From my personal observations, it seems very hard for the human brain to live with lies which are not technically lies, and at the same time remain un-damaged in other ways. I have this concept marked as one of the major leading causes of “pretzel-brain”.
The most interesting example I have found so far is of an individual who thinks of himself as always honest—and he maintains this image by never lying at the meta-level. He introduces himself as a liar to all new people he meets, and, if asked directly if a statement he’s made is a lie, he will answer truthfully, to the best of his ability. It’s not technically a lie if people know you’re honest, and can catch you in the act if they try.
I’ve actually noticed the opposite with at least a few people: they don’t like lie-lies, but are fine with NTLs because they’re still “telling the truth”. But those people may have pretzel brains.
For what it’s worth, I see NTLs as a type of lie: the distinction doesn’t seem important.
He’s a generally unusual fellow—if I had to guess, I’d say yes, he takes them to be direct inquiries. At the same time, though, he openly despises conventions, so he may behave inconsistently if any inquiry comes as a result of a convention rather than an honest attempt to get the truth.
I think I do alright at figuring out when a brain’s been pretzel-ed. Trying to figure out the pretzels that form in my brain and the brains of those around me, though being a lot of fun, is not something I am very good at.
From my personal observations, it seems very hard for the human brain to live with lies which are not technically lies, and at the same time remain un-damaged in other ways. I have this concept marked as one of the major leading causes of “pretzel-brain”.
The most interesting example I have found so far is of an individual who thinks of himself as always honest—and he maintains this image by never lying at the meta-level. He introduces himself as a liar to all new people he meets, and, if asked directly if a statement he’s made is a lie, he will answer truthfully, to the best of his ability. It’s not technically a lie if people know you’re honest, and can catch you in the act if they try.
I’ve actually noticed the opposite with at least a few people: they don’t like lie-lies, but are fine with NTLs because they’re still “telling the truth”. But those people may have pretzel brains.
For what it’s worth, I see NTLs as a type of lie: the distinction doesn’t seem important.
Does this individual count conversational conventions along the lines of “Really?” to be direct inquires as to the truthfulness of statements?
I don’t really know.
He’s a generally unusual fellow—if I had to guess, I’d say yes, he takes them to be direct inquiries. At the same time, though, he openly despises conventions, so he may behave inconsistently if any inquiry comes as a result of a convention rather than an honest attempt to get the truth.
I think I do alright at figuring out when a brain’s been pretzel-ed. Trying to figure out the pretzels that form in my brain and the brains of those around me, though being a lot of fun, is not something I am very good at.