“Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth.”. This is a quota said by Oscar Wilde. As short a quote as it is, it contains much meaning and talks about both the human and the society he lives in. It is a quota that tells us about who we as human beings really are.
We live as individuals. Each of us is ourselves; with a name, a face and a person attached to said person. Everything that we do ties back to our own selves. Every word said comes out of the mouth of whom it was said by. And obviously all that’s said brings some other thing along with it. Just like Newton’s third law “Every action has an equal and opposite reaction”, every word we utter out of our mouths can and will cause something else in return.
This is where Oscar Wilde’s quote really comes into play. Every human has an opinion, a thing to say, sound to produce. But what human cares about even more is the face, the person, and the name associated with them. For that face to be mocked due to opinion, for that name to be buried for what it had said; that is what the human will see as their fall. No human wants what’s associated with them to even have the slightest chance to fall under mockery. For this fear of a loss of persona, man will not say what he thinks, even he thinks it is the truth.
This is where that mask comes into play. For a way to say what is thought without the chance of a reaction, is something some will only dream of. Give the human the anonymity he desires, and he will talk. Start once and that mouth will never stop. Invite one to masquerade, and he will attend without even opening the letter. Eliminate the cause behind one’s fear to say what he wants, and all that’s left will be desire.
In short, this quote talks about the false face humans put up to be in the highest respect others will show them, and how they will obey the true face if it’s hidden behind the mask of anonymity. True words are either hidden behind a mask or only uttered by those who do not fear.