Daily Inspiration Quote by Saul Bellow

Advice is often sought less as a light and more as a shield. The request can sound humble, but underneath it lies a wish for permission. If someone tells us to do what we already want to do, our desire becomes a plan blessed by another voice. Responsibility feels shared. If the choice goes wrong, we can say we were advised. The term accomplice sharpens the point: a second party is enlisted not to reveal the truth, but to help carry out a foregone conclusion.

Human psychology makes this easy to understand. Confirmation bias pushes us toward people who will mirror our inclinations. Social proof lets us feel safer when others nod. Diffusion of responsibility relieves the sting of guilt. Even the language of advice disguises agency: What should I do? often means Please validate what I am about to do. The dynamic flatters both sides. The asker is spared doubt. The advisor enjoys influence and the warmth of solidarity.

Saul Bellow, whose novels probe the comic seriousness of modern life, understood how intellect can serve appetite. His protagonists, often brilliant and harried, argue themselves into their wishes and call it reason. The word accomplice carries his irony: the self dresses up need as deliberation, while the world of friends and colleagues provides alibis.

There is a caution here for both parties. For the seeker: examine whether the question is a search for truth or for cover. Choose voices that can say no. For the giver: resist becoming an enabler; ask what outcome the person already hopes for, and test it against reality and values. The adverb usually leaves room for genuine counsel. Advice can still be a gift when it clarifies rather than cosigns, when it returns the decision to the person who must live with it.