Jacquie Cadorette
9(1) Language Arts
Mrs. Kirk
December 2, 2008
Periodical Criticism #1
Guilbert, Juliette. “Why Kids Lie--An Age by Age Guide.” CNN.com. 2008 19 Nov 2008
<http://cnn.site.printthis.clickability.com>
In the CNN.com article, “Why Kids Lie--An Age by Age Guide,” written by Juliette Guilbert in
2008, the author wonders why her young daughter continuously lies for no apparent reason. Using the
word of children’s psychiatrists, she puts together a guide on why kids of certain ages lie. Along with this
information, she also offers advice on how to deal with certain lies and prevent future lies from being
said.
Guilbert’s thesis is stated in the seventh paragraph when she states that “Knowing the types of
untruths kids tell at each stage and why, can help you gently guide your own toward a level of
truthfulness that’s appropriate for his age.” The author believes that certain ages portray different lies
and by being aware of them, you can make the child more truthful in the future. The thesis is
reemphasized throughout the entire article but is more age group specific. For example, in the third
paragraph of the “School kids” section of the article, Guilbert states “Kids this age do so for all sorts of
understandable, even forgivable reasons.” Guilbert states a reason for the lie and how to get through to
the child and prevent another lie from happening for four different age groups.
The author mainly used examples to show the different types of lies that occur at each age. For
instance, she uses her own child as an example of a “tall tale” that a preschooler might tell when telling
the story about how her daughter once told her that “daddy puts on your bras sometimes.” She also
uses other stories of lies told by children of other age groups. By doing so, Guilbert uses real life
examples that could potentially happen to others so that is easily related to. Guilbert also uses expert
testimony by talking to child psychiatrist, Dr. Elizabeth Berger. On the topic of imaginary friends, Berger
says, “If a child seems happy and has realistic relationships with the important people in his life, I would
not be worried about his fantasizing. That’s what children did before there was TV.” Berger tells about
what you should and shouldn’t be worried about as far as lies go and the reasoning behind it. Through
these examples, Guilbert expresses that the lies children tell sometimes have deeper meanings behind
them and most of the time shouldn’t be worried about.
Guilbert worries about her child’s small lie and wonders if her child is becoming a pathological
liar but is later told that small lies don’t necessarily mean her child has reached a “degree of extreme,
excessive, or markedly abnormal” lying. Dr. Elizabeth Berger states in the article that it is best to not
“get into a wrangle with the child” over bent truth or a white lie meaning that an “argument or
controversy” with the lying child may not be the best way of handling things. She even states that it may
just make things worse.
This article came up as very interesting to me because a lot of the points made were relevant to
lies that I have witnessed made by small children. It is mentioned in the article that some children make
their imaginary friends not as a lie but as a depiction of what they themselves would be like if they could
do whatever they wanted yet the imaginary friend also goes through the same hardships that the child
may. I found this particularly intriguing because I know of kids whose imaginary friends are in fact a
depiction of a perfect world in the child’s eyes. For instance, the friend may never have to eat
vegetables and always get to stay up late. Although, the imaginary friend loses its favorite doll every
once in while or something of a similar matter as does the child. I also found it interesting when the
child psychiatrist mentions that lies made by children may be an indication of a smart child. Lying may
show that the child has thought the situation through and come to a conclusion that they find to be
better for them, but only if they lie. The advice given in this article should definitely be put to use so
children can grow up knowing that being truthful tends to work out better than telling lies.