Review: Tell the Truth – or, at least, Don’t Lie

Leviticus 19:11 ‘Do not steal. Do not lie. Do not deceive one another.

Continuing our Chapter-by-Chapter review of Dr. Jordan Peterson’s book, 12 Rules of Life – An Antidote to Chaos, we move into a simple truth – known by ethics, philosophies, and religions throughout the all the world and through all time – Thou Shalt not Lie.

It is interesting that Dr. Peterson should take on such a simple Rule. A Rule that is so concrete, so bedrock, that it is one of the Original (capital ‘O’ here) Ten Rules: Thou Shalt not Lie. Why would a deep dive into philosophy need to address lying? We all know that lying is bad, if not precisely where begins a ‘bad’ lie and where ends the daily lubrication of social niceties – No that dress doesn’t make you look fat. Yes I am doing fine, thank you for asking. etc etc. We also already know that despite it being bad to lie, humanity has such a difficulty with it. It has remained, throughout all of the human experience, the single most pervasive act of destruction: The first thing that happened after God created the universe and called it ‘Good’ – the first lie raised its reptilian head and the fruit was eaten. Adam consciously sinned, but only after Eve was deceived.

And that brings us to why a list of ‘Rules’ – exploratory essays really – MUST include a direct confrontation of lying. Precisely because it is so concretely rooted in humanity – we know it’s bad, it’s been killing us since existence began, but we just.can’t.stop. So what is it about lying that makes it so hard to quit?

Well…there are bad people, bad actors, malicious souls, tyrants and thieves who consciously use lying for their own ends. Of course, THAT lying is identifiable (when discovered) and we all agree it’s bad – despite its continued existence. But… I would suggest that those people are not reading this book. Or if they are it is simply to hone their understanding of good-hearted people so as to better manipulate them. Dr. Peterson is not writing to that audience.

What about good-hearted people?

Despite the occasional slip-up, surely ‘we’ aren’t guilty of lying? In the last chapter, Rule #7: Pursue what is meaningful (not what is expedient), Dr. Peterson attempts to direct our efforts to a life of worthwhile meaning, whatever that might mean to us. Here, He is attempting to refine our ability to define what is meaningful. Yes, we come at life from different angles and perspectives, different lived experiences. That would naturally lead us to different directions of ‘meaning’. All well and good – until the lying, the deception creeps in. Dr. Peterson is trying to draw our attention to the biggest victim of our lying, ourselves. And the biggest lie – the lies that distort reality. The lies that tell us that our vision of the world is correct, that our perception of what is horribly wrong is ‘right on track’, that if only the world could be shaped into our utopian vision – then all would be right, despite what damage is accepted along the way.

Lying (Deception) is a way to shape reality-

I was talking to my wife about the difference between fiction and non-fiction the other day, not in any way related to this book and chapter. I made the comment that I didn’t read fiction very often because it is a fantasy, ‘just an escape’, a false reality to hide in for a time. My wife who, despite being very intelligent and with just as many life ‘credentials’ as me, is not an ‘intellectual’, in a stereotypical way. This isn’t an insult! She is practical and down to earth. She doesn’t really sink deep into philosophical/ethical conversations except when I drag her there. But her response grounded me, especially in light of this chapter “How is that (fiction) different than non-fiction? The non-fiction author is describing the world (of the non-fiction topic) as they see it, but it surely is as big of fantasy as any fiction. They only see their small part of it, which we all know is so small a part that it might as well be high fantasy.” She was right. So incredibly right. It is one of the primary reasons I don’t get too worked up about past injustices – we can’t even agree on the interpretation of current events that happen right in front of our eyes (watch Fox News and MSBN report on the same event for a ‘right now’ example….) How can we hope to understand what happened 200 years ago based on the diary or account of one person’s diary or letter home? Yes, we should attempt to learn the lessons of the past – but…do we really know the past? Who’s lesson are we to draw from?Dr. Peterson might agree.

Our perception of the world is a fantasy – a story used to make sense of what little information and ‘facts’ we have to stitch together… and that is precious little. It is…fiction. Our understanding of history, of current affairs, of our own ideals, and how to achieve those ideals. Whether our own values and ideals are actually even attainable or ‘valuable’ for everybody… or anybody.

So what is deception?

It is an attempt to shape reality to bend another person’s ‘fiction story’ to fit and align with our own ‘fiction story’, almost exclusively for our own benefit. After all, I have deceived myself into thinking that this way is ‘right’ and will lead to a good outcome for everybody (especially ‘me’).

Relativism?

So is Dr. Peterson making an argument for relativism? That there is no objective truth? Absolutely not. He is making the argument that wherever ‘objective truth’ lives, wherever and whatever is actually true – it, by definition, can not hope to be found with deception, of yourself by yourself. That if goodness, and truth is good, is ever to be found or approached then no part of deception can be associated with it. If Life is suffering, and suffering is bad – if meaning is to be obtained through the reduction of suffering by aiming at the good – then lying, and the arrogance that to lying must be rejected and rooted out in all its forms.

Simple ethic: Thou Shalt not Lie.

What is simple, is not always easy.

Rule #9 Assume that the Person you are listening to might know something you don’t —>