifying-glass available.
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