"Humility is not my forte, and whenever I dwell for any length of time on my own shortcomings, they gradually begin to seem mild, harmless, rather engaging little things, not at all like the staring defects in other people's characters"

This quote talks to the idea that humility is not an all-natural attribute for the speaker, and that when they reflect on their very own shortcomings, they are able to discover a means to make them seem less serious. This could be taken a form of self-preservation, as the speaker has the ability to find a way to make their very own imperfections much more palatable. It might likewise be viewed as a type of self-aggrandizement, as the speaker is able to make their own problems seem less extreme than those of others. Inevitably, this quote speaks to the idea that we are all with the ability of finding means to make our very own defects seem much less severe, and that we can use this to our advantage.