John Carlos Baez on Nostr: Interesting reply by The Ethicist to a question about Santa. The crux comes in part 2 ...
Interesting reply by The Ethicist to a question about Santa. The crux comes in part 2 here:
Other parents tell me they see engaging in the fantasy of Santa Claus as an important, fun part of childhood, and a rite of passage to one day discover the truth. So why can’t I help feeling that I’d be undermining the honest and trusting relationship I seek to build with my children? — Laura Iannello, Verona, N.Y.
The Ethicist: Wait — there’s no Santa Claus? The trouble is that what it means to believe in something or someone, not least Santa Claus, can be far from straightforward. Let’s start with the fact that we use language for all sorts of purposes: to inform, to entertain, to honor, to shame, to argue, to win, to woo, to wow, to take wing. Yes, a strong commitment to truthfulness is important. It enables us to act on knowledge provided by others. I salute you for honoring this ideal in your home. But socializing your children entails recognizing the limits of radical honesty.
For one thing, there are plenty of true but unkind observations we should not volunteer, and it doesn’t help to append “I’m just being honest.” It’s OK to tell your grandparents that you like their Christmas present when you don’t. For another, expressive language often involves statements that aren’t literally true: Are you really so hungry you could eat a horse? Equally important, though, is how we use words in the realm of play.
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Published at
2023-12-17 10:44:28Event JSON
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