Why We Lie

I chose to read Why We Lie by David Livingstone Smith because I have always been interested in how the human mind works and why we do certain things. The title of the book explains what it's about: why humans and even animals lie. We are natural born liars, whether we choose to be or not. In order for us to be successful, we often have to be deceptive. Even the way we dress is a form of deception. We try to teach children not to lie, but instead we teach them to lie in a socially acceptable manner. As we grow older, socially appropriate lying becomes mandatory. Those who fail to do this often face disapproval, punishment, and social ostracism. Not only do we lie in business and war, but also to the people closest to us. The most interesting point Smith brings up is we have adapted to deceive ourselves. Our mind literally conceals information from us. We lie regularly, often without realizing it. Some surprising research revealed that people who are depressed have a better grasp of reality than those who are considered “normal”. Scientists have also taken a look at how animals lie to prove that deceit is natural. Some forms of deception that animals use are mind reading, the use of poker-faces, mimicry, lie detection, and confusion.

So far, the book is a little dull. The first three chapters are mostly about how animals are deceptive in the wild in order to be successful. While reading, I have to admit I was impressed on how certain traits can make a big difference. However, I didn't choose this book to learn about why animals lie. I want to know why we as humans lie. I can see why though Smith has to go as far back as the Stone Age to explain. There is more science behind this than we thought. What I’ve learned so far has been very interesting having to deal with the human mind. The fact that depressed people have a better grasp of reality completely surprised me. I feel as if I’ve been lying to myself on how I view things my entire life. Are we stuck in a day-dream or some sort of fantasy that we have created for ourselves in our head? Is it possible for us to lie less?