Quotes by Leo Tolstoy

Most men can't accept the simplest, most obvious truth if it would mean admitting that they were wrong

I know that most men, including those at ease with problems of the greatest complexity, can seldom accept even the simplest and most obvious truth if it be such as would oblige them to admit the falsity of conclusions which they have delighted in explaining to colleagues, which they have proudly taught to others, and which they have woven, thread by thread, into the fabric of their lives.
โ€” Leo Tolstoy

Since corrupt people unite amongst themselves to constitute a force, then honest people must do the same

"Since corrupt people unite amongst themselves to constitute a force, then honest people must do the same"
โ€” Leo Tolstoy

The most difficult subject can be explained

The most difficult subjects can be explained to the most slow-witted man if he has not formed any idea of them already; but the simplest thing cannot be made clear to the most intelligent man if he is firmly persuaded that he knows already, without a shadow of doubt, what is laid before him.
โ€” Leo Tolstoy