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Lying pros and cons
Reasons why lying is bad
Reasons why lying is bad
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Lying Essay When is lying justified? People used to believe lying was wrong and that everyone had to tell the truth. These four articles show what some people think about the lying and why it's justified or not. Lying is justified when used to protect others and escape causing them harm, but some think it’s better to be completely honest no matter what happens.
To begin with, the majority of people believe that lying is okay when used for protection or protecting others. In the article entitled “It’s the truth: Americans Conflicted About Lying” ethics columnist Randy Cohen states, “ Not only is lying justified, it is sometimes a moral duty.” This shows how if a person is in a life or death situation you are going to lie to save them. This also shows that lying is
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In the article written by Barbara Ballinger, Brad Blanton states, “ We shouldn’t manipulate the truth except for rare times.”This is what some think, however lying to save a relationship is also important. This also states that lying is not a good thing, but lying can help save lives and jobs. In the article entitled “ Rejecting All Lies: Immanuel Kant states, “ A lie, even if it does not wrong any particular individual, always harms mankind individually, for it vitiates the source of law.” However, Kant was a German philosopher who lived in the 18th Century. This shows that what people think about lying now, might not be the same as back then. To conclude, others believe that lying is unjustified, however lying can be a form of protecting relationships and saving lives.
In conclusion, lying is sometimes justified when used to protect and care for others. Lying may not always be justified, an example being blaming someone for an act you did. Another thing is that lying is useful in protecting relationships and saving people from harm. Does society think that lying is justified? Should people tell the truth no matter what the consequence
Richard Gunderman asks the question, "Isn 't there something inherently wrong with lying, and “in his article” Is Lying Bad for Us?" Similarly, Stephanie Ericsson states, "Sure I lie, but it doesn 't hurt anything. Or does it?" in her essay, "The Ways We Lie.” Both Gunderman and Ericsson hold strong opinions in regards to lying and they appeal to their audience by incorporating personal experiences as well as references to answer the questions that so many long to confirm.
Lying is bad but the fear that can come from it is worse. Fear can rule a person which drives them to extreme and irrational acts that can shape society in a negative way. We as people are so accustomed to how we should act that during times of fear and crisis our vision is blurred and sometimes our decision making abilities are impaired. We often look past at how much fear can affect us and our society. Starting from Salem 1692 and going to the McCarthy era fear ruled the people and even now in present time America we are constantly living in fear.
Is it possible for certain lies to be considered justifiable? Everyone has told a lie at one point or another in their life. While growing up, society is taught that honesty is the best policy but it is hard to know at what point a lie crosses over from justifiable, to an evil action.
Lying is an issue that has been debated on for a long time. Some people believe that lying is sometimes ok in certain circumstances. Some people believe lying is always acceptable. In contrast, some believe lying is always bad. Keeping all other’s opinions in mind, I believe that lying is a deficient way of solving problems and is a bad thing. I claim that only certain situations allow the usage of lies and that otherwise, lying is bad. Dishonesty is bad because it makes it harder to serve justice, harms the liar individually, and messes up records. Furthermore, it should only be said to protect someone from grave danger.
Is it okay to lie in order to protect oneself? What about if it puts someone else at risk? In “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller, a group of girls conjure spirits in the woods and then tell a series of lies in order to cover up their mistake. Many people die or get hurt because of their fibs and the truth is never revealed. Innocent lives are taken because these girls accuse them of witchcraft. Unresolved conflicts between people can have tragic results leading to unnecessary death, marriage conflicts, and town unraveling.
Stephanie Ericsson’s The Ways We Lie, analyzes and reflects on how lying has simply become the norm in our society. We all lie, there is not one person in the world that does not lie. Most people lie because they are afraid of telling the truth, however what they do not know is telling a lie can lead them in the wrong direction because many things can happen when lying to a person. The person can find out when everything unravels that person will not have trust in you and you would be known as a liar. To every action there is a consequence, so why not deal with just one consequence when telling the
The article, “Is Lying Bad for Us,” accurately describes the intentions of a “liar.” The author says, “Though liars do not tell the truth, they care about it, while the bullshitter does not even care about the truth and seeks merely to impress” (Gunderman). This statement proves that lying should not be viewed as out of the ordinary, or unacceptable, and that liars should not be viewed as bad people. Lying can be shown as a way of protecting or caring
The idea of whether there is a good lie and whether a lie can be justified has a different answer depending on the situation. This idea can be explored through the texts of Old School and The Odyssey. In Old School, the protagonist deceives his elite school and Ernest Hemingway by plagiarizing a story that wasn’t his and submitting it to a story contest. Odysseus from The Odyssey also deceives his family and the suitors by pretending to be a beggar. However, the motives of each character are different and that plays an important role on whether their lies are justified.
We lie all the time, lying is not something new to our culture. We lie to our parents, we lie to our friends, we even lie to our significant other, but why do we do it? There is not one set reason on why we lie but they can vary from an insignificant reason to something more nefarious. A good operational definition of a lie is “A lie is a false statement to a person or group made by another person or group who knows it is not the whole truth, intentionally.” (Freitas-Magalhães) We have been raised to know that lying is usually a bad thing, and it’s better to tell the truth, not to mention the circumstances get exponentially worse if you are caught lying. No one wants to be labeled as a liar, or untrustworthy. This may sound unorthodox but I personally think lying is perfectly fine; depending on the situation. If you have a prima-facie duty to be dishonest it’s perfectly acceptable. Ross says a prima facie duty or obligation is an actual duty. “One’s actual duty is what one ought to do all things considered.” (Carson) I’m not the only one who finds this too be true. Ross would also agree with me, He says “Lying is permissible or obligatory when the duty not to lie conflicts with a more important or equal important prima facie duty.” (Carson) As I was doing research on this topic I did read one extremely compelling argument on why we ought not to lie. Aristotle basically said a person who makes a defense for lying could never be trusted. (King.)
Using Kantian philosophy a lie is always immoral and wrong, no matter what the situation is. Kantian ethics establishes the idea that good will be based on the action itself rather than outcome or any inclination one may have to perform an act could be good will.
Telling the truth teaches one person self- respect for themselves and others as well. Telling the truth also sets a good example for others to do the same thing and make a “chain reaction”. People can make a “chain reaction” by passing on what they have done from one person to another, and before you know it, everyone is changing greatly, and the world is progressing tremendously. Lies are told all around the world, and they are told every day. One lie can often lead to another lie and cause you to be caught up in one big lie that will be hard to get out of if people do not tell the truth. If a person thinks that is okay to lie, they better think again, the truth always comes out no matter how hard a person tries to keep it in, or how much someone thinks that they can get away with lying. No person can keep in or hold a grudge with what they have done. After all, telling the truth is the right thing to do, and everyone should do it. Telling the truth is always much easier than the trouble of a
I believe lying is sometimes acceptable because, not all lies are absolutely horrible. A little white lie won’t hurt anyone, right? I believe lying is acceptable because of the examples given in the articles, It’s the Truth: Americans Conflicted About Lying, and Brad Blanton: Honestly Tell the Truth. In the articles they explain why lying is acceptable in some cases.
Lying is something that comes natural to all of us. From the time we’re babies we uses deception every day. Babies cry more when someone is around. Children make up imaginary friends to feel less lonely. Adults lie to feel better about themselves or to hide something they aren’t proud of. We lie to our friends about how they look in a dress to keep them happy or we lie to our parents about the food we’ve been eating so they don’t worry about us as much. However not every lie is harmless. Some people use lies to deceive people and gain something. We can use scientific knowledge to spot deception and by using this knowledge we can begin to get to the truth and go from lie spotting to trust seeking.
Secondly, it is okay to be untruthful if you are trying to protect people. In certain situations, it is safer, and more practical for you to tell a lie rather than putting a loved one in jeopardy. To illustrate you may be in a situation where you are in a serious or dangerous situation, and you do not what anyone else involved, to keep them safe. For example, if you are getting held up for ransom, would you tell the truth to a loved one and get them involved, or lie and keep them safe? The obvious answer is to keep them safe at all costs, even if it means lying. Also, you do not want to put someone in harm’s way, so it would be ...
The three groups are, “Lies to protect others” ; “Lies in the interest of the liar” ; and “Lies to cause harm”. A particular number of people consider some of the categories bad or good, most people say that most categories are bad. It is not okay to lie even on certain occasions where it is the lying a possible option. To begin, it is not okay to lie when you are stuck with a problem since it could create a cycle of more problems and it is just stressful.