Cousins's philosophy toward his work was exemplified by his instructions to his staff "not just to appraise literature, but to try to serve it, nurture it, safeguard it." Cousins believed that "there is a need for writers who can restore to writing its powerful tradition of leadership in crisis." He was a lifetime believer in the power of hope, and in the realism of optimism. One of his well-known lines, "Life is an adventure in forgiveness," has survived him. But Cousins had no patience for those who consciously bend truth, whether for personal expediency or in the political sphere. The integrity of words, in speech and in writing, was sacred to him. To his mind, the honest use of words was an absolute value, and the distinguishing mark of the human being.