Pro: Hypocrisy is your ticket to the best of both worlds
Imagine (in as Lennon a fashion as willing) a world without self deception or its delightfully useful sibling hypocrisy. This world- with the exception of the disappearance of non-conformist subcultures- would not be a better place. People who buy things to project an image they favour do something very important- they buy things. Without the self-deception required to hide their own hypocritical inconsistency and willingness to conform to their trendy ideal, there would be much less rampant consumerism, leading to an economically weaker Canada.
Value is often placed upon honesty, with little thought given to its potential to inhibit self interest. People lie because it helps them get what they want. Everyone knows this, but we then lie to ourselves to prevent the inhibitory guilt this causes, allowing us to lie again soon after. Brutal and total honesty is just another form of lying, these people don’t feel responsible for the harm they cause others with their honesty because they accept and avoid the guilt that was associated with lying through the Pavlovian disappointment and anger of their parents. Accepting that honesty towards others is often unfavorable and being comfortable with this allows people to do what is in there best interest, even if it’s hypocritical. Being aware of and unsympathetic about one’s hypocrisy is often the best option.
Hypocrisy allows for the best of both worlds. Say someone who is looking for a new car decided to adopt an environmentally friendly outlook shortly after settling on an SUV. Their new found meme demands they buy an environmentally friendly vehicle. Rather than commit completely to their new tool for self-definition and buy a German smart car they might compromise and get a hybrid SUV. Sure, a normal car gets equivalent MPG in cities and much better on highways, but it wouldn’t allow them to flaunt how much better than us they are. From the stance of our hypothetical person’s self interest- which includes their will to be recognized and their lack of true concern for the environment- the compromise is the best of both worlds.
The obvious counter to these arguments is, “Sure, a weak attempt at doing something is better than not even trying, but wouldn’t going all out be better?” No, if the people who bought exercise equipment actually used it then they could no longer justify buying diet pills, effectively killing another self-deception-based industry. There is a reliance on the members of such groups not actually doing anything, at the risk of collapsing large sections of the symbiotic industries.
Supporting our manufacturing industry and helping causes through association are not the only benefits of embracing self-deception. Take for example the alternative medicine crowd, in the cases where health claims seem at least plausible there is usually sufficient medical information showing them to be demonstrably false. That does not, however, stop the proponents from supporting an entire industry and actually making themselves feel better via the placebo effect. In this case, self deception has helped medical research, decreased the number of sick days taken and created an entire industry selling overpriced weeds. There are dozens of examples of society benefiting from acting within the expectations of a social norm they decided to conform to halfheartedly.
Con: People should practice what they preach
We have all been guilty of saying one thing and doing another, but it seems that we continually exhibit hypocrisy. There are those who complain about the government, yet fail to vote, those who “care about the environment,” as they drive gas-guzzlers solo around the city, the list goes on. For our own sanity and humanity, we should simply talk less and do more.
People often criticize others for being selective about the parts of a religion they choose to follow. While there is little chance of preventing someone else from living by his or her own set of rules, you as an individual have the choice. What are your values? When you express strong opinions, or react a certain way to certain topics, do you really mean what you’re saying and why?
If you really believe in something, stop talking about it and prove it. You can’t make other people believers until you yourself demonstrate the virtues that are so easily talked about and just as easily done. Take yoga, for instance. Yoga is a popular method used for fully appreciating and enjoying the present moment. It is linked to Buddhist philosophies in its promotion of developing a sense of well-being, awareness and purpose. However, the virtues it stands for are merely words until actually applied. Buying Lulu Lemon and drinking non-fat, half-sweet vanilla lattes might make you feel good temporarily, but genuine happiness is a conscious choice that comes from within and becomes more real as it is shared with those around you, both in and out of a yoga studio. And though it is nearly impossible to avoid the temptation in our society to consume, we all have the power of choice. You can choose to put a purpose behind your purchases, instead of letting marketers dictate the sort of identity we should have in relation to material possessions. As ninth-century Chinese Zen master Lin-Chi said, “Your head is right where it should be. The trouble lies in your not believing in yourselves enough.” Because life is always changing, we can’t be expected to always think and act the same way, but if we believed in ourselves and strived to follow our core values, we would realize that we don’t need to tell other people how to live nor should we buy into how other people tell us to.
Hypocrisy is not a virtue. Look at politics- no one likes or trusts a person who makes empty promises. We assume that judges and police do their jobs according to their belief and pursuit of justice. If someone said that they became a cop in order to protect people and then beat innocent citizens on the street just because they felt like it, we wouldn’t take the police service seriously. In fact, we’d fear it. People are not eligible to compete in the Olympics based on the thought that they are capable of doing so. Reality requires practice. If we all were to say one thing and do another arbitrarily, we could not function as a civilization. There is no right or wrong way to live, but if we lie to ourselves, we are lying to others and no one is better off.
Many religions hold compassion and respect as central values and seek peace, truth and meaning in everyday life. At religious gatherings, there is a certain feeling of peace and commonality. That peace is inherent in everyone and it is up to us to carry our commonality beyond religious constructs and into real-life practice. It doesn’t matter who or what you believe in, so long as you can respect yourself and believe in yourself enough to respect the people around you and trust that they too hold merit. What you say does not make others who they are or who they are not in comparison to you. Your external life situation (possessions and accomplishments) means nothing to anyone if you fail to live by your own intrinsic values.
We all generally want to be happy. The way in which people go about attaining happiness differs, but if we are striving for the same ends, why advocate and argue about the means? Live what you believe, use your faculties to their greatest potential and trust that others are capable of doing the same. You can talk all you want, but no one, not even you, can believe your beliefs until you start acting on them.