Rather, a "lie" may be easier to overcome. Because it's dishonest and unnatural, we can notice it, and the intention behind the lie often reveals itself.
To live as "myself," I have to tear down the unrealistic and empty, yet seemingly attractive, "myth" about myself that I unknowingly built up over time. And I must strive to face "the true self." (p. 249)
President Kennedy of the United States said this in his commencement speech at Yale University on June 11, 1962:
"The great enemy of the truth is very often not the lie — deliberate, contrived and dishonest — but the myth: persistent, persuasive, and unrealistic."
(The great enemy of the truth is very often not the lie-deliberate, contrived and dishonest but the myth-persistent, persuasive, and unrealistic.)
Yes. The hardest enemy of truth may be not "lies" but "myths."
Kennedy was talking about politics, but the same applies to individuals.
To meet our "true self," we have to overcome the persuasive, unrealistic, persistent "myth" we hold about ourselves. The myth about myself that I created without realizing it. Because it's unrealistic, it can look attractive, and because it's persuasive, it can pull us in. So it relentlessly tempts us.
Rather, a "lie" may be easier to overcome. Because it's dishonest and unnatural, we can notice it, and the intention behind the lie often reveals itself.
To live as "myself," I have to tear down the unrealistic and empty, yet seemingly attractive, "myth" about myself that I unknowingly built up over time. And I must strive to face "the true self." (pp. 248–249)
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