On the Decay of the Art of Lying - Mark Twain

On the Decay of the Art of Lying

By Mark Twain

  • Release Date: 1910-04-21
  • Genre: Literary Fiction
4.5 Score: 4.5 (From 201 Ratings)

Description

In the essay, Twain laments the four ways in which men of America's Gilded Age employ man's 'most faithful friend'. He concludes by insisting that: the wise thing is for us diligently to train ourselves to lie thoughtfully, judiciously; to lie with a good object, and not an evil one; to lie for others' advantage, and not our own; to lie healingly, charitably, humanely, not cruelly, hurtfully, maliciously; to lie gracefully and graciously, not awkwardly and clumsily; to lie firmly, frankly, squarely, with head erect, not haltingly, tortuously, with pusillanimous mien, as being ashamed of our high calling.

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