Faking It

'Hypocrisy is the homage paid by vice to virtue' - a maxim of La Rochefoucauld that has stuck in my mind and which is apposite in connection with this book written by a law professor who takes a basically cynical view of human beings but who nevertheless believes that we are capable of great achievements - and sometimes even when we begin by faking it. The book is a witty tour of human foibles, masks and peculiarities, many of which arise from the very nature of social interaction. Politeness, civility and manners involve social interactions where total sincerity becomes total tactlessness and feelings are hurt all round. The author covers an amazing range of topics: teachings of Jesus in the New Testament, sex, religious rituals, flattery, children and family relationships, illness and false modesty. One of the consequences of Miller's approach is that he becomes hyper-aware and is always on the look-out for his own fake behaviour! However, this has little in common with the mindfulness of Vipassana practice which I think leads to a different kind of self-awareness. The cynical view is also reductionist in imputing less than noble motives to everyone, even if this analysis is in fact wrong. At the end he reflects on the relationship between the knave (deception) and the fool (self-deception), remarking that they can easily co-exist in the same person. The book sheds a great deal of light on patterns of social behaviour in a way that will give all his readers pause for thought as they examine the recesses of their own identity and motivation.