Theatres of the lie: 'crazy' deception and lying as drama

In this article, the author argues that lying is drama, theatre, which brings about transition, reflection, reversal and involvement of the participants in the drama. By means of ethnographic data of a psychiatric ward, the author shows that lying of mental patients is not pathological, but a ritual of affliction. By using Turner's theory about rituals and performance and Goffman's theory about presentation of the self it will be showed that lying serves the redefinition of reciprocity and solidarity. With the help of Bakhtin's work on Rabelais, the author discusses the nature of the drama of the lie. It is concluded that a perspective on lying as theatre may be of use outside psychiatric wards and will occur in imbalanced power relationships.