Every once in a while I will make a passing joke by acting like I am superstitious. I am not the only one to do it. I know that am not alone in occasionally uttering the phrase, "knock on wood," or, "don't jinx it." I don't believe that knocking on wood has any value or that a person can jinx themselves, and I am quite sure that most everyone knows this, but phrases like that can still be valuable conversational tools.
One conversational tool, which I would consider superstitious if anyone took it seriously, is to cross fingers or to talk about crossing fingers either in the hope for luck or as a sort of free pass on lying. I recently saw this used in a way that made me wonder whether many people take the superstition seriously.
On Survivor last Thursday a couple of the people on the show were telling another contestant something that was not the truth. While they were doing this they crossed their fingers. One of the people later said that she crossed her fingers because she knew what she was saying was not the truth.
This is not a tirade about honesty, however, I have to call into question the point of crossing your fingers to somehow keep a falsehood from technically being a lie. Do people seriously think it makes some difference? If so, under what authority? If you're going to lie, isn't it better to not risk getting caught and just ignore crossing any fingers?
The whole thing reminds me a bit of the Las Vegas slogan, "What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas." It helps people to think in the terms that there are conditions in life where there morals are ambiguous, but only under those specific conditions. It encourages people to think that morality is ruled by technicalities. I just don't get how people who have any ability to reason can rationalize that it makes any difference.
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4 comments:
I think it is just a way that people have come up with to excuse their behavior. I haven't done the "crossing fingers" while telling a lie since grade school.
When people cross their fingers, I think they are just being silly like they were in grade school. It doesn't excuse their behavior, but I think it relieves their conscience in a way. I agree with your post.
"It helps people to think in the terms that there are conditions in life where there morals are ambiguous, but only under those specific conditions. It encourages people to think that morality is ruled by technicalities"
Very interesting observations. I agree. I don't honestly believe, as golden says, that people think this excuses their immorality. They are just being silly. It is probably a habit that they have grown accustomed to, like putting bread on butter.
Whoops, butter on bread.
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