The Truth Is Best Kept As a Secret There comes a point in one’s life where we consider it convenient to keep secrets or the truth from people we deeply care about. We make the decision to keep silent so that the people around us don’t get affected by how horrible the truth may be. We believe that our loved ones don’t deserve to go through such a horrible thing, that we make ourselves believe that we are making the right choice by keeping them from knowing the truth. In reality, telling lies and keeping secrets, no matter how little importance they may have, makes the situation worse and makes one feel guilty. They live their lives thinking how the person or people would react when they come to learn that they have been lied to from someone they truly love and adore. In the stories, “Drown” and “A White Heron” they both have similarities of love and conflict. Both protagonists have grown some type of love and feelings for a certain person or thing, that they become conflicted with their own emotions. For example, in the story “A White Heron”, the protagonist Sylvia, is in love with animals and nature. Astonished by the beauty of it all; she crosses paths with a bold, tall, young man that she later in the story falls in love with. This young man happens to be an ornithologist, who preserves dozens and dozens of stuffed birds that he personally hunts himself. The ornithologist was out looking for a bird called the White Heron and thought that Sylvia may know the location
When on the other hand, lies depict an unconfidential way to “protect” the truth from doing unnecessary harm. People lie because they don’t see the truth as necessary, don’t want to hurt anyone, or to help gain love and respect from others. However, this is over powered with the importance of coming into reality because one cannot live in a fantasy created by others meant to shield them from the resentful truth, and of finally “seeing.” All in all, the author’s imagery at the end leaves the reader thinking about the liberation that comes from hope and a fresh start. Lastly, does a lie really protect a loved one from hurt and pain, or is the truth always
In this essay, The Ways We Lie, Ericsson writes examples of lies we tell daily. She explains that not all the lies we tell are intentional. We choose to make life easier by lying. This essay also highlights situations that occur in everyday life. Ericson explains that “The white lie assumes that the truth will cause more damage than a simple, harmless untruth.” (89) She then continue to explain that a “white lie” can be dangerous simply because telling the truth could ease a lot of pain.
There comes a time in every persons life where they feel a burning sensation to lie, but is it worth it? Don’t they feel the shame and the guilt of that lie? On average, people lie between ten to two hundred times a day. But doesn't all of that lying come with a lot of conflict and trouble? The more that you lie the more conflict arises by avoiding truth then if it were to be faced head-on.
One’s view on something often changes when you look at it from more than one point of view. Morality plays a significant role in any decision making process. It is hard to justify any decision that is not moral. Sarah Orne Jewett’s “A White Heron” has many elements of nature, and of the preservation of what Sylvia holds dearly. The thought provoking short story evokes emotions of caring, loving, and fear. All of these emotions are shown by different settings and characters in the story.
“The Ways We Lie” is an essay written by Stephanie Ericsson, first published in the Utne Reader in 1993. The Utne Reader is an American magazine that publishes pieces from alternative media sources. However, the essay was mostly directed toward people who have told a lie at least once in their life and have may have felt guilty about it. The purpose for the piece was developed using original syntax, logical appeals, and descriptive tropes, the purpose being that one should think twice before telling a lie.
In the essay The Ways We Lie, author Stephanie Ericsson writes in depth about the different types of lies used by most people everyday. While listing examples of them, Ericsson questions her own experiences with lying and whether or not it was appropriate. By using hypothetical situations, true accounts, and personal occurrences, she highlights the moral conflicts and consequences that are a result of harmless fibs or impactful deceptions. In an essay detailing the lies told to ourselves and others, Ericsson points out one bold truth; everyone lies. Through her writing, Ericsson causes the reader to look into how they’ve lied in the past and how to effects others and the general greater good of society.
In Sister of my Heart, a coming-of-age novel by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, the two main characters, Sudha and Anju, are not aware of the secret that runs within their families. The act of keeping a secret is to purposely keep something hidden. Although telling the truth can help create a stronger and more honest relationship, in some cases, when the secret is revealed, it can have a negative effect. Sudha exemplifies this as the secret she keeps from Anju affects Sudha's life and her relationship with Anju.
Consequences and stress are a common outcome of lies, yet people still commit them to deliberately hide the truth. “...Brad Blanton says you’re unnecessarily complicating your life.” Lies that are told often are intended to keep another’s feelings from being hurt, and in the end cause even more damage. Stress and other mental
How would one react to their beloved's terrible secret? The person on the receiving end would either be disgusted, or just accept it without judging the other. In the short story "A Woman without Prejudice", we are shown the internal conflict of the male protagonist about whether to tell his lover about his past. His lover on the other hand deeply loves him for who he is.
One of the comparisons between the stories is the fact that the primary character, which is also the protagonist, has made incredible efforts in trying to gain the love and the expectations of their love lady, and mainly focused upon especially toward which he places all his emotions
Stephanie Ericsson categorizes the many ways people lie on a daily basis. She uses a mixture of facts, quotes and opinions to capture the severity of telling a lie. Her article has enabled me to understand the thought process that goes behind telling a lie. She justifies minor lies by using ethos and stating that minor lies prevents hurt feelings and that it is normal to lie. Stephanie frequently asks rhetorical questions to make readers think of the matter at hand. She also uses anaphora to seem more relatable and understanding to her readers. I tell minor lies on a daily basis but I did not realize that there is so many different types of lies. i and many other people often rationalize with ourselves to make our lies seem less harmful when
The mere concept of a compulsive or pathological liar is often repulsive to most of us, but the truth is, many of us aren’t that far from crossing that bridge. In her essay, “The Ways We Lie”, Stephanie Ericsson analyzes not only the many occasions in which we lie, but also the meaning and consequences of those lies. Although Ericsson’s definitions are well articulated, the evidence she employs to support many of her statements lack depth.
When one does wrong, the common reaction is to hide it and pretend as if nothing happened. Because of the human conscience it is difficult to completely forget about a wrongdoing. Through our conscience guilt is built up and eventually that guilt shatters enough
Telling the truth is not always the simplest solution. In times of guilt and distress, most fear that the truth will only further complicate a situation. The selfish fear that complications will have negative impacts on one’s own image can persuade one to avoid reality completely. However, no matter how hard it may be, it is always best to be transparent. In the novel The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini indicates that in an order to preserve one’s honour, people will deceive others, flee their situations and dismiss reality. However, the truth is always revealed. Deception can appear to be the easiest way to handle an undesirable circumstance, but the results can prove to be pernicious.
Finally, we lie because we do not want to get hurt. An example is we protect our own feelings. They say that honesty is the best policy but this does not work all the time, we lie because the truth hurts. Another example is we protect our pride. Most of us do not want to tell the truth because we do not want to admit that we are wrong.