Importance of Lying
We Lie to Survive
Dishonesty is, and has been, a vital piece of human culture since the beginning of time. Through the need to improve and compete, this trait developed into sneaking and trickery, but eventually gave way to lying and deceit. Stephanie Ericsson’s article, “The Ways We Lie,” is a blunt take on the negative effects associated with the act of lying. She covers the topic from many different angles, dissecting why each type of lying is destructive to others, but she neglects to think of the beneficial aspects of the activity that have structured civil society around the globe. Without various types of lies, humans would be unable to compete against each other in the 21st century version of natural selection that is present in the world today. In order to be successful in life, elaboration and embellishment are necessary on a daily basis. These facades are fragile lies though, that are often disproved and discredited, hence the evolution of defense mechanisms used by us that rely on more deception to gain advantages. This chaotic scene of embellishment and defense mechanisms would make society near impossible if it wasn’t for our susceptibility to common ignorance. All civilizations form under the same beliefs, whether they’re true or not, bringing us to where we are today, a society that relies on the uses of facades, omission and deflection in order to function. With the era of technology, social networking, and mass media, human interaction has become much more frequent and scrutinized; every word that is said is judged instantly. Thus comes the necessity of facades for the sake of survival of the fittest. It is natural human instinct to go for the “fittest mate,” and in this day and age, that doesn’t mean most physically able. Character is a factor, and self-presentation, multiple different things that don’t come naturally to everyone, but anyone can put on a façade and present themselves as whatever they so please. The social advantage of
Dishonesty is, and has been, a vital piece of human culture since the beginning of time. Through the need to improve and compete, this trait developed into sneaking and trickery, but eventually gave way to lying and deceit. Stephanie Ericsson’s article, “The Ways We Lie,” is a blunt take on the negative effects associated with the act of lying. She covers the topic from many different angles, dissecting why each type of lying is destructive to others, but she neglects to think of the beneficial aspects of the activity that have structured civil society around the globe. Without various types of lies, humans would be unable to compete against each other in the 21st century version of natural selection that is present in the world today. In order to be successful in life, elaboration and embellishment are necessary on a daily basis. These facades are fragile lies though, that are often disproved and discredited, hence the evolution of defense mechanisms used by us that rely on more deception to gain advantages. This chaotic scene of embellishment and defense mechanisms would make society near impossible if it wasn’t for our susceptibility to common ignorance. All civilizations form under the same beliefs, whether they’re true or not, bringing us to where we are today, a society that relies on the uses of facades, omission and deflection in order to function. With the era of technology, social networking, and mass media, human interaction has become much more frequent and scrutinized; every word that is said is judged instantly. Thus comes the necessity of facades for the sake of survival of the fittest. It is natural human instinct to go for the “fittest mate,” and in this day and age, that doesn’t mean most physically able. Character is a factor, and self-presentation, multiple different things that don’t come naturally to everyone, but anyone can put on a façade and present themselves as whatever they so please. The social advantage of