Is It Ever Okay to Lie?

The philosophy of Dietrich von Hildebrand

One of the truly perennial questions in the history of ethics concerns the morality of lying.

Is lying ever morally acceptable?

What about white lies?

What about when it saves someone’s life?

Today, we look at the surprising answer that German philosopher Dietrich von Hildebrand offers to this question, and why lying — or telling the truth — has a far greater impact on your life than you realize…

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Why Lie?

When discussing lying, most people distinguish between two kinds of lies: white lies, like telling your friend that their ugly hat actually looks really good on them, and serious lies, like telling your friend that his brother crashed his car even though it was actually you.

Many think that white lies are not only okay, but even necessary, like when you lie to protect your friend’s feelings. But few people think that telling a serious lie is morally acceptable.

Unless, that is, they have a good reason for doing so. Consider the classic example everyone turns to: you are a German during World War II, and you have a Jewish family hiding in your basement. Suddenly, a knock on the door reveals an SS officer on your doorstep, and he asks if you have any Jews in your house. Fortunately, you were good friends with the officer before the war, so he will believe you if you say “no.” What should you do?

Most people would say you should lie to the officer to save the lives of the people in your basement. But Hildebrand had a slightly different take...

Hildebrand on the Value of Reality

Hildebrand was an ardent defender of what he called true values. These are things that are valuable not because of our preferences or how useful they are for us, but by their inherent goodness.

For Hildebrand, there is a proper response to these values, and when we fail to make that response, it is us who are wrong. So if somebody looks at the Grand Canyon and thinks that it is “just a hole in the ground,” it is they who are wrong. Their opinion is missing something real about the Grand Canyon.

Hildebrand points out that these values are all around us. The value of reality, which is also the value of truth, is one such value. Reality is not something that we control — rather, it controls us. It is composed of what actually exists. For all of these reasons, Hildebrand argues that reality has a real value to it, meaning that you have an obligation to respond properly to it. When a person lies, Hildebrand would argue, he or she fails to give the proper response to reality, and thus fails to properly respond to that value.

The Power of Reality

Since reality has a value, Hildebrand believes it makes a claim upon you. Here is one way of thinking about it: no matter how badly you wish it were so, you will probably never be as good at basketball as LeBron James. You can either rage against that reality by pretending that you actually are LeBron James’ equal on the court, or you can allow that reality to form your thoughts, actions, and behavior.

Hildebrand argues that the latter option is precisely what the person who lies does not do:

“He [a liar] assumes a lordly position over being, [sic] he deals with it as he pleases and treats it as if it were a chimera, a plaything of his arbitrary pleasure. He denies recognition and response to the value that inheres in being as such, to the dignity that being possesses by its opposition to nothingness. The untruthful person does not fulfill the fundamental obligation to recognize everything that exists in its reality, not to interpret black as white, and not to deny a fact.” (Hildebrand, The Art of Living, 27)

To lie, then, is to treat reality as a thing you can twist to your own ends. And this reveals not just a lack of charity towards others and a misunderstanding of the purpose of language, but also a fundamental refusal to allow reality to form you.

But why should you allow reality to form you? Because, Hildebrand would argue, you did not create it yourself. When you fail to allow reality to form you, it hurts your ability to see other values, too. You slowly grow blind to moral values, aesthetic values, intellectual values, and more.

But What About the Nazis?

Hildebrand, of course, is aware that there are certain instances where the truth should not be told, or at least it seems that the truth in its fullest sense is not obligated. The Nazi example is one such instance. Another would be wrapping a small gift in a deceptively large box to disguise its true size. Are you really required to tell the truth in both cases?

Here, Hildebrand distinguishes between telling a lie and simply not telling the truth, and even doing something you know will be misinterpreted. The former is immoral, because it tries to twist reality to its own ends. But the latter, refusing to tell the truth or telling the truth in a confusing way, is not necessarily doing that. And in fact, there are some things we are bound to keep hidden:

“Now, there are cases in which deception as such is permitted, nay, is commanded. For example, if a criminal is following us, it is permissible for us to deceive him, in one way or the other, about our dwelling-place. It is commanded when we could severely harm another person either physically or morally by communicating the truth. In the latter case, it is no lack of charity to deceive; on the contrary, it is a loving kindliness. Thus we are permitted to deceive other persons in certain given cases; in others, we are obliged to do so. But we may do this only by means of our interpretation of a given situation; not by means of a direct lie.” (Hildebrand, The Art of Living, 33)

So, is it ever moral to lie?

For Hildebrand, the short answer is no.

But whereas some people think that this answer binds them to tell the truth even when it causes great harm, Hildebrand would say that his principle actually calls them to higher virtue: he thinks that, in many cases, you should be willing to sacrifice your own wellbeing for the sake of truth.

And when the truth is not to be revealed, you must find a way to keep the secret while respecting the demand that reality makes upon us. That way, we become more able to recognize true value, wherever it lies.