How to Lie 101
I figured out I’m a pretty good liar. No, I am not a pathological liar. But I’ll lie if I have to. At 3am one
sleepless night, I figuring out my lying into three steps:
Step 1: Root the lie in some truth.
I once met this girl who said she was good at figuring out when someone is lying. I decided to put that to the test. She was from Canada, and so some conversations later, I made up a lie that my dad studied at the University of Toronto and that I was born there. I even said Toronto the Canadian way to really get the bit across. I said my dad studied electrical engineering there for his masters. True, my dad did receive a masters in electrical engineering but that was in Michigan, not Canada. Still, changing a few locations is easier than making up a complete lie. I said I had both Canadian and American passports. I do have two passports, just not a Canadian one. If half of what you’re saying is the truth, then you're only half lying which is a lot easier to get away with. She was indeed not good at figuring out when someone is lying.
Step 2: It’s all about the act.
Easier said than done. Everyone has their habits when they lie; mine is touching my hair, ear or necklace. I recall playing a game called BS— what it stands for, I can’t say in the essay. The rules of the game are as follows: players go in a circle putting down a card that is of one more value than the previous card. Say the person before me supposedly places down a three. I would have to place down a four. If I don’t have any, I could put down another card, and the other players wouldn’t know. However, if they are suspicious that I don’t have the right card, they can call BS, and I would take all the cards in the deck back.
I rarely get called BS. I pretend I’m distracted, and I’ll ask what number we’re on. That’s already the first lie. I already know the number. Then I pretend to get all excited and put down a card. That’s the second lie. I am not excited, I actually hate this game. The third lie is probably my card. I don’t have great luck, so I always have to pay false cards.
Apparently I’ve become so comfortable in lying where I could do the opposite. If another player calls BS on you even though you have the right card, they have to take the pile. My favorite thing is to trick the other player into thinking I’m lying— albeit by lying some more. I became a hesitant player. That’s the first lie. I’m confident either way because there’s nothing for me to lose. After placing the card down, I draw a look of satisfaction across my face, like I got away with it. And that’s next. I didn’t get away with anything, and my play was completely legal. They call BS on me, and I turn over my card. Their loss.
Step 3: Believe in the lie.
It’s hard to lie if you know it’s completely false. Lie to yourself for a bit and pretend what you’re saying is true. That’s also how you get step 2 across. I can’t recall a particular time, and I wish I could. But, this step is more of a feeling. I realize I have to trust myself when I lie— trust myself not to get caught at least.
Again, I am not a pathological liar, and I don’t lie to take advantage of anyone. However, the skill does come in hand when playing games like BS or challenging other people’s lie detection skills. Maybe I lied here somewhere too.
TO THE READERS:
I feel like I lack a lot of reflection but I'm pretty much at my word limit. Any suggestions?
Howdy,
ReplyDeleteKinda typing as I read, but so far, I love the structure. Small note, but the 'At 3am... three steps' sentence feels like you had one thing written and then changed it? Anyways, I really like the narrative in step 1, and if it pays off in the end with reflection. For step 2, this section is really long. Not that I didn't enjoy the content, but if you're looking for stuff to cut down, this is probably where you should look. I think especially in the more narrative playing-out of the 'apparently I've... their loss' paragraph, there's room for shortening. Also, the explanation of the game takes a while, and if you could make that shorter, it would give you a lot more words. I'm also lacking reflection here, and I think you could probably go into whatever personal stuff you can extract from this like if you're good at seeing others' lies and if so, why, or if you ever feel bad for lying even in a game, or other stuff like that. For step 3, I think this is the section that's the closest to feeling like a good melding of narrative/instructional structure/personal reflection, so I would give it more space to develop, and use it to go into the conclusion better.
Overall, I like the essay.
Hey Sarisa. Pretty interesting piece of writing you have here. It's also kind of scary, but in an intriguing way that makes me want to read more. I like the personal examples you use here as they really draw the reader in; your opening story about the Canadian is great, whether it is true or not. In regard to your comment about reflection, I feel like your story about BS could largely be shortened. Unless you feel it's highly necessary, you may not need to spend that much time explaining the rules of the game. If you cut that out, you could have an entirely separate paragraph diving into why you feel comfortable lying or what you get out of it. Your conclusion is very sparse and sudden. A transition discussing some aspect of reflection could help as well. I think you have an enlightening humorous piece to build off here; I look forward to reading the final product. Great job!
ReplyDeleteI love the flow and structure you chose. It feels appropriately informal, like I'm reading your inner monologue, and I love bits of humor. I agree that there is more room for the reflection, and my advice (as someone who's chronically over the word count) is to shorten the examples. Maybe on the first step specifically, you can shorten your example just enough to still get your point across. And as much as I like your commentary on the card game, you can probably cut a a few of your comments that reiterate something, or add little. I definitely think its worth shortening to allow further exploration of your reflection. How has this confidence in lying affected you? Do you lie frequently because you can get away with it? Do you find yourself lying about small things for no reason? Do you feel bad? Or do you feel less guilty the more you do it? I think this strain of reflection could really add an interesting layer of nuance. Overall, I really like this essay, and good work!!
ReplyDeleteHi Sarisa,
ReplyDeleteI like your essay on how to lie. The example you give in the first two steps are good and help explain what you are trying to say. I have had a similar experience playing BS, so I can say that the acting method works. I think that you can cut down on the explanation of BS in the second step, or tell people to google the roles. At the end you should give a reflection or example of a time you combined all three steps. Overall, this is a good essay!
Hi Sarisa! I really enjoyed reading this blog. I definitely took some mental notes, especially about the BS game. I also like the format of your essay and how you broke it down into three steps. If you are looking to cut down on a part of your essay and make room for a reflection, I think you can cut down on the BS explanation. For your reflection, maybe talk about why people lie and if it has really helped you in serious instances. You could also talk about if you ever feel guilty when lying. Overall, really good job!
ReplyDelete