As a society, we have become so accustomed to metaphors and empty truths that we absent-mindedly accept them. But if society is told a lie and believes it, does that turn the lie into the truth? For example, in the beginning of the human's reign on this planet, humans thought the earth was flat only to be proven that the earth was in fact round. But if ordinary humans were told that the earth is flat and they accept that as the truth, live their life as though it is true, then what makes it untrue? Someone must come along to convince the population that their truth, the earth is round, a valid and have it be accepted. Nietzsche mostly talks about how man deciphers truth in his essay; however Nietzsche cannot avoid mentioning lying because …show more content…

But then, if truth is determined individually, what is the difference between a lie and the truth? My own example of lying would be if I said I was born in Russia, when in my own reality, or what is true in my own head, I know was born in Connecticut and purposely contradict myself. Based upon Nietzsche's essay, lying is when you are purposely going against your own personal truths, or what you believe to be true.
"The liar is a person who uses the valid designations, the words, inorder to make something which is unreal appear to be real. He says, for example, ‘I am rich', when the proper designation for his condistion would be ‘poor'. He misuses fixed conventions by means of arbitary substitutions or even reversals of names. If he does this in a selfish and moreover harmful manner, society will cease to trust him and thereby exclude him."