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More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Effective communication
Impact of culture on people's behavior
Impact of culture on people's behavior
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Do you know who you are? Imagine if you were able to speak up for yourself in any given situation; would you? Behavior can be altered by you and can change depending on who you are around and the type of environment you are in. Being someone who just fits in instead of standing out, is that really who are you, do you even know who I am? In the passage “Why don’t we complain?” by William F. Buckley, Jr., the man in the story noticed things and wanted them changed, however he always waited for someone else to do it for him; he never did it himself. This still relates to our society today because we always rely on others to do things for us. Sometimes, we are either afraid someone will think of us differently or of someone yelling at us for bringing something to their attention. The character in the passage was on the train and it was really hot in there, so he took his jacket off and unbuttoned his shirt as everyone else had on the train; he says, “I thought the passengers would seize the conductor and strap him down on a seat over the radiator to share the fate of his patrons” (Buckley, Jr. 1). This shows that no matter where we are in life, we always rely on someone else to do things that we want done. …show more content…
In “The ways we lie” by Stephanie Ericsson, tells us that lies define us and altar the real person we are.
“I’ve discovered that I can keep anyone from seeing the true me by being selectively blatant” (Ericsson 2). When we show only the side of ourselves to certain people or hide a side of ourselves, is a behavior we often use and people refer to you as fake. The problem is that we sink into this behavior, which alters the way we act or the way we present ourselves. There are many reasons we do this: being afraid someone may not like the real you, you’re afraid to show your true self, or maybe you want to be able to fit in their cliques. We are just too afraid to be who we are. We are able to dismiss our roots and change ourselves to be someone we are
not. Do you ever feel like you are just being a character in a book? When dealing with behaviors, we often become someone else almost not recognizing who we used to be. Ericsson says, “When our voices are finally mute, when we have finally suppressed the natural instinct to complain, whether the vexation is trivial or grave, we shall have become automatons, incapable of feelings” (Ericsson 2). So we may even deceive others in actions of trying to hide the real person, almost like we don’t have our voice anymore; we strive to just fit in at no matter the cost. We often rely on others to speak for us, when we have a voice we should speak. Often people think things change drastically day by day; however, in reality behaviors don’t really change like we think they do. When comparing the 1960’s to 2006 we find the behaviors relatively similar. They may alter some, but seem to always relate back to being able to be who you are. It seems like when speaking up for yourself even relates back before the 1960’s when women was afraid or couldn’t have a voice. Be proud of who you are and speak up
In The Ways We Lie, Stephanie Ericsson expresses the inevitability of lying and the way it is casually incorporated into our everyday lives. She personally brings light to all the forms of lying and some that are often not recognized as a lie. Ericsson questions the reasons and validity behind lies by highlighting the effects and consequences.
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.
Judith Viorst is an American journalist. Her essay “The Truth about Lying”, printed in Buscemi and Smith’s 75 Readings: An Anthology. In this essay, Viorst examines social, protective, peace-keeping and trust-keeping lies but doesn’t include lies of influence.
In The Liars ' Club, Mary Karr recounts her dysfunctional childhood and the various struggles she and her family endured. Although both of Mary’s parents were suffered from severe alcoholism, Mary’s mother was also incredibly abusive as a result of mental illness. Growing up, Mary frequently witnessed violent episodes, fits and delusions that eventually landed her mother in a mental institution. Inevitably intensified by the alcoholism, her parents fought all the time, resulting in physical violence and constant threats of divorce. In just a few of her mother’s episodes, she tried to drive their car off of a bridge, starts fires and almost stabs her children with
Are everyday rituals, such as, facades reflected as to being a lie? Simply preparing for a meeting or interview does not come off as lying, although another type of façade such as when someone asks, “Are you okay,” after a death of someone close to you, in reality it is a form of a lie, because you are not being honest. In Stephanie Erricsson’s article “The Ways We Lie,” she discusses many different types of lying, that most wouldn’t even consider. Ericsson claimed, “But façades can be destructive because they are used to seduce others into an illusion” (409). Depending how a façade is used, the outcome can be beneficial or damaging. There are facades that are used to cover up one’s true feelings, in order to protect an individual and then there is a type in which one puts on a mask to cover up how awful of a person they are. Charity, a former friend, deceived me with the qualities of everything she was not, my mom is a great example of when it comes to hiding when she is saddened. In this article “The Ways We Lie,” Stephanie Ericsson has a great point of view on the destructiveness of facades, although, it can very well be used in a good way just as much as in a bad way, in fact, like my protective mother, using facades for mine and my sisters own good and then a conniving friend using facades in
Should we stop lying and she would stop letting people lie to us? In “The Ways We Lie”, Stephanie Ericsson describes lying as “a cultural cancer that… reorders reality until moral garbage becomes as invisible to us as water is to a fish” (Ericsson 186). Ericsson believes that we have accepted lies to the point where do not recognize it anymore. Ericsson has a point, lying should not be tolerated but it should be the unnecessary lies that should not be tolerated. There are lies that are justifiable based on the intent of the person lying. All lies are harmful in their own ways from small lies, like white lies, to big lies, like out-and-out lies.
In the short story The Ways We Lie, Stephanie Ericsson describes many different categories of lies. She first starts out explain the little white lie, describing it as a lie which is told when trying to avoid hurting someone. An example she gives in the text is, “telling a friend he looks great when he looks like hell can be based on a decision that the friend needs a compliment more than a frank opinion”(Ericsson, 2004, 121). Ericsson then describes facades, facades according to the Ericsson is when a person shows you what they want you to see, but it’s not the real them. Stating “facades can be destructive because they are used to seduce others into an illusion” (Ericsson, 2004, 122). A perfect example of facades are when a person has to
In “The Ways We Lie,” by Stephanie Ericsson, she defines various types of lying and uses quotations at the beginning of each description as a rhetorical strategy. Throughout the reading she uses similar references or discussion points at the beginning and ending of each paragraph. Most believe lying is wrong, however, I believe lying is acceptable in some situations and not others when Stephanie Ericsson is asked, “how was your day.” In “The Ways We Lie,” she lies to protect her husband’s feelings, therefore, I think people lie because they are afraid of the consequences that come with telling the truth.
When initially asked about the morality of lying, it is easy for one to condemn it for being wrong or even corrupt. However, those asked are generally guilty of the crime on a daily basis. Lying is, unfortunately, a normal aspect of everyday life. In the essay “The Ways We Lie,” author Stephanie Ericsson makes note of the most common types of lies along with their consequences. By ordering the categories from least to most severe, she expresses the idea that lies enshroud our daily lives to the extent that we can no longer between fact and fiction. To fully bring this argument into perspective, Ericsson utilizes metaphor, rhetorical questions, and allusion.
“Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one’s definition of your life, but define yourself.”– Harvey Fierstein
One of the most common things heard when interacting with others is: “Just be yourself”. However, is there truly a choice? Many may try to cover up their true identity for unknown purposes. In order to fit in, some may pretend to enjoy things they dislike, and dislike things they really enjoy. As demonstrated in countless books, stories, and movies, a person’s true identity will always be exposed one way or another. In Matt Ruff’s novel Bad Monkeys, the true nature of a person will always overshadow any disguised identity.
Many people spend their time creating his/her image in order to get where they want to be, celebrities, politicians, public figures, etc., but never do they spend time trying to be themselves; Instead they suppress it.
The book We Were Liars by E Lockhart is about an extremely prestigious family called the Sinclairs. The Sinclair family consists of the grandfather, the grandmother, their three daughters, Carrie, Bess, and Penny, and their grandchildren, Johnny, Will, Mirren, Liberty, Taft, Bonnie, and Cadence. Every summer, the family goes to their summer island, off the coast of Massachusetts. Of the grandchildren, the ones that hang out the most are Johnny, Mirren, and Cadence. On summer eight, Gat, a friend of Johnny, began coming to the island. After Gat’s arrival, Johnny, Mirren, Cadence, and Gat were known as the Four Liars. After many summers later, Gat and Cadence strike up a romance between each other in summer
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.
Throughout our lives we are shaped and molded by our friends and family. They have a lasting affect that can shape our mind and our self. Self is determined by the combination of selves that surround a person on a daily basis. From the childhood friends that we try so hard to hang on to as we journey farther and farther into the real world, to the hated boss and teachers that haunt our mind as we lie awake in our beds at nighttime, we are a product of all those selves. It is the self that determines the course of actions that are taken. Our Actions offer a window into our selves. The actions or reactions toward tragedies, celebrations, disappointments and the occasional lucky break all reflections of our self. Every one of us has a different self, because no one knows the exact same people as someone else. I believe our self contains our values and beliefs. All of our priorities, goals and aspirations we have for ourselves stem directly from the self. Our reactions are also a window into our self. In my opinion, self is a giant jigsaw-puzzle. It is filled with different pieces of others selves that we have interacted with throughout our life, that combine to make one big picture, our self. I have taken pieces of many people who I have encountered throughout my life. My three older brothers influenced major pieces of my self. The pieces of their selves have "fit" into my jigsaw-puzzle self, and complete my total picture. Without force, or a conscious effort by my brothers, the certain pieces of their selves have naturally configured to form my self.