善意的谎言

    White lie字面解释是“白色的谎言”，这个短语是什么意思呢？请看对话：

    A: Shall I wear the white dress to the dinner party?

    B: I’d prefer you wear the black one, which makes you look slimmer.

    A: But everybody in my office told me that the white dress looked great on me.

    B: Honey, they were telling you white lies.

    Note: A white lie is told to avoid hurting people. In contrary to white lies, which refer to well-intentioned lies, such as parents’ lies about Santa Claus, black lies refer to malicious lies. It’s based on the ancient Western idea of polar opposites, represented in popular culture through white meaning good and black its evil antithesis. The color white has always been a symbol for purity and innocence. We have white magic, for example, beneficent magic that’s opposed to the malign black variety.