Mahon Lies

8/12/2019 Mahon Lies

1/23

J. E. Mahon

Washington and Lee University


2/23

Deceive is a success verb Lie is not a success verb To lie is not to deceive

Question: s to lie to atte!"t to deceive#


3/23

$na %alse state!ent !ade &ith the intention to deceive '() vito !a*e a %alse state!ent &iththe intention to deceive+ ,-ha!bers Dictionary $,intr to s"ea* untruth%ully &ith intent to !islead or deceive '() nan untrue or dece"tive

state!ent deliberately used to !islead+ ,Ti!es English Dictionary $n. a %alse state!ent !ade &ith deliberate intent to deceive '() v.i.to s"ea* %alsely or utter

untruth *no&ingly0 as &ith intent to deceive+ ,1ando! 2ouse Dictionary $vto say so!ething &hich is not true in order to deceive+ ,-a!bridge nternational Dictionary

o% English $. an intentionally %alse state!ent '() used &ith re%erence to a situation involving dece"tion or

%ounded on a !ista*en i!"ression+ ,34%ord 5!erican Dictionary $To utter %alsehood &ith an intention to deceive0 or &ith an i!!oral design+ ,5!erican

Dictionary $a %alse state!ent !ade &ith intent to deceive+ ,34%ord English Dictionary $n. 5 %alse state!ent deliberately "resented as being true6 a %alsehood '() 7o!ething !eant to

deceive or give the &rong i!"ression. '() To "resent %alse in%or!ation &ith the intention o%deceiving.+ ,5!erican 2eritage Dictionary


4/23

$The 5!erican 2eritage Dictionaryde%ines bald8%aced lie as an undisguised lie. % lying re9uiresan intention to deceive0 then lies !ust bedisguised. % lying re9uires an intent to deceive0

then lies !ust be disguised. '() Thus the %irst!ystery about bald8%aced lies is se!antic: Whyisnt bald8%aced lie a contradiction in ter!s#Why0 instead0 is the bald8%aced lie the !ostobvious *ind o% lie#+

8 7orensen0 $ald8;aced Lies< Lying Without thentent to Deceive+0 =aci%ic =hiloso"hical Quarterly>> ,?@@A: ?B?


5/23

% $a bald8%aced lie+ !eans lie &ithoutintention to deceive0 then it contradictsDictionarys o&n de%inition o% $lie+

Dictionary de%ines $bold8%aced+ as$!"rudent6 braCen+0 and gives as e4a!"le $abold8%aced lie+

$a bold8%aced lie+ is notone &ithout intention

to deceive s there any di%%erence bet&een $a bald8%aced

lie+ and $a bold8%aced lie+#


6/23

$ 2o& !any soldiers have you ad!ittedtoday# as* a doctor.

There are no soldiers here0 the doctor says.

ut they are &earing uni%or!s# see no uni%or!s0 he says0 and "ushes !e

out. ou !ust go no&0 do you hear#+ 7eierstad0 5 2undred and 3ne Days: 5

aghdad Journal0 trans. ngrid-hristo"hersen. ,F: asic oo*s0 ?@@G: ?H?


7/23

$3nce &hen the "ianist 5nton 1ubinstein&as "racticing0 the tele"hone rang

inconveniently. 2is servant ;ranIois "ic*edu" the "hone and re"orted to the %e!alecaller that the !aestro &as not ho!e. 7heobected $ut hear hi! "laying.+ $ou are

!ista*en0 Mada!e+ insisted ;ranIois $ a!dusting the "iano *eys+.+ ,?BG


8/23

$;or e4a!"le0 the &ords 7he is not at ho!e0delivered by a servant or relative at the door0have beco!e a !ere eu"he!is! %orindis"osition or disinclination. 7ince the authoro% the !essage *no&s that the reci"ient &ill

inter"ret it as a "olite &ay o% saying0 t isinconvenient %or !e to see you no&0 there is nointention o% !a*ing hi! believe so!ething thatshe ,the author does not believe( a "olite lie iso%ten no lie at all.+

5rnold senberg0 $Deontology and the ethics o%lying+0 =hiloso"hy and =heno!enological1esearch?K ,HK: KAG.


9/23

$3ne !orning0 a young !an is leaving his %ather8in8la&s chic*en coo"carrying t&o hens &hose nec*s he has ust &rung. 2e has been stealing%ro! his %ather8in8la&s coo" %or several !onths. This !orning his%ather8in8la& is &aiting outside &ith a shot gun. There is ane!barrassed silence0 and then the young %ello& says0 &as chec*ing tosee ho& things &ere in the coo" and %ound these t&o hens0 theyre still&ar!. My co!ing by !ust have %rightened the thie% a&ay.

7ince it is B a.!. and the son8in8la& lives t&o !iles a&ay0 the old!an sees through the story. 2e *no&s his son8in8la& is a chic*en thie%.ut does the young !an *no& that he has been %ound out# Well yes0 he*no&s his %ather8in8la& is too s!art to %all %or his sha*y story. ut theold !an0 %or the sa*e o% %a!ily unity0 is going to "retend not to *no&.5nd the son8in8la& is able to recogniCe this. ut does the old !an *no&that his son8in8la& realiCes that he has seen through his story# es0 hecan tell %ro! the young !ans !anner. 5nd does the son8in8la& see

that his %ather8in8la& not only sees through his alibi but also sees thatthe son8in8la& is going to try to $%ace it out+ even though he has beencaught# 5gain yes.+

Ja!es -argile0 $5 Fote 3n $terated Nno&ings+0 5nalysisG@ ,A@: BK.


10/23

$ &as chec*ing to see ho& things &ere inthe coo" and %ound these t&o hens0 theyre

still &ar!. My co!ing by !ust have%rightened the thie% a&ay.+

$! glad you %rightened hi! a&ay. 2e

"robably &ont be bac* here again.+


11/23

$ hated the stu%%iness involved in su""osing thats"ace and ti!e &ere only in !y !ind0 li*ed thestarry heavens even better than the !oral la&0and could not bear Nants vie& that the one

li*ed best &as only a subective %ig!ent. n the%irst e4uberance o% liberation0 beca!e a naOverealist0 and reoiced in the thought that grass isreally green0 in s"ite o% the adverse o"inions o%

all "hiloso"hers %ro! Loc*e on&ards.+ ertrand 1ussell0 My =hiloso"hical Develo"!ent

,London: 5llen P Un&in0 B: H8?.


12/23

$7o &hen &as seventeen &e understood that&e &ere not %ree0 that &e lived in danger. learned ho& to behave li*e a good ra9i inother &ords0 to lie. 5l&ays and every&here0 have been a liar ever since. ( The tyrant hasgone and need lie no longer. ut %or thirtyyears have lived under the s*in o% a liar.Fo& !ust %ree !ysel%.+

7eierstad ,?@@G: G@H 'date &rong in te4t)


13/23

$E4a!"le : 5n elected o%%icial says at a "resscon%erence0 $3ur "olicies have i!"roved the9uality o% li%e %or all citiCens.+

E4a!"le ?: 5 cor"orate accountantaddressing a "ublic in9uiry says0 $ had no*no&ledge o% %iscal i!"ro"rieties &ithin ourco!"any.++

Ti! Nenyon0 $-ynical 5ssertion: -onvention0=rag!atics0 and 7aying $Uncle++0 5!erican=hiloso"hical QuarterlyK@ ,?@@G: ?K?.


14/23

Let us i!agine that there is so!e co!"any in des"eratestraits that cannot be bailed out by the govern!ent i% ittrans"ires that the accountants in the co!"any carried outany %iscal i!"ro"rieties. !agine that everyone all "artiesinvolved and the general "ublic *no&s that the accountantsin the co!"any did indeed carry out %iscal i!"ro"rieties.

2o&ever0 i!agine that everyone &ants this co!"any to bebailed out by the govern!ent in s"ite o% this. !agine thatthe only &ay to do this is %or the accountants to !a*euntruth%ul state!ents li*e $ had no *no&ledge o% %iscali!"ro"rieties &ithin our co!"any+ be%ore a "ublic in9uiry0&ithout any intention to be believed0 and %or the "eo"leconducting the in9uiry0 and the rest o% the "ublic0 to si!"ly

say nothing. Nenyon does say that $7uch s"ea*ers are reallyust $going through the !otions++. Nenyon ,?@@G: ?K?.


15/23

$7u""ose that &itness a cri!e and clearly see that a"articular individual co!!itted the cri!e. Later0 thesa!e "erson is accused o% the cri!e and0 as a &itnessin court0 a! as*ed &hether or not sa& the de%endantco!!it the cri!e. !a*e the %alse state!ent that didnot see the de%endant co!!it the cri!e0 %or %ear o%

being har!ed or *illed by hi!. t does not necessarily%ollo& that intend that !y %alse state!ents deceiveanyone. , !ight ho"e that no one believes !ytesti!ony and that he is convicted in s"ite o% it. '() do not intend to deceive the ury in this case0 but itsee!s clear that !y %alse testi!ony &ould constitute a

lie.+ Tho!as L. -arson0 $The De%inition o% Lying+0 FosK@

,?@@H: ?>.


16/23

$a college Dean( has a %ir!0 but uno%%icial0 "olicy o% neveru"holding a "ro%essors charge that a student cheated on an e4a!unless the student con%esses in &riting to having cheated. The Deanis very cynical about this and believes that students are guilty&heneverthey are charged. 5 student is caught in the act o%cheating on an e4a! by co"ying %ro! a crib sheet. The "ro%essor%ails the student %or the course and the student a""eals the

"ro%essors decision to the Dean &ho has the ulti!ate authority toassign the grade. The student is "rivy to in%or!ation about theDeans de %acto"olicy and0 &hen called be%ore the Dean0 he ,thestudent a%%ir!s that he didnt cheat on the e4a!. 2e clai!s that he&as not co"ying %ro! the co"y sheet. 2e clai!s that he inadvertently%orgot to "ut his $revie& sheet+ a&ay &hen the e4a! began and thathe never loo*ed at it during the e4a!. The student says this on therecord in an o%%icial "roceeding and thereby &arrants the truth o% thestate!ents he *no&s to be %alse. 2e intends to avoid "unish!ent bydoing this. 2e !ay have no intention o% deceiving the Dean that hedidnt cheat.+

-arson ,?@@H: ?@.


17/23

7orensen de%ines lying as %ollo&s:

$Lying is ust asserting &hat one does notbelieve.+ ,?BH

This de%inition stands in need o% a de%initiono% assertion.


18/23

$L lies to DR d%.There is a "ro"osition "such that ,ieither Lbelieves that "is not true or Lbelieves that "is%alse and ,ii Lasserts "to D.+

The de%inition o% assertion that -hishol! and ;eehan

"rovide is as %ollo&s: $L asserts " to DR d%.Lstates "to Dand does so under

conditions &hich0 he believes0 usti%y Din believing thathe0 L0 not only acce"ts "0 but also intends to contributecausally to Ds believing that he0 L0 acce"ts ".+

1oderic* M. -hishol! and Tho!as D. ;eehan0 $Thentent to Deceive0+Journal o% =hiloso"hy0 AK ,AA:B?.


19/23

$5 "erson lies &hen he asserts a "ro"osition hebelieves to be %alse.+

$to assert Sis to utter Sin a conte4t such that

the utterance is intended to cause belie%+

$To !a*e an assertion is to give an assurancethat the state!ent is true.+

-harles ;ried0 1ight and Wrong,-a!bridge0Mass.: 2arvard University =ress0 A>: BB8A.


20/23

$5ll assertions !ust at least have narro& "lausibility0because &e need to %igure out &hat the s"ea*er!eans. What &ould it be li*e %or the assertor to bes"ea*ing %ro! *no&ledge# 3nce &e have the!eaning o% the assertion in the %oreground0 &e cantest it against our bac*ground *no&ledge and against%uture evidence.

To 9uali%y as an assertion0 a lie !ust have narro&"lausibility. Thus0 so!eone &ho only had access tothe assertion !ight believe it. This is the grain o%truth behind Lying re9uires the intention to deceive.

ald8%aced lies sho& that assertions do not need to!eet a re9uire!ent o% &ide "lausibility0 that is0credibility relative to ones total evidence.+ ,?BB


21/23

$Much o% &hat &e say does not constituteassertion. We signal lac* o% assertive %orce by clear%alsity ,as &ith !eta"hor or by i!"lausibility.When there is doubt about &hether &e areasserting0 &e can clari%y the illocutionary %orce o%the re!ar*: $ a! not *idding+0 $ &as describingthe conse9uences0 not threatening+0 and byado"ting a straight %ace and sober tone to evincesincerity.

ald8%aced liars &ill clari%y the assertive statuso% their re!ar*s. '() There &ill be no nod or &in*to sho& that this is a ga!e. '() 3nly assertion &illdo the tric*.+ ,?BH


22/23

$5 utters a sentence $7+0 &here $7+ !eansthat =0 in doing &hich either he e4"resses

his belie% that =0 or he intends the "ersonaddressed to ta*e it that he believes that =.+ ernard Willia!s0 Truth and Truth%ulness:

5n Essay in enealogy,=rinceton0 FJ:=rinceton University =ress0 ?@@?: H.


23/23

Lie R d%.$conscious e4"ression o% other than &hat &ebelieve.+

Warren 7hibles0 Lying: 5 -ritical 5nalysis,White&ater0W: The Language =ress0 >B: GG.

7hibless de%inition allo&s %or lying to absolutely no one. -an !a*e an assertion0 according to 7orensensaccount o% assertion0 to no one ,not even to !ysel%#

% so0 then !ay lie to no one ,not even onesel%.2o&ever0 surely one !ay not lie to no one ,not evenonesel%.

% not0 then &hy not# What does it !ean to !a*e anassertion to a "erson0 as o""osed to ,!erely !a*ing astate!ent to a "erson#

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Mahon Lies