Lying

I think that lying can be both justified and unjustified depending on the situation at hand. In some situations lying is harmless while in others it can be harmful. For example, when you lie to not hurt someone's feelings or cause them pain, it's not a bad thing. I believe in that case it is morally right. The other side of lying can be ethically unstable. For example, lying to someone to make them feel bad or just to be mean is not moral. Lies can cause issues either way and should be used carefully. Therefore, in my opinion, lying can be positive and negative depending on the situation.

In the play "Much Ado About Nothing", William Shakespeare uses both types of lies. Both morally justified and not morally justified lies are used to show the effects. For example, a morally ethic lie is said when Don Pedro explains, "I will assume thy part in some disguise / And tell far Hero I am Claudio" (I.I.259-260). Don Pedro is going to lie to Hero and pretends to be Claudio, only to woo her for him. In this case, lying is harmless because there is no effect in a negative way. No one is getting hurt or punished. Another example is from a real life situation is from the Holocaust. People would lie to keep thier family members safe. This is a moral lie because the people who told these lies to the Nazis were protecting their families by sacraficing themselves. An example of lying unethically is when Don John says, "I, with your two helps, will so practice on Benedick that, in despite of his quick wit and his queasy stomach, he shall fall in love with Beatrice. If we can do this, Cupid is no longer an archer; his glory shall be ours, for we are the only love gods" (II.1.321-25). In this case, lying is unethical because Don John is trying to lie in a way that will mess everything up. The effect is huge and can change the rest of their lives. Also, Don John is trying to take advantage of them. In the end, lying can be classified as being both ethically justified and not.