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1、Unit 3 LyingText A The Truth About Lying1. Ive been wanting to write on a subject that intrigues and challenges me: the subject of lying. Ive found it very difficult to do. Everyone Ive talked to has a quite intense and personal but often rather intolerant point of view about what we can and can nev
2、er never tell lies about. Ive finally reached the conclusion that I cant present any ultimate conclusions, for too many people would promptly disagree. Instead, Id like to present a series of moral puzzles, all concerned with lying. Ill tell you what I think about them. Do you agree?Social Lies2. Mo
3、st of the people Ive talked with say that they find social lying acceptable and necessary. They think its the civilized way for folks to behave. Without these little white lies, they say, our relationships would be short and brutish and nasty. Its arrogant, they say, to insist on being so incorrupti
4、ble and so brave that you cause other people unnecessary embarrassment or pain by compulsively assailing them with your honesty. I basically agree. What about you?3. Will you say to people, when it simply isnt true, “I like your new hairdo,“ “Youre looking much better,“ “its so nice to see you,“ “I
5、had a wonderful time“?4. Will you praise hideous presents and homely kids?5. Will you decline invitations with “Were busy that night so sorry we cant come,“ when the truth is youd rather stay home than dine with the So-and-sos?6. And even though, as I do, you may prefer the polite evasion of “You re
6、ally cooked up a storm “instead of “The soup“ which tastes like warmed-over coffee “is wonderful,“ will you, if you must, proclaim it wonderful?7. Theres one man I know who absolutely refuses to tell social lies. “I cant play that game,“ he says; “Im simply not made that way.“ And his answer to the
7、argument that saying nice things to someone doesnt cost anything is, “Yes, it does it destroys your credibility.“ Now, he wont, unsolicited, offer his views on the painting you just bought, but you dont ask his frank opinion unless you want frank, and his silence at those moments when the rest of us
8、 liars are muttering, “Isnt it lovely?“ is, for the most part, eloquent enough. My friend does not indulge in what he calls “flattery, false praise and mellifluous comments.“ When others tell fibs he will not go along. He says that social lying is lying, that little white lies are still lies. And he
9、 feels that telling lies is morally wrong. What about you?Peace-Keeping Lies8. Many people tell peace-keeping lies: lies designed to avoid irritation or argument, lies designed to shelter the liar from possible blame or pain; lies (or so it is rationalized) designed to keep trouble at bay without hu
10、rting anyone.9. I tell these lies at times, and yet I always feel theyre wrong. I understand why we tell them, but still they feel wrong. And whenever I lie so that someone wont disapprove of me or think less of me or holler at me, I feel Im a bit of a coward, I feel Im dodging responsibility, I fee
11、l.guilty. What about you?10. Do you, when youre late for a date because you overslept, say that youre late because you got caught in a traffic jam?11. Do you, when you forget to call a friend, say that you called several times but the line was busy?12. Do you, when you didnt remember that it was you
12、r fathers birthday, say that his present must be delayed in the mail?13. And when youre planning a weekend in New York City and youre not in the mood to visit your mother, who lives there, do you conceal with a lie, if you must the fact that youll be in New York? Or do you have the courage or is it
13、the cruelty? to say, “Ill be in New York, but sorry I dont plan on seeing you“?14. (Dave and his wife Elaine have two quite different points of view on this very subject. He calls her a coward. She says shes being wise. He says she must assert her right to visit New York sometimes and not see her mo
14、ther. To which she always patiently replies: “Why should we have useless fights? My mothers too old to change. We get along much better when I lie to her.“)15. Finally, do you keep the peace by telling your husband lies on the subject of money? Do you reduce what you really paid for your shoes? And
15、in general do you find yourself ready, willing and able to lie to him when you make absurd mistakes or lose or break things?16. “I used to have a romantic idea that part of intimacy was confessing every dumb thing that you did to your husband. But after a couple of years of that,“ says Laura, “have
16、I changed my mind!“17. And having changed her mind, she finds herself telling peacekeeping lies. And yes, I tell them too. What about you?Protective Lies18. Protective lies are lies folks tell often quite serious lies because theyre convinced that the truth would be too damaging. They lie because they feel there are certain human values that supersede the wrong of having lied. They lie, not for personal gain, but because they beli
