blame-shifters?? what is the difference between an excuse and a reason??

Question

When you think you are giving someone a reason for something, is it really an excuse?

Who is qualified to decide the difference? When you 'think' you are offering a 'legitamate' reason, and told it is an excuse? Is it a question of searching one's self?

Or.. should it be left for another to decide?

Answer 1

If you took away the excuse, there would be another

If you take away the reason, then it never would occur.

Answer 2

A REASON is simply "Why the event occurred".

An EXCUSE is "Why I am not at fault for the event."

So, a reason has no moral content. Every action or circumstance has a reason. Bank robbers and serial killers have their reasons. So, reasons are very different from excuses.

Not every action or circumstance has an excuse. Many are inexcusable, meaning there is no possible statement that could lessen the blame -- e.g., the holocaust, Ted Bundy's murder spree.

If I willfully murdered a stranger to steal his leather jacket, the reason for the crime is obvious: I wanted a free leather jacket. However, there is no possible excuse for this crime.

So, to tell whether you are giving a reason or an excuse, just ask yourself: Am I attempting to clarify why this happened, or attempting to clarify why it's not really my fault?

If you made a mistake or committed an immoral act, then laying down the reasons for the act is often a way of owning up to the error and showing that you know you are at fault.

Answer 3

Everything has a reason, but not everything has an excuse. A reason is just an explanation of why something occurred. An excuse excuses the perpetrator of the action from blame.

For example, there is no excuse for why your girlfriend lied to you--she should still be blamed for lying. But, there is a reason why she did it--she didn't want you to know what she was really doing last Friday night.

Answer 4

An excuse is usually telling someone why something happened - and often blaming it on something else other than the actual person. So it's kind of saying that you did something, but what you did was because of some other force you had no control over - so, in other words it's a clever way to cop out of responsibility.
Giving someone a reason why you did something means you are simply telling them why you did something and you are taking full responsibility for all your actions and reprocussions.

Answer 5

I would say an excuse is usually a false statement to cover up your actual reason.

A reason would by definition be an actual cause. An excuse would be a lie.

Answer 6

It could be......but its not my fault, you asked first.