Liars and delusionals

[frz]

Are they one and the same?

[Shell B]

No.

No. No. No. Because it wouldn't just let me post no.

[Darkstar]

liar  

noun
a person who tells lies.

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delusional

adjective
1.
having false or unrealistic beliefs or opinions: Senators who think they will get agreement on a comprehensive tax bill are delusional.
2.
Psychiatry. maintaining fixed false beliefs even when confronted with facts, usually as a result of mental illness: He was so delusional and paranoid that he thought everybody was conspiring against him.

For the sake of clarity:

lie  

noun
1. a false statement made with deliberate intent to deceive; an intentional untruth; a falsehood. Synonyms: prevarication, falsification. Antonyms: truth.
2. something intended or serving to convey a false impression; imposture: His flashy car was a lie that deceived no one.
3. an inaccurate or false statement; a falsehood.
4. the charge or accusation of telling a lie: He flung the lie back at his accusers.
verb (used without object)
5. to speak falsely or utter untruth knowingly, as with intent to deceive. Synonyms: prevaricate, fib.
6. to express what is false; convey a false impression.

I have never seen a definition of lie that does not include deliberate deception except the above, but it is not the primary definition, and generally a liar is someone who purposely deceives. Someone who is delusional actually believes the falsehoods they spread, and so by most definitions wouldn't be considered a liar.

[Dragonetti]

liar  

noun
a person who tells lies.

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delusional

adjective
1.
having false or unrealistic beliefs or opinions: Senators who think they will get agreement on a comprehensive tax bill are delusional.
2.
Psychiatry. maintaining fixed false beliefs even when confronted with facts, usually as a result of mental illness: He was so delusional and paranoid that he thought everybody was conspiring against him.

For the sake of clarity:[quote=

Agreed!

[Gearbreak]

They're not really lying if they're delusional since they think it's the truth. If they know they're lying then it's not a delusion. I guess you could say they're lying to themselves, but I still wouldn't label them a dirty word like liar.

[frz]

[quote='Darkstar' pid='436219' dateline='1366859516']
[quote=dictionary.com]liar  

noun
a person who tells lies.

---

delusional

adjective
1.
having false or unrealistic beliefs or opinions: Senators who think they will get agreement on a comprehensive tax bill are delusional.
2.
Psychiatry. maintaining fixed false beliefs even when confronted with facts, usually as a result of mental illness: He was so delusional and paranoid that he thought everybody was conspiring against him.

For the sake of clarity:

Agreed!

I wasn't asking for the definitions of the words. I already know them. I was asking more like is it a byproduct of a person's personality, are people who lie tend to be delusional as well.

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They're not really lying if they're delusional since they think it's the truth. If they know they're lying then it's not a delusion. I guess you could say they're lying to themselves, but I still wouldn't label them a dirty word like liar.

I see. The word, dirty or not doesn't matter. I hate liars. They make the world very uncomfortable to live for everybody.

[thesummerqueen]

I don't. Sometimes a lie makes things way more comfortable. What's uncomfortable is judging which is the best lie.

[Darkstar]

I wasn't asking for the definitions of the words. I already know them. I was asking more like is it a byproduct of a person's personality, are people who lie tend to be delusional as well.

I can't think of any reason why they would be. Or do you think that some people lie so much they begin to believe their own lies (is that even realistically possible?).

[thesummerqueen]

I wasn't asking for the definitions of the words. I already know them. I was asking more like is it a byproduct of a person's personality, are people who lie tend to be delusional as well.

I can't think of any reason why they would be. Or do you think that some people lie so much they begin to believe their own lies (is that even realistically possible?).

Hard to say. I remember Ken Feder commenting on Erik Von Daniken (sp?), saying his class watched some TV spots with him in it and many of them were sure of just that thing: that he was a liar but had told the lie so much he might even believe it. I can put into a skeptic with a psych background and ask if he's run into that sort of thing or knows some studies on it.

[Neo-Scholastic]

If I say I'm not delusional am I lying to myself?