There's more beauty in truth, even if it is dreadful beauty.

The line asserts an aesthetic and moral preference for honesty over comforting illusion. It suggests that truth possesses its own kind of beauty—not necessarily pleasant or soothing, but compelling in its clarity and integrity. By calling it “dreadful beauty,” the speaker acknowledges that reality can be harsh, tragic, or frightening, yet still worthy of being faced and represented without evasion. In a Steinbeckian register, the idea aligns with a realist impulse: to look steadily at suffering, injustice, and human frailty, and to find meaning in accurate seeing rather than sentimental consolation. The quote thus elevates truth-telling as both an artistic principle and an ethical stance.