Oh what a tangled web we weave,
When first we practise to deceive! — Sir Walter Scott, Marmion
Speaking truth all the time has been a difficult task in this KaliYuga, IS a difficult task now and will be a difficult task. We hesitate to speak the truth whenever the truth is unfavorable to us. Why don’t we feel suffocated by that? Bcoz we’ve grown up with that cringing feeling that we do not recognize the hump we bear have @ all.
Reason for tolerating lies lies in human nature: We believe that it is then our moral duty NOT to interfere in other people’s ability to make their own decision (Lying in this context). This makes lying morally wrong for two reasons. “First, lying corrupts the most important quality of my being human: my ability to make free, rational choices. Each lie I tell contradicts the part of me that gives me moral worth. Second, my lies rob others of their freedom to choose rationally.
Virtue ethics finds lying immoral when it is a step away, not toward, the process of becoming the best persons we can be. Virtue ethicists argue that when faced a seeming conflict between virtues, such as a compassionate lie, do what an “ideal” person would do. Virtue ethics finds lying immoral when it is a step away, not toward, the process of becoming the best persons we can be.
Practical ethicists “claim that actions, including lying, are morally acceptable when the resulting consequences maximize benefit or minimize harm.” The end justifies the means.
Is your head spinning yet? But wait! Here’s more!
Forget the analysis and the psychology. They serve at least one purpose. They rationalize our lying – I can choose the theory I like and bingo! I’m “cleared” the consequences of my action.
But why do we lie? Could it be that we no longer hold each other accountable for what we do? How many times have you said to yourself, “How could he get away with that?” Could it be that whatever we held as moral then we no longer hold? Could it be that, according to Time Magazine, “we no longer understand or agree on the rules governing our behavior toward one another.”
Imagine when a short boy aged 15 years old wants to go to a amusement park and the park rules tells u to buy a full ticket for every one who is aged above 14 yrs.
What do we do? Well, we take him anyway – nothing can stop a parent from buying a half ticket and saving half ticket worth money. We also instruct him that if asked he should say he was 13 years old.
Then 10 minutes later, just metres away from the entrance here comes the park official with the boy stopping him from using a half ticket. Needless to say, the boy got caught with a lie. You should see the look on the boy’s face when he is escorted back to the entrance. Here, the parent feels a grief and guilt for something that the boy did not even cause. That will make anyone regret, not for having been caught, but to have lied at all.
Here u not only seed thoughts which justify lying in the nxt gen ppl but also indirectly indicate that u can get away easily with a lie.
The main reasons why we lie are :
· Fear of harm: To prevent harm to ourselves – either physical or mental.
· Fear of conflict: To some degree, we all fear having an argument.
· Fear of punishment: When growing up, how often did we lie about how well we did in school, or who started a fight? How often do we cover up our mistakes and transgressions?
· Fear of rejection: Sometimes, our insecurities are the foundation of why we lie to each other, because we want to be remain popular in our relationships. Typically, it is harmless boasting to make ourselves appear more admirable to other people.(Yet when we eat shit, reasons don’t matter)
· Fear of loss: This is usually the loss of personal objects, such as money or expensive valuables. Greed is the foundation for this reason and can be found in each of us. We often lie to make ourselves more desirable to other people too.
At times, when our self-esteem starts to decline, we even lie to ourselves as means to prevent loss of morale.
· Unselfish Reasons: We often lie to help our friends and loved ones. How often do we flattery someone just to make them feel better? This is the only selfless reason why we lie. (A purified and sterilized shit, I believe)
Being a long post even for my reading, I would like to sign this post off with a dilemma of mine…
At work place for instance when we want to have a day off. What do we do? We have the template reason, which we were taught at primary school
“As I am suffering from fever….”
I am of the view that even those with high levels of commitment will have days on which they would like to bunk office. Does that make them commitmentless that they do not like to come to office on a particular day? Absolutely not…. Still they use sham reason like fever, sick leave etc.
That is because that no superior likes the truth. He’ll accept a facade fully knowing that it is not true but will not accept the true reason. Why doesn’t he accept the fact that a person doesn’t want to work on such a day and also accept it openly?
Now put urself in the superior’s position. Obviously we empathise with him. What is the reason for such attitude of ours?
Are we not ripe enough to accept the truth? Does this attitude extends to all spheres of our life? Answers do not matter. Change does.
P.S: I do not wish to say that I do not lie. Rather I'm change in progress
