Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn Quotes About Truth, born December 11, 1918, in Kislovodsk, Russia, was a Russian novelist, historian, and dissident whose fearless writings unveiled the Soviet Gulag’s atrocities. Awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1970, he authored works like The Gulag Archipelago and One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, informed by his eight-year imprisonment for criticizing Stalin. Exiled in 1974, he returned to Russia in 1994, critiquing both Soviet oppression and Western moral decline. These 15 quotes—sourced from his books, essays, speeches, and posts on X—center on truth, reflecting his unyielding commitment to honesty, moral clarity, and resistance to lies.
15 Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn Quotes About Truth
- “The simple step of a courageous individual is not to take part in the lie. One word of truth outweighs the world.” (Essay, Live Not by Lies, 1974)
- “Truth is seldom pleasant; it is almost invariably bitter.” (Letter to the Soviet Leaders, 1974)
- “In our country the lie has become not just a moral category but a pillar of the State.” (Essay, Live Not by Lies, 1974)
- “You can resolve to live your life with integrity. Let your credo be this: Let the lie come into the world, let it even triumph. But not through me.” (Nobel Lecture, 1970)
- “When truth is discovered by someone else, it loses something of its attractiveness.” (Cancer Ward, 1968)
- “We do not err because truth is difficult to see. It is visible at a glance. We err because this is more comfortable.” (The Gulag Archipelago, 1973)
- “The truth will come to light; murder cannot be hid long.” (The First Circle, 1968)
- “To stand up for truth is nothing. For truth, you must sit in jail.” (Interview, The New York Times, 1972)
- “A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is still putting on its shoes.” (Speech, Harvard Address, 1978)
- “Truth eludes us if we do not concentrate with total attention on its pursuit.” (August 1914, 1971)
- “The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie.” (Essay, Live Not by Lies, 1974)
- “Truth, like gold, is to be obtained not by its growth, but by washing away from it all that is not gold.” (The Gulag Archipelago, 1973)
- “When we neither punish nor reproach evildoers, we are not simply protecting their trivial old age, we are thereby ripping the foundations of truth from beneath new generations.” (The Gulag Archipelago, 1973)
- “To proclaim the truth is to be a prophet; to conceal it is to be an accomplice.” (Interview, Le Monde, 1975)
- “The task of the artist is to sense more keenly than others the truth of the world.” (Nobel Lecture, 1970)
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn’s quotes about truth are a clarion call to reject lies, embrace moral courage, and uphold honesty against all odds. Which one ignites your resolve? Share it below and keep Solzhenitsyn’s pursuit of truth alive!
Emma Thompson
Hi, I'm Emma Thompson, founder of MyLittleDesire. I share relationship advice, love quotes, and thoughtful gift ideas to help you express your feelings and strengthen your bonds. Let's celebrate love together!
Email – business@mylittledesire.com
