The Empire Of Illusion : The Art Of Deception?

The anonymous writer uses ethos in this article to have well known figures opinions on the issue addressed.President Obama expressed concern that “not standing for the National anthem can get in the way of the message.” The author chose a well known figure such as Obama,because his opinion is one that people will take into consideration on the fact that even our past president doesn't fully agree on the issue.”As a general matter,when it comes to the flag the National Anthem and the meaning that holds for our men and women in uniform and those who've fought for us-that is a tough thing for them to get past to then hear what his

In 50 Essays: A Portable Anthology, Stephanie Ericsson’s essay “The Ways We Lie” focuses on the many ways society lies today. “We exaggerate, we minimize, we avoid confrontation, we spare people’s feelings, we conveniently forget, we keep secrets, we justify lying to the big-guy institutions” (159). It is common for many people to think of lying exactly how it is on the surface, not telling the truth. Ericsson’s essay forces you to second guess this stereotype and begin to realize that lying is even more prevalent in today’s society than most people might imagine. Looking around today with this mindset would help us make more informed political decisions, better decisions on friends, and better “next-step” positions. Our lives are not horrible places, but better steps for these areas of our lives could improve our lives dramatically.

In an excerpt from Empire of Illusion, Christopher Hedges argues that “the most essential skill in political theater and a consumer culture is artifice...Those who are best at deception succeed. Those who have not mastered the art of entertainment, who fail to create a narrative or do not have one fashioned for them by their handlers, are ignored. They become “unreal”” (Empire of Illusion). Today, the ideology of “the most essential skill [being] artifice” to reveal the truth or reach the favored outcome is prevalent and portrayed across various media. For instance, in Hamlet written in the early 17th century, William Shakespeare portrays Polonius as a nobleman who advocates for techniques of deception to achieve his goal. In addition, detectives implement this method of misleading in interrogation rooms to evoke a true confession. Similarly, politicians, like Donald Trump, delude the public by creating distractions that sway their attention from the more pressing topic. Examples from literature to modern government demonstrate that many hold the belief that “the most essential skill...is artifice” to achieve the desired outcome (Empire of Illusion).

In today’s society, many people are faced with big audiences, or in a position where it requires them to win over consumers. In an excerpt from “Empire to Illusion” by Chris Hedges, he claims that the state of having fake qualities or being “artifice” is most essential when in a leadership position. In many ways, this wouldn’t and isn’t the most important skill to have in a position like this since there are other qualities to obtain people’s interest. To acknowledge the flip side, there are different leading styles, and also different definitions of success. These factors are valid to have, respect, and consider, but is deception and artificial personalities the best option? Even though deception may work for some leaders, Hedges makes it sound like deception is the only way to success when it isn’t.

The Stages of Deception used as a way of Persuasion and the thought of Hope

Politicians are considered by most people to be slick talkers and this is said rightly so because of their uses of rhetorical devices that they “used primarily to give a statement a positive or negative slant regarding a subject, they are sometimes called slanters” (Moore and Parker, 2007, p. 118). They are, known for their use of rhetorical analogy, by “likening one thing to another thing in order to convey a negative— or positive—feeling about it…” (Moore and Parker, 2007, p. 120). Then, the one of them that can promise the most change or the best benefits in their political debate may win but once when in office, they do the opposite of what they promised. They also use the ad hominem fallacy as a tactic to win voters over on their side by attacking there opponent’s character as well as their reputation and their motives. For these reasons politicians are, stereotyped because of the long

You tell people a lie 3-times, they will believe anything. You tell people what they want to hear, play to their fantasies, and then you close the deal.

Politicians can use manipulation of the media for political purpose. Through the use of propaganda and fear. Many of the times politicians have a desire to hid something and by doing so uses the media, language forms and techniques to manipulate the truth. This concept is shown through the ABC newspaper article called ‘NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell to resign over “massive memory fail” at ICIA, written on the 17th of April 2014, cleverly explains the details that unfolded. Along with Barry Levinson’s 1997 film ‘Wag the Dog’. It’s ironic to see similar themes being portrayed through a real political scandal.

In society, deception, cunningness, and other uses of trickery are quite common. Whether these themes are seen easily or are placed more discreetly, they are found in society often. Simply take a look at any political ad, certain sexual assault cases, or any form of social media, especially dating apps such as Tinder and Bumble. More often than not, political advertisements, sexual assault cases, and social media involve extraordinary amounts of deception, cunning words, and lies to call someone to a certain action. Political advertisements contain propaganda to push a political view. Sexual assault cases frequently begin with cunning, seductive words used to draw someone into an act they do not desire to commit. Social media is possibly the most common form of deception as countless amounts of people edit their photos to attain a desired body image or skin tone, essentially cat-fishing anyone who follows them. Furthermore, deception and cunningness are not only common in society, but is also present in literature in several ways. In Geoffrey Chaucer’s epic poem, “The Canterbury Tales,” Chaucer uses seduction, craftiness, and trickery as a form of persuasion, revenge, and to prove tricks do not come without consequences.

At times lying can be exceedingly necessary and people try to justify lying. Notably, lying is to not tell people the truth for whatever reason. In particular, some say that being deceitful is merely a part of human nature, but it is not logical. Generally speaking, there are people in this world who lie to protect other people, they lie to aid in increasing their confidence, or they just lie simply to protect themselves. When the truth is misleading, consequently, there are certain facts that are destined to come up causing the situation to turn chaotic. With this in mind, Arthur Miller carefully crafts two plays, The Crucible and Death of a Salesman, where lying is a pivotal part of the characters’ personalities. These characters all lie

Political officials are masters at double-dealing. In the essay, “How to Detect Propaganda,” Miller introduces the term glittering generalities, a device used to make people conform without probing the evidence first. Miller suggests, politicians use “words like truth, freedom, honor, liberty, social justice, public service, the right to work, loyalty, progress, democracy, the American way, and Constitution-defender,” (429) to control the publics opinion. Political leaders try to link good morals, that majority of the people would agree with, to their campaign to win the public’s support. Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” campaign uses the glittering generalities device Miller warns.

Two distinct ways that identifies one's lifestyle is attributed to the concept of necrophilia and biophilia. Necrophilia can be defined as the love of death and biophilia can be defined as the love of life. Human character is dominated by both forces, but it is important to identify which of these forces plays a dominant role. The dominant role dictates the relational life one has with the world.

Lying, a five letter word that is naturally connected to most politicians and leaders. How does this assumption come to be? And what causes them to be perceived in this manner? When a leader wants to get something accomplished, especially when it comes to International relations, they must consciously think of ways to persuade their followers into siding with them. The first thought that most naturally comes to their mind is, how am I going to persuade or coax the general public into siding with them on a particular issue and what tools do they have in accomplishing this goal? Is it really for the benefit of the nation or for a politician’s self-shish motives. These are the types of inquires that John J. Mearsheimer fields in his book, Why

Hedges’ argument that “the most essential skill… is artifice” can be true to an extent; however, there are other skills that are also essential in both political theater and consumer culture.

The only thing in my life that I can be positive about is change. Everything changes, from the moment we’re born to the moment we die. Reality has many twist and turns, and our perception of reality is what shapes us to become who we are. Our life is spent on deciphering the difference between reality and not reality. This is hard to define because reality is unique to each individual.