In Adrienne Rich’s essay, “Woman and Honor: Some Notes on Lying”, Rich investigates the damage that personal, political, and cultural untruths have had on her self-image and her relationships with other women. Even though the unconscious wants truth, to lie becomes a habitual way of life for women. Honesty in women has not been considered important, they have been rewarded for lying . Rich also talks about women being honest with themselves and other women. She uses rhetorical strategies such as questioning, ethical persuasion, and repetition to reiterate how women lie without being aware sometimes.
In her essay Adrienne Rich inputs questions about the honesty of women and why they lie. The author raises questions to capture the reader's attention and to make the reader think about the main idea he or she is trying to make an argument for. On page 415, Rich asks, “As we cease to lie with our bodies, as we cease to take on faith what men have said about us, is truly womanly idea of honor in the making?” This is questioning truthfulness among and between women. Also on page 415, Rich mentions how “Women have been forced to lie, for survival, to men,” and then raises the question of “How to
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“In the struggle for survival we tell lies.” “The lie is as false source power” (Page 416) Not only do women lie to others but it becomes second nature to them, and they feel a sense of power. A woman lies to herself to make themselves feel, like they have the upper hand. They feed into their imaginative egos. For example, teenage girls always want to create a specific image of themselves among their peers, which makes them look good. This kind of power could be obtained by lying and giving false information to others.“Women have to think whether we want, in our relationships with each other, the kind of power that can be obtained through lying.” (page