Self Deception (Post #3 of 8)

Inherent in the act of self betrayal is the willingness to deceive ourselves into thinking that someone or something else prevented us from acting as we know we should have. The moment we accept that lie is synonymous with the moment we betray ourselves. “There’s no possibility of betraying oneself without living a lie” writes Dr. Warner.

The decision to betray ourselves brings with it an arsenal we can use to defend our self deception: rationalization, justification, excuses, and blaming. Add to that the fuel of our emotions and we have a potentially explosive situation. Many of us choose to childishly rationalize our failure to act; some engage in acts of self-disparagement after failing to act; others decide to engage in the act, but with an air of moral superiority. Though different in appearance, all of these behaviors are branches growing out of the same rotten root.

It’s telling that our attempts to justify or rationalize our failure to act (or to act with moral superiority) are actual acknowledgments that we know what we are doing is wrong. Dr. Warner puts it this way: “Someone who is straightforwardly doing what seems to him right will have no cause to excuse or justify himself and someone who isn’t doing what seems to him right shows that he does have such a cause.”

When we seek to absolve ourselves of responsibility for our decisions we must find a scapegoat upon which we can heap blame. In a perverted way, it makes it all the better for us if we find a willing victim. How is it that we seem to succeed so sensationally in our search? I’ll explore this in my next post.