Beliefs 4: Lost Performatives

Are you fooling yourself?.....

Beliefs 4: Lost Performatives

Date: 7/28/2026

(NOTE: It is recommended to read "Beliefs 1: Introduction" before reading this article. )

A. What are Lost Performative Beliefs?

A Lost Performative Belief is a value judgment or opinion stated as though it were an unquestionable fact, without identifying who is making the judgment or what standard is being used. It is important to recognize this type of belief because it may be outdated, based on someone's personal opinion rather than objective fact, true only under certain circumstances, or appropriate for some people but not for others. Sometimes these beliefs are simply not true. And, of course, as with all beliefs, some of them are very accurate and useful.

Sometimes this type of belief can be especially difficult to identify because it is stated as though it were obviously true and applicable to everyone.

B. Examples of Lost Performative Beliefs

Many of these beliefs are in either the Cause-Effect format or the Complex Equivalence format. (For more information, see the previous two articles). Many folk sayings are Lost Performatives.

Cause Effect (A causes B):

"It is healthy to drink two glasses of water when you wake up in the morning".
"Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise"
"To be successful you have to work hard"

Complex Equivalence (A = B):

"Time is money"
"Chocolate is a healthy food"
"It is important to be very strict with children"
"I am successful"
"I am a failure"

In Advertising

We find this type of belief in a lot of advertising we are constantly exposed to. Advertisers often persuade people to buy products and services by presenting opinions and value judgments as though they were universally accepted truths. Even when people "know" that the advertiser's claim may not be true, the ads are cleverly created to make an unconscious impression on the consumer. And, the bottom line is that people buy these products and services.

Claiming Authority: Phrases such as "It is known that..." or "Studies show..." do not tell the specific source, and it makes the claim sound like absolute truth. Example: "Many studies have shown that Ploni toothpaste prevents cavities and whitens your teeth."

Creating Pressure: Using slogans like "The best choice for you " implies an undisputed agreement, making the consumer feel they must buy. Example: "the best value choice for your auto policy."

Discouraging Critical Thinking: Stating "It’s wrong to settle for less" introduces an ethical judgment without stating who thinks it is wrong. This works on an emotional level. Example: From an anti-smoking campaign "It is wrong to smoke cigarettes in front of children" , Whether one agrees with the statement or not, it is still presented as a value judgment without identifying whose standard of "wrong" is being used.

Presenting Opinions as Facts: Words like "good," "bad," "premium," "healthy," "right," or "wrong" are used without defining the criteria for making the claim (e.g., "The right choice for you"). Example: a famous brand of ketchup uses the phrase: "the right choice" in its advertisements.

In Our Community

There is a phrase that is sometimes used by people in our community that introduces a Lost Performative. The phrase translates as "It is well known that".

The Hebrew speakers may say: "זה ידוע ש"

The English speakers might say: "It's Yadua that___"

The statement that follows this phrase may be true, partly true, or false. Simply adding the phrase "it is well known" does not provide any evidence that the statement is actually correct. Like any Lost Performative, these claims can be evaluated using the questions in Section C below.

Another area in which this pattern appears is when a Halacha is presented as though it is accepted by all the Poskim. For example: Somebody says to you "What you are doing is Assur." You can respectfully ask, "Which Poskim hold this way?" This is not meant to challenge the Halacha itself, but rather to clarify whether the ruling represents a consensus opinion or a particular Halachic view.

A similar situation arises when someone attributes a Halacha to a particular Rav such as "Rav Ploni holds that it is Assur to ___." It is reasonable to politely ask how they know that this Rav actually ruled that way. Did they hear it from the Rav himself or from other people? Furthermore, was the ruling intended for every situation or for a particular person or set of circumstances?

The purpose of these questions is to understand the source and scope of a ruling more accurately.

The Lost Performative occurs when a particular Halachic opinion is presented as though it were an established Halachic fact accepted by everyone, without identifying whose opinion it is or acknowledging that other legitimate opinions may exist.

C. How to Identify, Evaluate, and Correct L.P. Beliefs.

Ask:

"According to whom?"
"Who says__ ?"
"How do you know___?"
"Compared to what?"
"By what standard?"

If they respond with statements such as "There have been studies on this", you can ask them for more details: "Which studies?" "When were they conducted?" "Have there been any studies to the contrary?"

You can also challenge them as Cause Effect or Complex Equivalence beliefs (see the previous two articles)

Going back to the examples above...Let's return to the first Cause Effect belief "According to whom is it good to drink two glasses of water upon waking up in the morning?" This was advice given to me by my doctor. He told me that when a person wakes up in the morning he has been fasting for many hours and it is healthy to break the fast with two glasses of water. My doctor recommended this to me and I imagine that it is good advice for most people. Whether it is appropriate for everyone depends on each individual and his medical history.

Now let's consider the "chocolate is a healthy food" belief in the Complex Equivalence beliefs mentioned earlier. I actually saw this written on a sign in the window of a candy store in Jerusalem many years ago. This is a good example of a Lost Performative because the advertisement presents a value judgment ("healthy") as though it were an unquestionable fact that applies to everybody. Now we know to ask: "Who says this is true for everybody?" (Some people might even ask: "Is this true for anybody?!")

In the next article, I plan to examine another important category of beliefs—Generalizations people make about themselves, other people, and life situations—and how these seemingly harmless conclusions can create unnecessary problems in their lives...