Why Is Lying Unjustified

Lying is part of human nature. On average, we tell one to two lies a day. We all lie. Some do it more often than others. We even do it to ourselves on occasion. There are many ways to tell a lie. And sometimes we may not even intend to lie, it just happens. Lying is inevitable. It happens whether we like it or not. But it is up to us whether we let it drastically influence our lives. In The Ways We Lie by Stephanie Ericsson, the author discusses the different types of lies we encounter and tell in our daily lives.

“ Because it keeps you locked in the jail of your own mind.” This quote interprets that lying keeps people from the lie you could have told one person but not the other. Both the author and Blanton have a good point where people might have a need to lie and know the consequences, however they still commit them. “... and you manipulate information to control the outcome.” Many liars use this method, and withhold information to oppose the fallout. Some who think it sometimes it’s justified say “I didn’t tell a whole lie”, but don’t see how it’s not the whole truth either. Expectations are set, and state that the person being lied to is the one hurt in the end, but many don’t know that the pejurer themselves are also badly affected or even

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.

William Shakespeare once said, “God hath given you one face, and you make yourself another.” Lying is without a doubt never justifiable because lying can lead into even greater conflicts that might never be resolved additionally lying would ruin someone’s reputation; one might argue that lying can be justifiable under one circumstance which is that lying can protect people from danger; however, lying can make someone lose people’s trust.

Lying can save you in severe situations such as life or death. Elie lied about his age and said he was eighteen instead of fifteen. “‘Your age?’ he asked, perhaps trying to sound paternal. ‘I'm eighteen.’ My voice was trembling.” (Wiesel 31). Not telling exact information to strangers about yourself can prevent bad things from happening. He told the doctor he was sick so he didn’t have to get his crown taken. His crown could buy him an extra ration of bread and soup, so he decided it’d be smart to keep it. He said he was a farmer because it could save him from being killed immediately. Lying is one of many ways that can help people survive in certain situations.

In her essay “The Ways We Lie” Stephanie Ericsson (2007) states different ways people lie in their lives and explains the reasons why people lie. Ericsson starts her essay, by explaining how she lied four times in just one day, and that she doesn’t feel guilty about doing it. Although at the same time she explains that everyone lies one way or another but there is no such a thing as a good lie. The author continues her contends by listing different types of lies people use in different situations such as: the white lie, facades, ignoring the plain facts, deflecting, omission, stereotypes and clichés, groupthink, out-and-out lies, dismissal, and finally delusion then she explains each in detail by providing examples.

The majority of people think lying is inherently wrong, and it is only justified in cases of significant benefit. Fear, manipulation and pride are the three main reasons people choose to lie. Some of the harsher lies are

The reasons people lie vary, but can be distinguished into lies that are for personal benefit or for someone else’s benefit; because humans tend to be selfish creatures, the first category is more

Lying can be described as the act of telling an untruth, but just when is it ok to lie? In the articles, “It’s the Truth: Americans Conflicted About Lying,” from Life on NBCNEWS.com, and “Brad Blanton: Honestly, Tell the Truth,” by Barbara Ballinger, it provides evidence that leads me to believe that lying is acceptable when you do it to protect a relationship or someone from a life or death situation.

The article “Brad Blanton:Honestly,Tell the Truth” states”It keeps you locked in the jail of your own mind. You have to remember what you told each person. You have to think about what the person's reaction might be, and you start manipulating information to control the outcome”. I disagree because feeling guilty is not as bad as both people being hurt.Also, memorizing details of a lie could easily be avoided by keeping the lie simple. The article “Rejecting All Lies:Immanuel Kant” states “ A lie, even if it does not wrong any particular individual,always harms mankind individually.”. Some use lying as a way to get out of a situation instead of a tool of protection. The world is not getting affected by lying but how people are using it. Many do not think that lying is tainting the world but that simply is not

Lying today is quite a disregarded subject, causing its reputation enough to make people uneasy. Most are taught at a young age that lying is substandard, lousy, or even cheap, and that you should never use it to your benefit. Of course we don’t want to be a lousy person, but what about lying makes it so? Why is it considered so immoral and frowned upon by many social norms? Luckily for us there are two very appealing essays that help us crack these baffling questions. In these essays, they define the meaning of a lie, why we always seem to use them, and if they are actually bad for us. In Stephanie Ericsson’s The Ways We Lie it talks about the different types of lies, how and why we use them and what consequences can be followed by each lie. Also, adding clarity is Richard Gunderman’s article Is Lying Bad for Us that talks about how people lie to cope with things, but also expresses how lying might be bad for our physical or mental health.

There are 4 kinds of lies, there is a lie in the interest of the liar, lie to protect someone, lie to cause harm, or lie by omission. Lying is sometimes acceptable because lying can protect others, it might get you out of a difficult situation, however lying can hurt others even yourself. There is many examples of when lying is okay. Dishonesty is justified when it can protect others. In “Brad Blanton: Honestly Tell the Truth” by Barbara Ballinger it says, “... if you’re hiding Anne Frank in your attic because her life is in danger, “ it is right.

First, it is okay to lie when you are trying to protect someone's feelings , and from getting hurting them. What I mean by protecting someone's feelings , it is that you know something that can really hurt them. An example is when you find out something very serious happened to your family so, you lie to your siblings so they do not get worried. Two thirds said it was okay to lie in certain situations. My source is from the article ¨ It's the Truth , Americans Conflicted About Lying ¨ Another example is when you do not want your kids eating too much , so you say all the cookies are gone. It can be hard to get people to tell the truth , especially about lying. My source is from the article ¨ It's The Truth, Americans Conflicted About Lying¨.

Lying is sometimes justified. Some may feel that lying is never acceptable because it is morally wrong, however, I believe lying is acceptable when it can be used to protect others. Lying can cause harm to people and hurt them. In “Rejecting All Lies” by Sissela Bok, Immanuel Kant states that lying always harms mankind individually.

Ever since the early age, we have taught that lying is wrong and hurts people including ourselves. Moreover, we also have educated that it is better to accept the consequences of my actions than to lie. However, the more we grow up, the more we know about using of lying because telling the truth cannot always solve the problem. From my point of view, some lying is acceptable, some is not. It depends upon what purposes that make people tell lies.