Speaking Lies in Love | by Emory Cooper

While Part Four of The Plague is generally as saddening as the parts preceding it, poor Jacques' agonized death stands out as one of the most tragic deaths in the whole book. One can hardly imagine the grief the parents would have felt, had Tarrou told the truth about what happened when M. Othon said, "I hope Jacques did not suffer too much" (Camus, p. 241). Yet when I first read how Tarrou responds by saying that he "couldn't really say he suffered," I caught myself struggling with this question: was it right for Tarrou to lie in this situation? But after thinking it over, I cannot say that I believe Tarrou was wrong. In this case, it was perfectly ethical for Tarrou to lie to Jacques' father.

This is how I personally address this ethical-deception issue. Assuming that the commands of Scripture dictate whether an act is morally acceptable or not, one should consider that every moral statute can be summarized in two overarching principles, which are basically to love God and love people. "On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets" (Matthew 22:40). Thus, no command in Scripture, such as "[t]hou shalt not bear false witness" (Exodus 20:16), goes against these commands. Therefore, assuming (as I have done for the sake of argument) that Tarrou was showing love for God and Jacques' father in lying to him, he was compromising neither of these two principles and must have been in the right.

[I commented on Abigale's and Josh's posts.]

Comments

  1. IsabelleFebruary 22, 2022 at 8:04 AM

    Hey Emory! I agree that the death of Jacques was one of the most tragic in this work, and I love that you focused on an ethical dilemma. There seems to be quite a bit of those. In the face of tragedy, it seems that people will still have good intentions for others who are suffering. I agree with the approach you took to a situation like this. Great post!

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  2. Emma LandryFebruary 22, 2022 at 8:29 AM

    I agree with your assessment of this situation, Emory. Although we are not supposed to bear false witness, I cannot help but think about how extreme this situation is. How could one have the heart to give details about the torturous road to death that Jacques traveled? It is painful enough for a parent to cope with the death of a child, and reporting the details of the boy’s suffering would have served no purpose. In this case, it is of the greatest kindness to spare M. Othon the gruesome details. In his fragile and isolated state, there is no telling how poorly such a revelation might have affected M. Othon.
    -Emma Landry

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  3. AnonymousFebruary 22, 2022 at 9:16 AM

    Hey! That is a great theory. I still struggle with seeing how that is not bearing a false witness, but I think it would have been more moral to completely beat around the bush perhaps to avoid lying. My thoughts are alittle foggy on this issue.

    ~Madalyn Dillard

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  4. Haylee LyndFebruary 22, 2022 at 9:36 AM

    There is no reason except for the sake of the truth that Othon would need to know how much his son has suffered. Tarrou was right in showing love to Othon by lying. I think he is completely right in what he did. He spares Othon's feelings, and in the time of the plague, this sparing and the hope provided through it is extremely needed to keep the population going.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Lily CaswellFebruary 22, 2022 at 9:44 AM

    I personally believe a small lie is better than a harsh truth, especially when it comes to a child dying an agonizing death. It gives the parents some slight comfort, even though their child is dead.

    ReplyDelete

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