Analysis Of Yudhijit Bhattacharjee's Why We Lie

“Liar, liar pants on fire.” We all know that particular nursery rhyme adults told to kids so they would not lie. Yet, as one gets older the lying grew and occurred more easily. The lies could have been told to spare another person’s feeling, or maybe it was to impress one’s peers. Regardless, about what is being lied about, most do not stop to think about the actual mechanics as to why the lie is said or why it even occurred. These questions have both intrigued and baffled scientist to such extent that many experiments as well as studies have been performed to achieve a deeper understanding of lying. Through, Yudhijit Bhattacharjee’s article “Why We Lie” in June 2017 from National Geographic, he gives a thorough explanation of the finding through the effective usage of ethos …show more content…
For example, he referenced Dan Ariely, a physicist at Duke University, experiment where the results showed the extent of the lie is determined by “ social norms arrived at through unspoken consensus “(40). One can infer that Ariely is a professional that is respected and knowledgeable in his field of study. Therefore, such statements demonstrate that their is an innate desire in people to be considered an honest individual due to social value. Another source that Bhattacharjee incorporates is Robert Feldman, a psychologist from University of Massachusetts, who states that “People are not expecting lies, people are not searching for lies” (43). Hence, there is this paradoxical relation between being adept at lying and the almost gullible level of trust that people have towards each other. Bhattacharjee implements these various sources and opinion to fortify what he is trying to inform the reader about: the depth in which lying works as it is affect by biology and expectation of