Andrew Krell
English 1001
Professor Young
February 2, 2016
Nothing But the Whole Truth?
Lying in general is considered a sinful thing, and for good reason. Dishonesty can lead to bad results for either the liar or their victim. However, there are certain circumstances when lying is okay. For instance, it would be okay to lie to protect yourself or someone from bodily harm. If a violent or powerful person asked a question, and telling the truth may lead to someone getting hurt, you would be obligated to lie and protect yourself or the potential victim. An example of this was the pre-civil war slaves who would tell any lie in order to survive. In “The Good Lord Bird”, the main character, Onion, lies on many occasions because like other slaves, he said whatever he thought his master or any white man wanted him to say. Onion even crossdresses for several years while staying with John Brown’s army because he is afraid to contradict John Brown who mistakes his real name, “Henry” for “Henrietta”. Onion believed his life would be easier and safer as a girl, since there was a bounty on him as a boy. Not to mention, if he was a girl, no one would make him fight. I also believe it is okay to lie to them if it means protecting a child’s innocence. For instance, perpetuating a myth like Santa Claus. It is a harmless lie that protects the innocence as a child. How about telling a lie to protect a person from the cruelties of life? Is lying a bad thing if no one is harmed and in fact someone is benefitting from “stretching the truth”? While telling the truth is always the best policy, there are times when a lie is the kinder, better route.
Thank you for your post Andrew.
ReplyDeleteDid Onion only lie to white people? Is the only reason he doesn't tell John Brown he's a man is to avoid contradicting him? What could be deeper reasons?
What specific reasons does Onion give for not revealing he's a boy? Overall, what is your argument? Are you saying that it's okay to lie when it's harmless and to protect others? If so, in what ways can you make this clearer?
Prof. Young