The truth about lies The illusion of honesty and the evolution of deceit
Book - 2021
"Decoding how we behave, Aja Raden's The Truth About Lies illuminates situations where we are better off lying-to ourselves and at times to others-and why it can be a healthy psychological mechanism. Fibbing, prevaricating, stretching the truth, white lies, of omission, of commission. Lying is so pervasive that we have countless words for it. But have you ever considered why you believed a lie you were told? The Truth About Lies is buttressed by a winning mixture of history, psychology, and science. Focusing on the many kinds of lies we see-The Lies We Tell Each Other, The Lies We Tell Ourselves, and The Lies We All Agree to Believe-Raden explores everything from swindles to cons to the long game to the big lie, including: - Why a...nyone still plays a shell game and gambles when they know the house is stacked against them - Goldbricking and the misleading nature of "facts" - Why faith and fraud are so closely connected - Hoaxes, hysteria and the madness of crowds - Why we're all probably part of a pyramid scheme - How the truth can sometimes sound like a lie A penetrating, funny, and informed history that adds fresh detail even to well-known stories, Raden's book is an eye-opening primer that decodes how we behave and function, and reveals how lying shapes our experience of the world around us"--
- Subjects
- Published
-
New York :
St. Martin's Press
2021.
- Language
- English
- Main Author
- Edition
- First edition
- Physical Description
- viii, 308 pages ; 25 cm
- Bibliography
- Includes bibliographical references (pages [299]-300) and index.
- ISBN
- 9781250272027
- Introduction: The Currency of Living
- Part I. Lies We Tell Each Other
- Perception, Persuasion, and the Evolution of Deceit
- 1. The Oldest Trick in the Book
- Credulity, Duplicity, and How to Tell a Really Big Lie
- 2. Keep Your Eye on the Ball
- Shell Games, Card Games, and Mind Games
- 3. Don't Buy It
- Goldbricking and the Often-Misleading Mature of Facts
- Part II. Lies We Tell Ourselves
- Faith, Fraud, and the Funny Thing About Belief
- 4. Holy Shit
- Charlatans and Other Authority Figures
- 5. Bitter Pill
- Snake Oil, Salesmen, and Subjective Reality
- 6. It's Lovely at the Top
- Pyramid Schemes and Why You're Probably Part of One
- Part III. Lies We All Agree to Believe
- Consensus, Control, and the Illusion of Truth
- 7. Fake News
- Hoaxes, Hysteria, and the Madness of Crowds
- 8. How to Make a Buck
- True Facts About Fake Things
- 9. Wait For It ...
- At Long Last: The Long Con
- Afterword: Lies about the Truth
- Acknowledgments
- Notes
- Bibliography
- Index
