True to Life Response

The introduction and first chapter of True to Life were a little hard for me to get through. I felt like Lynch was talking in circles, but after a few readings there was one big question that I had lingering in my mind. Do we weigh truths? By that I mean does it matter what the truth pertains to? The opening page of the book explores the government’s “lie” about nuclear weapons and the subsequent war in Iraq. I feel that this untruth is appalling. But I do not find it appalling to lie, or mislead, my parents when they ask how my grades are. But then I suppose that leads to another question: is the opposite of truth a lie?

So, back to my initial question: does it matter what the truth pertains to? Or are all truths treated equally? Do we, as humans, value truth differently depending on where we find it or from whom we hear it? I’m not sure that I can buy Lynch’s arguments until I understand fully what type of truth he refers to. He was right when he said that it’s almost impossible to define truth, yet I think that defining truth is pertinent before I can understand his arguments. While I think Lynch does touch on several definitions of what truth is (such as quoting Voltaire’s argument that truth is “a statement of the facts as they are,” or that it is a means of evaluating our beliefs) he never ties down one concrete idea. And this is really bothering me.

I found his argument that it is not the truth itself that matters but rather where the truth leads us that matters. When we are not told the truth, we feel mislead and disappointed, often losing a little bit of trust in the source of the information. So, maybe it’s trust that we value more than the truth itself. This leads me to wonder if truth really matters, though. If we never know the real truth, we never know that we don’t know the truth. That is (to use a terrible riddle) if a tree falls and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? If we do not know that we are being deceived, isn't it still the truth as far as we know it?

I’ve successfully talked myself in circles, but to conclude, I think Lynch is very provocative even though his arguments are still a little confusing to me and I am still trying to grasp exactly what kind of truth he refers to.