Surrealpolitik: Falsehood in War Time

Quick Summary

The title says it all. This book seems to be the source of the famous quote: "When war is declared, Truth is the first casualty." It's presented as an unattributed quotation, along with other quotes, all epigrams at the start of the book. Anyway, it's an eloquent statement not only on lies told in wartime, but the public's propensity to fall for nonsense on a regular basis. And it's full of excellent examples. He makes a nice sort of taxonomy of falsehoods: -- The deliberate official lie issued directly to the people -- The deliberate lie to a small circle, which then gets spread by other means -- The lie "heard and not denied" and repeated or allowed to circulate -- The mistranslation -- The general obsession, "started by rumor and magnified by repetition" until it gains wide acceptance -- The deliberate forgery -- The omission of passages from official documents (distortion by selection) -- The deliberate exaggeration -- The concealment of truth -- The faked photograph -- The use of cinema -- The "Russian scandal", involving mischaracterized trivialities that turn into hysteria -- The atrocity lies -- The repetition of a single instance of cruelty to portray it as a prevailing tendency -- The use of unreliable testimony -- Pure romance (e.g., letters from soldiers, tales of heroism) -- Evasions, concealments, half-truths -- Official secrecy -- Sham indignation -- Contempt for the enemy, e.g., depictions of cowardice -- Personal accusations and false charges to discredit anti-war people and groups -- Lying recriminations between one country and another (muddying the waters)

Last updated: April 8, 2022