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Honesty In Avi's Nothing But The Truth

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Everyone is a liar. From little white lies to fibs completely blown out of proportion, we all lie. Sometimes lying seems necessary for we lie to help someone or to spare hurt feelings, so we convince ourselves that our actions are justified and to some unknown point they are. The difference between a liar and someone who just tries to help is whether they will admit to their wrongdoings and try to repent for their actions. While people who just try to help eventually get applauded for their actions, liars get scorned. In the novel, Nothing But the Truth by Avi, the protagonist, a ninth grader by the name of Philip Malloy, succumbs to his own lie and lets his inner selfish motives become more important than the truth, ruining the reputation of someone who just tried to help. While attending Harrison High, running enthusiast Philip Mallory runs into a major problem when attempting to join the school track team. Unfortunately his grade in English, the one class with the teacher that he truly can't stand, is not up to par with both the his track coach’s demands and the pressurizing gaze of his parents who just want Philip to go to college. Because of this grade, Philip is not allowed to join the track team, the only thing except math that he enjoys about school. Matters worsen when Philip’s homeroom is switched from a …show more content…

Now instead of one small lie, there is a spider web which will eventually entangle Philip. At the end of the novel, Philip essentially wins and gets what he wants. He is not only rid of Ms. Narwin but the entire school. Ironically enough, he attends Washington Academy a school where people are encouraged to sing the national anthem. When asked to lead his new class in singing the anthem, he begins to cry for he does not know the words. His spider web of lies has engulfed him and he has ultimately led to his own

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