1001Philosophers

Bertrand Russell Quotes on Truth

Bertrand Russell was a British philosopher, logician, mathematician, and political activist whose work is foundational to 20th-century analytic philosophy. This page collects quotes attributed to Bertrand Russell on the topic of truth, drawn from across the philosopher's works.

Quotes

  • Attributed to Bertrand Russell:

    “The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, but wiser people so full of doubts.”

  • Attributed to Bertrand Russell:

    “It is undesirable to believe a proposition when there is no ground whatever for supposing it true.”

  • Attributed to Bertrand Russell:

    “Mathematics, rightly viewed, possesses not only truth, but supreme beauty.”

  • Attributed to Bertrand Russell:

    “If a man is offered a fact which goes against his instincts, he will scrutinise it closely, and unless the evidence is overwhelming, he will refuse to believe it.”