It Starts with a Lie

It’s 1941.

Wilhelm and his family live in a small two-story house in a German town.

There is a knock at the door. Willhelm opens it and sees two Nazi soldiers standing across from him. They demand to know if any Jews have sought refuge within his house.

Wilhelm breaks out in a sweat.

What should he do?

Should he lie and deny the fact that a young family had been hiding in the attic for the past months, or should he tell the truth and turn them in to be sent to concentration camps?

Let’s take a look at what a lie is and return to the scenario described above at the end of this essay.

We all lie. We have lied in the past, and we will lie in the future. Despite this, most of us probably grew up being told by our parents not to lie.

But what exactly is a lie, and should we really not do it?

When I lie, I am willfully communicating through words or actions a message that does not accurately depict my perception of reality with the intent of deceiving someone. Essentially, there is something that must be covered up and so I attempt to construct an alternative storyline to avoid the consequences of something I (or someone else) did or said.

To me, this appears to be a problem at a very basic level since the truth seems to be inherently valuable (read more on that here). However, even if I take an entirely self-interested approach and simply ask the question, “What is best for me?” lying does not seem to pay off.

When we lie, we take a loan from our future selves that must be paid back with interest. We do not evade the consequences of specific actions; we simply delay them. And once a lie is told, it must be upheld. We quickly go from liars in speech to liars in deed by acting like it is the truth. Over time, we dig ourselves deeper and deeper into a hole from which it seems impossible to escape. The consequences we face can grow as time passes, like a snowball rolling downhill. It starts with one lie and quickly turns into a whole façade of lies.

So, if we catch ourselves lying, the quicker we can admit guilt and set things straight, the better.

Now, I think if we aspire to be upright and honorable, then lying is certainly not a good thing, but is lying always wrong, or are there times when it is permissible or possibly even a good thing?

Let’s return to the opening lines of this essay. Can Wilhelm save the family he is hiding and do so without lying, or must he value their lives over telling the truth to do what is right?

Here is my thought process: No statement or action is done in a vacuum. There is always context - a real-world setting within which they are placed. Wilhelm would have known the political state of 1940s Germany and would have been well aware of the fate that awaited the Jewish family if he were to turn them in. Now, the soldier at the door is asking, “Do you have Jews hiding in your house?” but if we place that in the context of the historical setting, a more accurate formulation of his question would be, “Are you hiding any people of an inferior race who are lesser humans and must be exterminated.”

What is the only honest response to that question? – Undoubtedly, no.

In conclusion, there is one more question I would like to address: Can I live in a way that I do not want to, nor need to lie? I believe so…by only doing that which is upright and honorable, by saying only what I mean and exhibiting only behavior I am willing to stand up for. And above all, I must remain humble, admit when I make a mistake, and be prepared to take ownership of my mistakes.

Finally, some take-home questions for you, my dear readers:

• What if I decide that there are times in which it is appropriate to lie? What cause could be so good and just and righteous that it is worth distorting reality?

• Does the end ever justify the means of lying?

Author’s note: This, as well as many other topics I write about on this blog, are much too intricate to deal with in a short essay that comprehensively deals with all aspects. Additionally, these are simply my thoughts that I am sharing. There may very well be logical fallacies or errors in them. The goal of these writings is to share what I think to help others think so they can share it back with me. These writings are intended to be conversation starters, not inalterable claims of absolutes.

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