Why Do People Tell Lies?

CP ENG IV 3.5 Outline/Graphic Organizer Gibson

I. —Introduction

Draw reader’s attention to the topic:

According to Merriam-Webster’s dictionary, lying means to tell an account of an untrue event or give false information.

General Statement regarding topic:

All people tell lies. However, everyone’s logic behind telling a lie is completely different and is viewed differently by everyone who is told a lie especially if the person has a form of autism.

Further narrow from general statement to specifics of topic:

Some people seem to tell lies for one of two reasons -- to protect themselves or to protect others. In the book The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time both motivations occur: Christopher simply does not lie; his dad,

C. Support reason #2

1. Commentary:

There are many reasons why people tell lies and sometimes in simply because you think you are protecting someone.

2. Concrete evidence/Textual support:

According to a TED Talk called How to Spot a Liar, Pamela Meyer speaks about reasons people tell lies. She says, “Now, not all lies are harmful. Sometimes we have to keep secrets that have to be kept a secret.” and “Sometimes we want to protect people by telling the lies that we tell.” (Meyer 2:17) This seems to be the motto that Christopher's father was living off of because he kept a secret from Christopher and thought he was protecting him. Christopher’s father does not have the mindset of Christopher whom thinks all lies are wrong because he has no problem keeping two huge secrets from Christopher.

3. Concluding Sentence

Christopher’s narrative perspective doesn’t allow him to empathize with his father’s view on lying or why is father lies to begin with because the normal brain does not function like Christopher’s brain.

IV. —Body Paragraph #3:

Topic Sentence (Something reader doesn’t already

Whether you have a form of autism or not, everyone still gets hurt in the process of lying.

D. Extend with simile or metaphor to impact reader’s last thoughts regarding topic and thesis

Telling a lie is as simple as writing your name but the story behind the lie is a lot more serious when you look into it, especially to someone with autism. That can be said for your name too, you never know the story of a person just because you know their name.

**BLUE HIGHLIGHT = ANALYSIS

Works Cited

Haddon, Mark. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time. Doubleday. May 2003.

Li, Annie S., et al. “Exploring the Ability to Deceive in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders.” Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Feb. 2011, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3482107/.

Edelson, Steven. “Lying in Autism: A Cognitive Milestone.” Lying: A Cognitive Milestone | Autism Research Institute, www.autism.com/understanding_lying.

(Meyer, Pamela) “The Truth about Lying”. https://www.ted.com/talks/pamela_meyer_how_to_spot_a_liar#t-126008. Dec.