Friday, February 6, 2015
Is sugar coating the truth better than being too honest ?
So today in class had me wondering, Why did lying ever become a noble thing to do ? Of course in the context of Plato`s utopian society, lying so everyone could have a purpose made a lot of sense to me at the time. However in modern society why do we prefer to be dishonest than blunt ? In modern day society many times blunt seems to harsh, so one can only teeter on a line of being too honest or not honest enough. When did being too honest become unvirtuous? In my experience sugar-coating does not always end as a best result. So what is a virtuous person left to do when softening up the truth has not worked ? For example, a you and your best friend has just started college . A few weeks have past and you notice she has developed bad habits and she gets into a relationship. The relationship quickly becomes abusive , however your friend is in love and attached to this guy. After several weeks of trying to tell your friend kindly she has been making poor decisions, One day she asks you do you think she is dumb for maintaining the relationship ? Will you be blunt or would you sugar coat the lie ? People often times can misconstrue the truth if it is not told direct and upfront. To me, being too honest seems like a contradiction. It is like saying a person is too virtuous.
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As for you example, I would definitely tell my friend in the bluntest way possible she made a terrible decision. Since she is my friend, I wouldn't hesitate to be blunt with her because she knows I mean well in saying that to her. If it were some random person, however, I would probably sugarcoat it a bit since the person probably wouldn't like being called dumb by a complete stranger.While I do believe honesty is important, I still believe that being too honest can do more harm than good. Some people can't handle the whole truth or don't respond well to negative feedback. While I agree with you that sugarcoating things can prove unfavorable in some instances, in my experience, saying a few choice words instead of being completely honest can spare quite a few people's feelings.
ReplyDeleteMost everyone will agree that being honest is always the right thing to do, but the way you express the truth can vary depending on the circumstances. That doesn't necessarily mean sugar coating or being too blunt is unjust, because you are still being just by being honest and telling the truth.
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