Neuroscientist Sam Harris has recently expressed, in interviews and in his book Lying, that deceit is a toxic behavior no matter the context – and urges that we stop doing it
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No more lying, about anything or for any reason, he asserts, and he makes a profound case. “People lie so that others will form beliefs that are not true,” he bluntly states, rapidly stripping away a deep array of justifications we often float to excuse casual deceit. “It is in believing one thing while intending to communicate another that every lie is born.”
Harris’s reasoning is both intriguing and persuasive, and his book is hereto recommended. Our intent in bringing up the matter is something else: if deceit is inherently toxic, destructive to self and group, then it follows that it isn’t built into us – we invented it at some point, suggesting that for some great fraction of our existence as a species, we were inherently authentic.
And if human beings are inherently authentic, there must be a reason why.
Deceit is certainly not unique to our kind; many animals (and, for that matter, plants) practice it in their quest for survival, manifesting it in a variety of ways to mislead predators and thereby stay alive. But we can immediately note that those animals who so behave tend to be solitary, not creatures who live in groups – and they deceive other species, not their own.
Even so, we might raise the objection that we sometimes observe deceitful behaviors in our closest cousins, the more sophisticated apes; but in doing so, we would be obliged to also note that this sort of thing is far more common among chimpanzees than bonobos (both of whom are genetically equidistant from ourselves), and that we readily concede the bonobo to be the more socially mature and stable of the two.
We would also note that deceitful behavior in other primates is as pointless for them as it is for us; it does not provide survival value. It is, from a species advancement perspective, empty.
What’s the other side of the coin? What are the pluses of not lying?
Authenticity provides human individuals and groups with a deep survival toolkit. The authentic human being offers many strengths that present in their behavior, bringing bountiful assets to the group upon which they depend for survival.
Foremost among these is trust. Life among others of one’s kind who can be counted upon to scrupulously present what they know and feel is life with clear, shared motivation moving it forward. Deep trust within a group brings forth an optimal willingness to offer one’s best efforts in shared pursuits, a confidence in one’s own value to others, and an easier path to common goals.
It almost goes without saying that authenticity breeds accuracy, minimizing ambiguity and uncertainty in evaluating both the surrounding environment and plans constructed for navigating it. When social creatures rely upon collective agency and internal cooperation for survival, decisiveness trumps uncertainty; collective commitment to a shared agenda is stronger when collective understanding of the world and the tasks ahead are as meticulous as they can be.
And that cooperation turns on authenticity. Committing to others is an easy thing to do when our connection to those others is strong, rather than vague. Common cause is no great leap.
And this breeds deep empathy, the sense that those to whom we’re committed are, behind their eyes, just like us. When motivations are clear and unobscured, the resonance of emotions is more easily achieved. We can readily absorb the feelings of those we see as earnest – it helps us feel our own emotions more clearly. We will offer more, share more, sacrifice more with those who evoke empathy with us, and who offer it in return.
It’s easy to see that these assets are all interconnected, emanating from the individual to the group: authenticity increases accuracy, which enhances trust, which bolsters cooperation, which inspires empathy. It’s an inevitable chain; these outcomes can’t not emerge, where authenticity thrives.
Authenticity, then, is a human survival kit. It makes us stronger as individuals; it enhances our value to others; it empowers those groups whose members practice it. It is a natural advantage, and can be fairly characterized as a trait that helped elevate us above our simian kin: the more real our behaviors, the greater our advantage in taking command of the earth.
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