Why do humans lie?

we all know that every human lies. The degree of lies differ.
This world is built on many lies. Are there any other creatures on earth that lie? Why only humans? This phenomenon amazes me.

 

Many animals use deception, I think lying is just an extension of that.


I'll speculate that it is some sort of defense mechanism.

 

i know ever dog i've ever had lied to me. they just don't have the language skills to do it with any sophistication.

 

Because sometimes the truth hurts.

 

Because if you get away with it, you get things your way/gain something/escape something unpleasant, like a punishment you don't want to take. It's quite simple really. We all just wanna get ahead, and successful liars are often very successful people in general. Just look at politics. Since this world doesn't serve free lunches,you'll do anything to get yours anyway.

 

its the perception there's something to gain. generally combined with the non-realization of the cost of the ignorance that is created by doing so.
there can be circumstances under which oculding reality can provide a temporary or conditional advantage in a given context.

why do some people do so compulsively, gratuitously, pointlessly, i can only guess about this, people can and do form some very odd habits.
and of course, most people never get around to examining all of the assumptions they have somehow or another, come to take as familiar givens.

there's cultural factors too. you have an aggressiveness oriented culture, you have people looking to outscore each other,
any way they can imagine doing so, even if, as is often the case, no real gratification results from doing so.

 

Because...

 

On an Attenborough documentary I saw a kind of monkey (forgotten which) who lied. They had a call for "Lion!" and one of the monkeys used it when there was no lion, in order to be the only one getting the food.

 

Have you ever tried telling your wife or girlfriend that her new dress looks like an old sack.

 

Ha-ha. Even if Jane took her dress off, I would probably just assume that she had spilled some gravy on her lap.

 

looks better on a resume'..

 

I did not give you crabs... It was you that gave me the crabs

 

This sentence is a lie.

 

That sentence is the truth.

 

^ my older half-brother told me that riddle when I was about four or five. It really stayed with me. Didn't see Labyrinth until my late teens, was like.. woah! It's that!

 

Anyone who has taken care of dogs for a long period can attest to them being deceptive through body language.

We often lie to survive.

 

Oh yeah, my dog lies all the time to us. Pretends he didn't hear a command when he's busy putting his nose somewhere. You see him react but then ignore. Liar. Or of he knows one of us wasn't there while he was fed, he'll lie to the one of us not there as if he never got fed in hopes he gets two meals.