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Comic Books
Nightflame: Peer into your soul, Supergirl, and see what you have never faced... your own evil!
Supergirl: Wha-? This... This thing exists within my own body! No, it can't be! Nothing as evil as all this could be part of me!
Nightflame: Yes, it is part of you... and of all mortals.
Supergirl: Wha-? This... This thing exists within my own body! No, it can't be! Nothing as evil as all this could be part of me!
Nightflame: Yes, it is part of you... and of all mortals.
Barbara: I wish that was true, Kara, I really do, but this goes so much deeper than either of us. They framed you because the truth is insane. If people in The Garden knew...
Kara: If they knew what?
Barbara: I... rghh... Dad was working on... a project for Governor Luthor. Something... deep in the Lexes. Top secret. An alien. Luthor wanted it... controlled. He wanted to... harness its power... Gahhhh... I don't know why. But dad... He couldn't let it happen. He hacked his ridealongs. Kept the alien off the grid. Changed her memories. Changed my memories. That was ten years ago. That's the day we became sisters.
Kara: If they knew what?
Barbara: I... rghh... Dad was working on... a project for Governor Luthor. Something... deep in the Lexes. Top secret. An alien. Luthor wanted it... controlled. He wanted to... harness its power... Gahhhh... I don't know why. But dad... He couldn't let it happen. He hacked his ridealongs. Kept the alien off the grid. Changed her memories. Changed my memories. That was ten years ago. That's the day we became sisters.
Film — Live-Action
Col. Jessep: You want answers?
Kaffee: I want the truth!
Col. Jessep: You can't HANDLE the truth!
Kaffee: I want the truth!
Col. Jessep: You can't HANDLE the truth!
If into the security recordings you go, only pain will you find...
— Yoda, Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith
Tony Stark: Did you know?
Steve Rogers: I didn't know it was him.
Tony Stark: Don't bullshit me, Rogers. Did you know!?
Steve Rogers: ...Yes.
Steve Rogers: I didn't know it was him.
Tony Stark: Don't bullshit me, Rogers. Did you know!?
Steve Rogers: ...Yes.
Live-Action TV
It's a dream, Oswin. You dreamed it for yourself because the truth was too terrible. Because you are a Dalek.
— The Doctor, Doctor Who, "Asylum of the Daleks"
Cigarette-Smoking Man: You have told her the truth, haven't you, Fox? I helped you find it.
Mulder: You didn't help me. You sent me to that government facility knowing exactly what I'd find.
Cigarette-Smoking Man: And now you refuse to speak it. Not to Scully, not to anyone. You've even refused to testify to what you learned — even though it would have saved your life. You damned me for my secrets, but you're afraid to speak the truth.
Mulder: You didn't help me. You sent me to that government facility knowing exactly what I'd find.
Cigarette-Smoking Man: And now you refuse to speak it. Not to Scully, not to anyone. You've even refused to testify to what you learned — even though it would have saved your life. You damned me for my secrets, but you're afraid to speak the truth.
— The X-Files, "The Truth"
One: What's going on?
Two: The Android managed to recover a significant amount of data related to this ship and its crew.
Six: Well, that's good. Isn't it?
The Android: Marcus Boone [mugshot of Three] — Murder, Assault, Kidnapping, Piracy.
Griffin Jones [mugshot of Six] — Murder, Assault, Smuggling.
Jace Corso [mugshot of One] — Murder, Assault, Kidnapping, Trafficking, Theft.
Ryo Tetsudo [security camera footage of Four] — Murder, Assault, Piracy.
Portia Lin [security camera footage of Two] — Murder, Assault, Arson, Theft, Piracy.
Two: Turns out the Raza aren't a race of aliens. "The Raza" is the name of this ship. We're not here to help these people. We're here to kill them.
One: No! That's impossible! That can't be right. Can it?
The Android: I recovered the information from a fragment of the ship's logs related to the crew list. There's no reason to doubt its veracity.
Two: The Android managed to recover a significant amount of data related to this ship and its crew.
Six: Well, that's good. Isn't it?
The Android: Marcus Boone [mugshot of Three] — Murder, Assault, Kidnapping, Piracy.
Griffin Jones [mugshot of Six] — Murder, Assault, Smuggling.
Jace Corso [mugshot of One] — Murder, Assault, Kidnapping, Trafficking, Theft.
Ryo Tetsudo [security camera footage of Four] — Murder, Assault, Piracy.
Portia Lin [security camera footage of Two] — Murder, Assault, Arson, Theft, Piracy.
Two: Turns out the Raza aren't a race of aliens. "The Raza" is the name of this ship. We're not here to help these people. We're here to kill them.
One: No! That's impossible! That can't be right. Can it?
The Android: I recovered the information from a fragment of the ship's logs related to the crew list. There's no reason to doubt its veracity.
— Dark Matter (2015), "Episode 1" and "Episode 2"
Music
And I lift my glass to the awful truth
Which you can't reveal to the ears of youth
Except to say it isn't worth a dime.
Which you can't reveal to the ears of youth
Except to say it isn't worth a dime.
— Leonard Cohen, "Closing Time" note
You're trying to understand. I told you your brother had been killed. And yet, here he stands, in the very shadow of the man you came here to destroy. You came here to avenge his death. You came here to save mankind. And you see now, you cannot do both.
I think it's time for you to know
The awful truth
The truth about me and the truth about you
The awful truth
The truth about me and the truth about you
— Lemon Demon, "Touch-Tone Telephone"
When the truth is found to be lies
And all the joy within you dies
And all the joy within you dies
— Jefferson Airplane, "Somebody to Love"
Tabletop Games
I am confident that if anyone actually penetrates our facades, even the most perceptive would still be fundamentally unprepared for the truth of House Dimir.
— Attributed to the Dimir parun Szadek, Magic: The Gathering, Flavor Text for "Glimpse the Unthinkable"
Indeed you may well ask your questions, but know you now that the truth may be the millstone that weighs down your soul from this day until your last. I speak from experience, for although my body yet moves, I know that my soul is leeching away. From where to where I cannot say, all I know is that it is no longer truly my own, and it is because of the knowledge I now hold. Do you still wish to read on?
But of course you do.
It is already too late.
You are just as damned as I.
But of course you do.
It is already too late.
You are just as damned as I.
— Richter Kless, scribbles in the margin of the Liber Chaotica, Warhammer
Ask not the Eldar a question, for they will give you three answers, all of which are true and terrifying to know.
— Inquisitor Czevak, Warhammer 40,000
One description given by some philosophers when asked to describe the true nature of the Imperium is that, beyond its teeming masses, uncountable worlds and incalculable might, it is best described as a vast web of secrets.
Secrets, and to greater extent ignorance of the truth of things, are paramount to the Imperium's very existence. Knowledge is a calcified and restricted thing. One simple reason for this restriction is that it is better that people have faith than facts, for the facts allow little room for hope and realization of the true horrors that confront humanity would only lead to destruction and utter despair.
Secrets, and to greater extent ignorance of the truth of things, are paramount to the Imperium's very existence. Knowledge is a calcified and restricted thing. One simple reason for this restriction is that it is better that people have faith than facts, for the facts allow little room for hope and realization of the true horrors that confront humanity would only lead to destruction and utter despair.
Video Game
Why do you fear to even glimpse the truth?
— Petra Johanna Lagerkvist, to the player on the Continue screen, Arcana Heart 3
DeWitt, I'm a fool. I've sent mighty armies to stop you. I rained fire on you from above. I did all that to keep you from her, when all I needed was to tell her the truth.
— Father Comstock, BioShock Infinite
Makoto: Oh, one more thing! You know the thing that kept me alive inside the Boundary and helped me get back here? What was it, anyway?
Rachel: Do you really wish to know?
Makoto: Uh, yeah!
Rachel: If you would know the truth, then take a look inside of that casket. I must warn you, though - I daresay you will not like what you see.
(Makoto opens the first casket... and, justifiably horrified, opens three more)
Makoto: ! Oh my god... no...!
Rachel: This is the reason you were flung into that other world... and the reason you were able to remember what was real. You care dearly for Noel Vermillion, but the girl you know as Noel was preceded by these. Failed observers, all of them, crafted by Relius Clover. They were all Prime Field Devices, but none of them became Noel...
Makoto: Then these girls... they're all...
Rachel: Dolls, yes. Created by human hands... just like you beastkin.
Rachel: Do you really wish to know?
Makoto: Uh, yeah!
Rachel: If you would know the truth, then take a look inside of that casket. I must warn you, though - I daresay you will not like what you see.
(Makoto opens the first casket... and, justifiably horrified, opens three more)
Makoto: ! Oh my god... no...!
Rachel: This is the reason you were flung into that other world... and the reason you were able to remember what was real. You care dearly for Noel Vermillion, but the girl you know as Noel was preceded by these. Failed observers, all of them, crafted by Relius Clover. They were all Prime Field Devices, but none of them became Noel...
Makoto: Then these girls... they're all...
Rachel: Dolls, yes. Created by human hands... just like you beastkin.
— BlazBlue: Continuum Shift EXTEND, "Slight Hope" true ending
Izanami: The world... "God" rejects your dream. This world... Is a mirror that reflects this girl's "dream."
Ragna: A mirror that reflects her dream...
Izanami: Indeed. As long as the original does not vanish, the world will continue to reflect her dream... God's dream, the "Central Fiction" that can never be awoken from. ...Fall into the darkness of truth, Ragna the Bloodedge!
Ragna: A mirror that reflects her dream...
Izanami: Indeed. As long as the original does not vanish, the world will continue to reflect her dream... God's dream, the "Central Fiction" that can never be awoken from. ...Fall into the darkness of truth, Ragna the Bloodedge!
— BlazBlue: Central Fiction, ACT 2
If you have the determination to fight... one day you will know who you really are... but regret... that you didn't die ignorant!
— Atlas to Grey, Mega Man ZX Advent
What I'm about to tell you, you might not want to know. Even so, you absolutely must hear it. [...] Given who you are and how you've lived, what I have to say may tear at your hearts...
— Mother 3
The truth of that day will be hard to accept. When you see it... you have to stay strong. And if you can... please... forgive me...
— Basil just before the beginning of The Reveal sequence, OMORI
When my kind found the Eye and realized what it was capable of, they were terrified. It was too difficult a truth. Like a light too bright to look upon directly, it burned them. What they could not unlearn was hidden away in darkness - obfuscated, then lost.
— The Prisoner, Outer Wilds: Echoes of the Eye
Dammit... It hurts to face yourself... I knew it wasn't lying... But I was so ashamed I didn't want to admit it...
— Yosuke accepting his true self, Persona 4
Well, this is a first. There is a mystery, and I know the answer, yet I want to look away from it... When I try to logically analyze the situation, another part of me tries to stop it. It tells me, 'You'll only get hurt...' And now, I'm following that voice. I'm a failure for someone who claims to be after the truth...
— Naoto Shirogane upon learning Yu has cheated on her, Persona 4
I looked for the truth. Found it. Didn't like it. Wish to hell I could forget it.
— Alex Mercer, [PROTOTYPE]
I've been researching humans to see if I can find out any info about their SOULS. I ended up snooping around the castle and found these weird tapes. I don't feel like Asgore's watched them. I don't think he should.
— "True Lab Entry no. 4," Undertale
Visual Novels
See? Discovering the truth doesn't necessarily lead to a sense of hope. Truth can be full of despair, too! Like right fuckin' now!
— The Mastermind, Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc
As I said, Wright. The truth isn't always... pretty...
— Miles Edgeworth, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Dual Destinies
Webcomics
Robot: Why are you scared of us?
Woman: We're not scared of you in particular. We're scared of some kind of technological dystopia that results from your existence.
Robot: What? You guys have dystopias all day long and they're all socially created! No robots required! The catastrophe is inside you. You know why tech worries you? Because you're afraid it'll make you more efficient at your own pursuits which you know are fundamentally selfish and evil! Fix yourself first before you blame us, human!
Woman: Stop saying true things or I will conflate my guilt with righteous anger!
Woman: We're not scared of you in particular. We're scared of some kind of technological dystopia that results from your existence.
Robot: What? You guys have dystopias all day long and they're all socially created! No robots required! The catastrophe is inside you. You know why tech worries you? Because you're afraid it'll make you more efficient at your own pursuits which you know are fundamentally selfish and evil! Fix yourself first before you blame us, human!
Woman: Stop saying true things or I will conflate my guilt with righteous anger!
Man: Hey AI, I bet you can't tell me why Anne of Green Gables apeals to people so much.
AI: Humans desire uncomplex nurturing relationships. The novel in question centers around an orphan with no family attachments and no psychological damage from that loss. She is intelligent, requires minimal effort, and because the narrator is omniscient you know that she is kind and good-intentioned. In the same way movies isolate complex feelings and realistic bodies from the act of sex, this novel isolates complex feelings and realistic minds from the act of child-rearing. Humans being evolved animals with limited comprehension, idealized baby-making and baby-raising stories are compelling to you in the same way a cylinder of syrup compels a hummingbird.
Man: I... I... No! It's because she's spunky! She's spunky goddamn you!
AI: Okay, buddy. Sure, buddy.
AI: Humans desire uncomplex nurturing relationships. The novel in question centers around an orphan with no family attachments and no psychological damage from that loss. She is intelligent, requires minimal effort, and because the narrator is omniscient you know that she is kind and good-intentioned. In the same way movies isolate complex feelings and realistic bodies from the act of sex, this novel isolates complex feelings and realistic minds from the act of child-rearing. Humans being evolved animals with limited comprehension, idealized baby-making and baby-raising stories are compelling to you in the same way a cylinder of syrup compels a hummingbird.
Man: I... I... No! It's because she's spunky! She's spunky goddamn you!
AI: Okay, buddy. Sure, buddy.
Western Animation
Katara: Are you saying I'm a liar?
Sokka: I'm saying you're an optimist. Same thing basically.
Sokka: I'm saying you're an optimist. Same thing basically.
Luz: No, no, no, you're Belos! You're just Belos!
Belos: Please, do me a kindness, and call me by my real name.
Luz: I... can't...
Past Luz: You're Philip Wittebane, aren't you? [...] I can't believe I taught Philip something new! [...] I'll go talk to Philip. [...] Philip, why did you bring us here?
Belos: Please, do me a kindness, and call me by my real name.
Luz: I... can't...
Past Luz: You're Philip Wittebane, aren't you? [...] I can't believe I taught Philip something new! [...] I'll go talk to Philip. [...] Philip, why did you bring us here?
— The Owl House, "Hollow Mind"
Real Life
Today a young man on acid realised that all matter is just energy condensed to a slow vibration, that we are all one consciousness experiencing itself subjectively, there is no such thing as death, life is only a dream and we are the imagination of ourselves.
The truth will set you free, but first it will piss you off.
— Joe Klaas, and many subsequent activists
