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Different Types of Lies Essay

Decent Essays

“To lie is to state something that one knows to be false or that one does not honestly believe to be true with the intention that a person will take it for the truth”. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lie) In other words, lying is a purposeful misleading statement. This statement can be made verbally, through body language, or even implied through silence. Based on lying being well defined, some might say that lying is always wrong unless there is a good reason for it. In that case, I would argue that lying is not always wrong.
There are two different types of lies. The first types of lies are called true falsehoods. These types of lies are always wrong. The only purpose for telling this type of lie is for one's self interest or …show more content…

For example: A young girl is driving to the beach with her new boyfriend, they are alone, when suddenly she feels very uncomfortable and unsafe being alone with this boy. She decides she wants to go back home, yet she knows that her boyfriend is going to be upset if she tells him the truth. So instead she decides to tell him that she remembered something she had promised her mom she would do for her before she got home from work. She knows later on, when she is in a more controlled environment, that she will tell this boy the truth because she knows he needs to know.
Another simpler yet common example would be misrepresentations of the truth in responding to the question “How are you doing?” A person’s answer would depend on the relationship that they have with that person. A relationship that is not close at all would most likely bring a response that would be short and on a positive note like, “everything is fine,” even if it was not true. This response would be given to that person because it may not be appropriate or a good idea to let them know otherwise.
Another example would be a police officer during a sting operation. Is it correct for her to pose as a prostitute in order to catch actual prostitutes? This would be considered a lie based on the fact that the officer is intentionally trying to come across as something other than she really is. It would be

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