Since Noah Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language, the definition of words has been changing. We expect that to happen as we invent new things, as slang words are created, and to keep up with the times. New words are needed to name them.
Adding words for those reasons is understandable. Changing definitions of words is difficult to grasp. In Webster’s first dictionary the word definition is described as “a brief description of a thing by its properties; the explication of the essence of a thing by its kind and difference.” The definition represents the core of what a word is. Webster created his dictionary by looking at 26 dictionaries in different languages to determine the origin of each word. He wanted to capture the essence of the word.
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Truth went from an “indisputable fact” to an “accepted fact.” What was once the real state of things is now whatever people will allow. Reality used to mean “fact” and now means “a resemblance to being real.” It’s no longer what actually happened. Reality is what we want it to be. The word Lie means “to make an untrue statement.” If what is true is what we allow and what happened is somewhat similar to what actually happened, isn’t that a lie? [I use the word lie, since the words fake and phony aren’t in Webster’s dictionary.]
How can anyone know what a person is saying if we don’t have a common language. Lack of communication is a major source of conflict. We fill in our own ideas and get different messages.
So often we hear that a politician or celebrity has to apologize for what they said. A listener puts in their own interpretation which may not be what the speaker meant. When someone speaks we need to figure out what their message is not what we think it could be. If not we are missing their message. We are listening to ourselves. What is the point of listening to someone if you are not going to figure out what they are
As Ericsson begins to introduce her topic, she says “We lie. We all do. We exaggerate, we minimize, we avoid confrontation, we spare people’s feelings, we conveniently forget, we keep secrets, we justify lying to the big-guy institutions.” (Ericsson, 495). The fact that she repeats the word “we” conveys how she is not accusing anyone of lying.
A lie is considered a false statement given to fool someone. At some point throughout the day everyone will stretch the truth. Are lies just really some version of the truth or are they bold and deliberate? Lying is discussed in-depth in "The Ways We Lie" by Stephanie Ericsson and in the article "Is Lying Bad for Us" by Richard Gunderman. The two articles discuss the types of lies, reasons people lie and the consequences suffered by all. It can be determined after reading the texts that lying causes undue stress and telling the truth is beneficial in more ways than one.
Words are all around us. Words define the way we describe the way we articulate, one such example being this very paper, the way we interact with others, and most importantly, the way we feel or think. Adjectives: the words that give our world emotional meaning beyond the literal definition; that is connotation. Connotation is most evident in words to which we associate our most extreme emotions. Whether it is witnessing the greatest of fireworks, an elaborate collection of lights and sounds, or seeing truckfuls of babies being dumped into a blistering hot fire, the word we would use to describe these two events, fire, will forever be emotionally seen differently by whomever witnesses it. A word can develop in meaning, once meaning one thing to then mean something completely different. In fact, In Elie Wiesel’s “Night”, Elie’s definition of the word ‘fire’ changes from that of a danger to one’s self to that of destruction and revenge.
The initiator typically has a clear vision of the intent of the message. The receiver will either decipher the message as intended, or assign an alternate meaning to the message. It is the equal responsibility of both parties to understand the intent of message and not rely on the perception of the receiver. “Words don’t mean things, people mean things” (Griffin, 2012, p.7). Words and the delivery of the message can often be misconstrued, so we must be accountable for clear message delivery and committed to understanding the message as intended. First perceptions are not always accurate
Many messages are developed through a meticulous thought process. Here, many thoughts come together and create the initial message, but there’s still more to be done. The audience must be taken into consideration as fallacies are chosen and added since the meaning could be changed entirely if
The point that Ii am trying to relayreciprocate is that there are many different kinds of lies, and not only do we lie to other people without even noticing, but we also lie to ourselves. Lying has become a part of human nature, a part that we would not survive without. It has become almost an instinct and this shows by the way people don't even notice that they are doing it. One Of Ericsson’s key points is the consequences of telling the truth and why we lie. She says that by telling small lies we are protecting ourselves and protecting others.
To many people, a lie has little significance. Some people tell lies as a way to cover something up, make a different name for themselves, or just to make excuses. No matter what the situation, my father has constantly reminded me that the truth will set you free, and as I get older even though I am still in my youth, the more I realize the truth and importance of that statement. To me a lie is a form of disloyalty, the less you respect the person the more you lie to them as a way to cover up your true identity. A lie is when you mislead what is really the truth; where you don’t tell the full truth in order to deceive someone, or you avoid being honest at all. There are several different outcomes to
To lie means to make an untrue statement with the intent to deceive, according to the Webster’s dictionary. It also means to simply create a false or misleading statement on purpose. There are also many synonyms to the word “lie,” such as: prevaricate, equivocate, palter, and fib. The word lie happens to be the most blunt of this group. “Prevaricate” softens the bluntness of a lie by implying quibbling or confusing the issue. This form of lying is common in courtroomms and press conferences by lawyers and politicians. “Equivocate” implies using words having more than one sense in an attempt to say one thing but to mean another. This is an attempt to mislead one without feeling as if one has lied. “Palter”
In many walks of life we are and will be constantly influenced by different meanings, and we all have to interpret what is actually being said. We can be accurate with what is being said, or with our perception of the meaning of the message it is not always clear, and precise. We must all strive to do the very best that we can, even with all education and people skills training it is not
speaker to listener a complete one, leaving no basis for understanding the message being sent.
Words can carry different meanings depending on the context that it is presented
What we think is reality will ultimately become our reality if we believe certain things about an individual; he/she begins acting in exactly that way.
In life you will come across many obstacles, some of these you may have caused, others you may have not. How do we determine which is which? How do we determine what is the truth and what is a lie? In 1917, William M. Marston would say the polygraph test or lie detector as it is often called. In the twenty-first century, it would probably be witnesses and physical evidence. Which is more accurate and efficient? Is it fair to determine a person 's life sentence just by asking a few questions regarding whether or not they are lying? In this modern day, we not only need to focus on the “victims” but the “criminals” as well. Not saying that we should cater to criminals, but give them a chance. The old saying goes that a defendant is innocent
WHO CAN CATCH A LIAR?’ , Ekman and O’Sullivan, 1991. What is the definition of lying or indeed deception? Well deception can be defined in many ways, but it was termed by Vrij (Vrij, 2000, p.6) as a successful or unsuccessful deliberate attempt, without forewarning, to create in another a belief, which the communicator considers to be untrue. Telling lies is a daily life event, which varies in quite complex ways depending on the situation the person is in and the person being lied to.
What are lies? A lie is defined as follows: To make a statement that one knows to be false, especially with the intent to deceive. There are several ways that lies are told for instance, there are white lies, lies of omission, bold faced lies, and lies of exaggeration. No matter what type of lie that one chooses to tell many people believe that lies do more harm than good.