Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Quotes
When I err every one can see it, but not when I lie.
[Ger., Wenn ich irre kann es jeder bemerken; wenn ich luge, nicht.]
von Goethe, Johann Wolfgang. The Maxims and Reflections of Goethe. Translated by Thomas Bailey Saunders, Macmillan and Co., 1893, p. 65.
This is one of the proverbs of King Solomon of the Jews, son of King David. This quotation urges a leader to avoid advisors and appointees who do not tell the truth.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, critic, and amateur artist. His works include: four novels; epic and lyric poetry; prose and verse dramas; memoirs; an autobiography; literary and aesthetic criticism; and treatises on botany, anatomy, and colour. He is considered to be the greatest German literary figure of the modern era.
