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Quote by Honoré de Balzac
English (Source)
There is hardly any woman who, at least once in her life, as a result of some indisputable fact, has not been faced with a sharp, incisive, decisive question, a merciless question which, if the husband asks, cold horror runs through the woman beforehand, and the first word is like murderous steel penetrates his heart. This is where the basic truth comes from: all women lie. A pious lie, a forgivable lie, a noble lie, a disgusting lie, but definitely a compelling lie! By the way, if we recognize this compulsion, it is understandable that everyone strives for clever lies. Women in France are amazing at lying. Our morals do a great job of teaching them to be duplicitous. Suffice it to say, the woman is so brazenly childish in lying, so charming, so honest; so well does he recognize lies as a suitable means of avoiding violent collisions that threaten all happiness, that he cannot do without it any more than the cotton wool in which he wraps his jewels. Lying is the basis of the woman's speech, telling the truth is only a rare exception. He sometimes tells the truth, just as he can be virtuous out of whim or calculation. And then some women laugh when they lie, others cry, some become gloomy, others get out of the way, as is their nature. Having begun life by accepting with feigned indifference the obeisances most flattering to vanity, they often end up lying to themselves.