The art of controversy
and other posthumous papers
by Arthur Schopenhauer · first published 1896
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2008–2021first – last mentioned
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Schopenhauer wrote a good one, his 38 Stratagems from The Art of Controversy, all of them still very relevant. e.g. I see #32 all the time: If you are confronted with an assertion, there is a short way of getting rid of it, or, at any rate, of throwing suspicion on it, by putting…
on “Your statement is correct but misses the point” ↗Brilliant, worth a read "the Art of Controversy by Arthur Schopenhauer".
on “How to Disagree” ↗Schopenhauer is one of the most amusing philosophers of the 19th century. I have a soft spot for his Art of Controversy[1] which was an early guide to trolling and other disingenuous argumentation. For example, “Put His Thesis Into Some Odious Category” has popularity that endures to this day. [1] http://coolhaus.de/art-of-controversy/
on “Schopenhauer: On Reading and Books” ↗Schopenhauer practically wrote the book on forum trolling with The Art of Controversy[1]. I concur his online presence would be hilarious. [1] http://coolhaus.de/art-of-controversy/
on “Schopenhauer: On Reading and Books” ↗The original title of Schopenhauer's “Art of Controversy” could be more accurately translated as “The Art of being always Right” (Die Kunst, Recht zu behalten). The reason why he described those stratagems was to prove his point: that the goal of a controversy…
on “How to Disagree” ↗…at hand. When they are used like that they could be considered incompatible with a commitment to reason, or as fallacies. The philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer documented these tactics humorously in The Art of Controversy (Chapter III): http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/s/schopenhauer/arthur/controve...
on “Logical fallacies” ↗