Comparing the Definition of Lying from the Western and Islamic Perspective

The classic definition of lying in the West consists of three categories: 1. a false statement is said, 2. the speaker is aware of the falsehood of the statement, and 3. the speaker intends to deceive the audience. In the late twentieth century, the three-constituent definition of lying, particularly the third category (intention of deception), has been disputed and new definitions were presented. In alternative definitions, the term assertion is utilized, and by focusing on this term, issues such as humor, joking, theater, etc. are attempted to be excluded from the definition of lying. Most definitions presented by philosophers and jurists made use of the term reporting. This term (reporting) nicely removes humor and joking from lying since reporting other issues does not exist in them. As a result, Muslim thinkers did not recognize the intention of deception as a category of lying. This article demonstrates how concentrating on the two terms, reporting and assertion, makes the attachment “intention of deception” as a category of lying redundant.