A white lie is a lie that we tell to hide something for the good of the person we're lying to. Some say: "There's no excuse, a white lie is still a lie and he or she who uses them is a L-I-A-R, liar!" , but, are they really bad?
The most obvious example of a white lie, more or less, could be Santa Claus or the Three Wise Men. Why do parents tell their children that an old bearded man enters their house at night to leave some presents for them? Is there any specific reason to say that? It does sound a bit weird but for children it's a fantasy, something to hold on to and to dream about. They do believe that Santa exists, that he brings presents to all children around the world. There is a magical element here, but magic is a little bit of a white lie, too, to explain what escapes science and our reasoning.
Another really famous white lie is the answer to this question: Mom/Dad, where do babies come from? ... Needless to say. No matter what answer you give that little child, it is most likely going to be a lie. This includes all those questions that children make and are not considered mature enough to know the truth of. But why? They will have to know the truth soon or later. Are we protecting the children? No, we're protecting ourselves, because we fear those questions and society has made us think that they're not appropiate.
We also use white lies when we want to skip from doing housework, when we want to calm a really angry parent/friend down... We always use them but, is that good?
As I see it, they're not right, but neither are wrong. I mean, if you told those excited children the day before Christmas that Santa doesn't exists, that the parents are the ones who put the presents under the Christmas tree, the normal thing is that they would instantly start crying. Truth can be really hurtful. If a white lie has the power to hide the truth without it having consequences or doing wrong to anyone, it's sort of a quick escape to those bad situations. But the more we escape from them, the more obvious the answers will get and, therefore, the existence of the lie.
Even when white lies seem good, they're not always like that. Would I go up to a kid in the street and tell him the truth about Santa? No, I'm not into public drama. Also, when I remember the warm feeling I got at Christmas morning when I was a little child, I think that it's an illusion worth lying for. But other than that, white lies aren't good. In many situations lying is not the only way out. Truth can be less hurtful if we know how to choose the right words.
To sum up, I believe that white lies are really extended in our society and that, althought we say we don't like to lie because lying is bad, we do it and will do it anyways. Some white lies are better than others, but if we analyse them we see that they are just a way of protecting ourselves and the ones we care about (and not always).
No comments:
Post a Comment