Persuasive Essay On Lying In Society

1090 Words3 Pages

My sister used to lie a lot to my family, once my brother hit her in the head with a football, my sister told our dad, and naturally my brother denied it. Knowing that she often lied, our dad believed my brother, scolding my sister to stop lying. Everyone, including children, lies; no one can avoid it. Lying has been a controversial topic in society, whether it is considered “evil” or not. This is seen in literature, World War I poems, and essay articles, all of them have recognized this idea. Lying is a habit that has become part of society, however, there are cases where concealing the truth seems to be the most appropriate thing to do. Sometimes a truth is so controversial, it’s hidden from the public, as is shown in Wilfred Owen’s poem, …show more content…

Snark explains the whole social issues of lying, and what it shows about oneself. They write: “The saddest part of lying is that it’s such a sign of weakness. To lie is to admit that you can’t deal with the truth” (Medium 18). Snark generalizes how one can find it easier to lie instead of dealing with the hard truth. We lie to avoid disappointing others, like a student lying to their parents about what they scored on a test. People want to be viewed in a positive manner. They naturally want to avoid conflict and feeling bad about themselves. This proves a weakness in society, as it turns people selfish. Additionally, Snark also argues that lying can be selfish, as he states, “[Lying] is also awfully disrespectful. It’s saying that your needs are greater. That you’re the one who matters. Nobody else” (Medium 31). When people lie, it tends to be for their own benefit. While it is true that lying is selfish, it’s part of human nature: we are selfish, and it’s made its way into society as a whole. However, this isn’t always the case, as Snark proposes. If someone is in great pain we might lie to them to spare them from more pain. We don’t want others to feel bad about themselves, so we lie to them out of …show more content…

Cyrano de Bergerac, by Edmond Rostand, explores various levels of lying. For example, Cyrano signs a letter to his love saying, “Your Friend-who loves you… So, no signature” (II.100-101). Cyrano is reluctant to sign a letter he wrote to Roxanne, his love, so he lies about who wrote the letter. Cyrano’s overconfidence is nullified when he is too nervous to sign his own name to a letter. His lying also reveals a weakness in ourselves, showing how people lie to avoid humiliation and cower down. Later on, Roxanne also constructs a huge lie in order to manipulate a situation where it favors herself instead. She, “(...pretends to read from the letter, aloud.)... Holy Matrimony. You / And Christian will be married privately/In your house” (III.413-32). The original letter stating that de Guiche, a military leader who would visit, is being manipulated to conform to Roxanne’s selfish requests. We lie to avoid situations that could harm

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