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There are few things in which we deceive ourselves more than in the esteem we profess to entertain for our firends. It is little better than a piece of quackery. The truth is, we think of them as we please, that is, as they please or displease us.
William Hazlitt
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Interpretation

What this quote means

We often misrepresent our true feelings towards our friends, believing we respect them more than we actually do.

In this quote, William Hazlitt points out the self-deception we engage in regarding our feelings for friends. He suggests that our esteem for friends is often superficial, influenced by their actions and our perceptions, rather than being a genuine and stable regard for them.

Themes

FriendshipSelf-DeceptionEsteemPerceptionRelationships

In practice

Example use cases

In a speech about the nature of true friendship, one could reference Hazlitt's insights into self-deception.

More from William Hazlitt

Pride is founded not on the sense of happiness, but on the sense of power.
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The world loves to be amused by hollow professions, to be deceived by flattering appearances, to live in a state of hallucination; and can forgive everything but the plain, downright, simple, honest truth.
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Our repugnance to death increases in proportion to our consciousness of having lived in vain.
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We can bear to be deprived of everything but our self-conceit.
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Prosperity is a great teacher; adversity is a greater. Possession pampers the mind; privation trains and strengthens it.
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One is always more vexed at losing a game of any sort by a single hole or ace, than if one has never had a chance of winning it.
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