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Prompt:
“A little inaccuracy saves a world of explanation.” - C.E.Ayers

Assignment:
Is it always essential to tell the truth, or are there circumstances in which it is better to lie? Plan your response, and then write an essay...


In the current social context, lying is always being perceived as a form of dishonesty, which is not supposed for one to uphold it as a value. It is against one’s faith and it affects your integrity as a person, causing a possible abasement for your status. To counteract that, good virtues of being truthful and honest should be cultivated and prioritized in our lies.  However, I do concede to the point sparked by C. E. Ayers, which sometimes the little deviation from the truth is practicable, as it helps to prevent some unnecessary troubles.

Basically, there are two purposes of lying, which is lying with an evil motive and lying with a good intention, or more commonly called as “white lies”. Unquestionably, one should always abstain oneself from cheating, as it involves gains for one party in the sacrifice of another party’s benefit, such as swindling other’s money. This form of lying is definitely undesirable, as it harms people in order to satiate one’s desire. In contrast, telling white lies are permissible, as it is done out of good intention, which is to prevent the opposite party from being hurt by some facts and most importantly, it does not strip off the rights or benefits of others. Although it is true that the line defining what is good and bad for the other party is vague and subjective, it is undeniable that white lies are told out of good will.

Considering the scenario when a kid who is just hampered by the poor result he obtained, it would definitely inappropriate for one to be forthright, in commenting his bad results. This truthfulness is hurtful to the little kids and it might disrupt his confidence level, which makes him to lose faith in doing things. A white lie, such as “you’re doing pretty well, just that you need to put in little more effort” would definitely have a different effect from the previous case. This swerving comment would act as a encouraging booster, which helps him to re-build his confidence, and thus makes him to do better next time.

In a nutshell, I would say depending on circumstances, sometimes it is better for one to lie. As long as it does not affect one’s integrity and responsibility in certain fields, it is occasionally alright for one to lie, out of the good will. However, this white lie concept should not be applied in the areas or profession where slight deviation from truth is not allowed. For instance, in the lawsuit, one should never allow her emotion to supersede the rationale in telling truth, as that would disrupt the impartiality in maintaining the real justice.

Time spent: 33 minutes.
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1 Response
  1. Anonymous Says:

    awesome essay


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