Quote by Boris Pasternak: “In every generation there has to be some fool who will speak the truth as he sees it.”

Truth-telling in most societies carries real risks. This observation says that in every era someone takes on the dangerous role of saying what others cannot or will not say — and that this person will usually be called a fool for it. The fool here is a kind of necessary prophet, willing to pay the price.

Pasternak was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1958, which caused an immediate political crisis in the Soviet Union. He was expelled from the Soviet Writers' Union and subjected to an orchestrated campaign of vilification. Under intense pressure, he declined the prize but sent a telegram saying the award meant too much to him. This quote reflects the particular price paid by those who tell inconvenient truths under authoritarian rule.

Russian poet and novelist who is best known internationally for his novel Doctor Zhivago, which was banned in the Soviet Union and published abroad in 1957. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1958 but was forced to decline it under Soviet pressure. His poetry is considered among the finest in the Russian language.