"Rhetoric and Sophistry" - Why are you always talked down? A must-read for kind and serious people!
Hidenobu Kozai's "Rhetoric and Sophistry": Synopsis and Review - How to protect your heart from sophistry and pressure, a must-know for kind and serious people
The book I am introducing this time is "Rhetoric and Sophistry" by Hidenobu Kozai, published by Chikuma Shobo in 2010.
Let's take a look at this book right away.
"Questions that force silence," "shifting the point of argument," "the power of binary choices"... clever traps set in discussions.
Have you ever had the experience of being forced into silence, trapped in a situation despite having done nothing wrong?
Acquire the art of debate as a means of "heart" protection!
A collection and analysis of interesting debate techniques, sophistry, and strong-arming from literature and other sources throughout history. A book that is also enjoyable as a read.
I am sure there are many people who have had a hard time being talked down by someone with a sharp tongue.
And sadly, the kinder and more serious a person is, the less they can argue back against such words, and they end up bottling that suffering inside. Even worse, they blame themselves, thinking "it's my fault." As a result, kind and serious people end up becoming increasingly unwell. I believe this is actually happening quite often.
I, too, have suffered in the past from the words of someone with a sharp tongue. Moreover, even when I realized it was clearly coming from an intention to put me down, I couldn't do anything and just blamed myself. The troublesome thing is that people who do this are often in a position of power over you, aren't they... They take advantage of the situation where the target cannot easily argue back to try and put them down. It's hopeless when you're already losing the argument.
In such a world, this book is a wonderful one that should be called a prescription for such suffering.
If you want to gain the strength not to lose to bullying
The author states the following in the preface. It is a very wonderful preface that encourages us. Let's read it carefully.
There are many people who dislike debate. If you ask what they dislike, it is that they hate being talked down and refuted by logic. It is unpleasant. However, conversely, it feels very good to put others down with logic. It gives the most essential joy to humans, who are logical creatures. (Omitted)
If winning an argument brings such essential human joy, there are naturally unpleasant people who will recklessly pick arguments with others just to indulge in that pleasure. They are probably in your workplace too. Even though we are considerate of them and struggle to keep human relationships friendly, trying hard not to spoil the mood, they insensitively and calmly engage in arguments that cut to the quick. They do it because it feels good. Perhaps you, who are holding this book, are not very good at arguing, and are someone who is usually talked down by such unpleasant people, feels unpleasant, and feels pathetic.
However, patience is not the only virtue for humans. Being inarticulate is not manly in any way. Aristotle (384-322 BC), who wrote the oldest existing rhetoric textbook, said this: "It is absurd to hold that a man should be ashamed of an inability to defend himself with his limbs, but not of an inability to defend himself with speech, when speech is more characteristic of man than the use of his limbs."
We must protect our own spirits and hearts with words. Let us arm ourselves like hedgehogs against the verbal violence of insensitive people. When they carelessly touch us, we will give them a sting of pain from our needles and make them realize they shouldn't say things lightly. Please remember. We try to become good at debate to maintain our minimum pride as human beings. This book is written for such "kind-hearted" people to acquire enough debate skills to protect their own hearts with words.
Aristotle's words are impressive, aren't they?
Indeed, if you punch someone with your fist, you will be arrested immediately. Yet, verbal violence is left unchecked, and people who keep punching others with verbal fists walk through the world with a straight face. When you think about it carefully, this is strange, isn't it? However, as long as verbal violence is not easily regulated, you must protect yourself on your own.
That is by no means a shameful thing. It is important to know the techniques of debate to maintain your minimum pride as a human being. Conversely, if you don't know them, you will be easily manipulated by others, and our humanity will be defenselessly trampled upon.
In this book, we will look at the opponent's sophistry using individual examples in a discussion setting. And we will learn how we should counter that sophistry.
As you can see from the table of contents, we will look at specific sophistry using famous literary works as the subject. Some of you might be worried that it might be "difficult" because it uses literary works as the subject, but there is absolutely no need to worry about that. The works themselves are just excerpts of the conversation parts, so the scenes are very concrete and easy to understand. Furthermore, the author's commentary is also very polite and easy to understand. Far from being difficult, I think you will find it interesting and read it in no time.
By knowing what sophistry is through this book, your heart will become overwhelmingly lighter. You will think, "Oh, that's what that person was saying back then; then I'm not at fault. Rather, what that person was saying was nonsense," and the interactions that have caused you so much suffering until now will seem like a lie.
And this is also an important point: you do not need to use what you have learned in this book to openly argue back on the spot. Given your position, openly arguing back on the spot remains difficult due to the atmosphere of the situation.
However, you will become able to immediately recognize, 'Oh, this person is using sophistry to try and corner me right now.' Once that happens, you will realize that there is no need to worry much about what that person is saying. You can then put up a defensive wall, thinking, 'This person is just that kind of person.' With this, you can remain composed without being flustered at all. No matter how much you are verbally beaten, you can significantly reduce the damage.
When that happens, the other party will be surprised by your composure despite their relentless attacks. Then, the attacks will naturally cease. It is important to make them realize that 'this won't work on them.' It is possible to repel them without having to strike back yourself.
This becomes a great source of confidence in our hearts. Our peace of mind increases significantly all at once.
I believe this is what the author calls 'the minimum pride as a human being.' How significant that 'minimum pride' is. We can protect it ourselves. If we can do that, our lives will be completely different from when we are just being pushed around. This is an incredibly big deal, isn't it?
Also, this affects not only one-on-one interpersonal relationships but also how we engage with society.
25 Recommended Novels Recommended by a Monk: Introducing Recommended Works by Level from Beginner to Advanced! of the article, George Orwell's Animal Farm was a work that had the dystopia of society through such sophistry as its very theme.
In 'Rhetoric and Sophistry,' the author uses 'Animal Farm' as a subject to explain the techniques of sophistry and the process by which society heads toward a dystopia as a result.
On the manor farm owned by Mr. Jones, the overworked animals, led by the pigs Snowball and Napoleon, staged a rebellion and drove Mr. Jones out. They renamed the Manor Farm to Animal Farm, established its Seven Commandments, and under the slogan 'All animals are equal,' they tried to create their own utopia.
However, from the very next day, things started to look strange. The milk that had just been milked from the cows had disappeared somewhere. It turned out that the pigs had secretly been using it for their own feed, and when they went as far as to try to monopolize not only the milk but also the apples that had fallen in the wind, voices of dissatisfaction finally began to emerge among the other animals. So, Napoleon sent Squealer, a pig with a silver tongue, as a spokesperson.
'Comrades!' he shouted. 'You do not imagine, I hope, that we pigs are doing this in a spirit of selfishness and privilege? Many of us actually dislike milk and apples. I dislike them myself. Our sole object in taking these things is to preserve our health. Milk and apples (this has been proved by Science, comrades) contain substances absolutely necessary to the well-being of a pig. We pigs are brainworkers. The whole management and organization of this farm depend on us. Day and night we are watching over your welfare. It is for your sake that we drink that milk and eat those apples. Do you know what would happen if we pigs failed in our duty? Jones would come back! Yes, Jones would come back! Surely, comrades, there is no one among you who wants Jones to come back?' Squealer jumped from side to side, flicking his tail busily, and shouted in an almost pleading tone, 'There is no one among you who wants Jones to come back, is there?'
This punchline was effective. Because 'if there was one thing that the animals were completely certain of, it was that they did not want Jones back. When it was put to them in this light, they had no more to say.'
Squealer got a taste for the success of this line of reasoning. Later, when Napoleon drove out the revolutionary hero Snowball in a power struggle and the animals were shaken, he was sent again and threatened them with similar reasoning. 'Comrades, discipline! Iron discipline! That is the watchword for today. One false step, and our enemies would be upon us. Surely, comrades, there is no one among you who wants Jones to come back? Is there?'—'Once again, no one had a word to say against this argument.'
This is a passage that explains the characteristics of 'Animal Farm' without omission. The relationship between the pigs and the animals is like this from beginning to end. What do you think? Don't you feel a growing sense of dread? This is not fiction, but something that actually happened in the Soviet Union, and furthermore, this could happen anywhere in the world even now. No, perhaps the environment surrounding us right now is exactly the same as this.
'Comrades, discipline! Iron discipline! That is the watchword for today. One false step, and our enemies would be upon us. Surely, comrades, there is no one among you who wants Jones to come back? Is there?'
Try substituting various words for 'Jones' in these words. Don't you see a chilling reality?
It is scary because this can happen anytime, anywhere.
Let's continue to look at the explanation.
Or, when it was revealed that the pigs were sleeping in beds in violation of the fourth of the Seven Commandments, he repeated this again. For pigs, sleeping in a bed is necessary for health. No one would think it is okay for us to be exhausted and unable to fulfill our duties. 'Surely, there is no one among you who wants Jones to come back?'—When told this, the animals again had nothing to say in return.
The absurdity of the reasoning Squealer used here should be clear. He asked the animals, 'Do you want Jones to come back?' Naturally, their answer was bound to be 'no.' However, this expression of intent becomes an approval for the pigs to monopolize milk and apples, to sleep in beds against the commandments, or for Napoleon to become a dictator.
This is because Squealer posed the question on the premise of a causal relationship: if you do not approve of the pigs monopolizing milk and apples, sleeping in beds, or Napoleon establishing a dictatorship, then Jones will return. Therefore, the simple-minded animals were taken in and accepted this premise, but if there were someone who did not want Jones to return but also did not approve of the pigs' privileged behavior (that is, someone who was not convinced of the causal relationship between the pigs' series of privileged behaviors and Jones returning), they would have no way to answer 'yes' or 'no' to Squealer's question. Since they do not want Jones to return, of course they would not answer 'yes.' However, if they answered 'no,' they would be made to have approved of the pigs' actions.
Hidenobu Kozai's 'Rhetoric and Sophistry' is, as the title suggests, a book that explains what 'sophistry' is.
This 'Animal Farm' was introduced as one of the representative examples of that sophistry. In this book, you will continue to learn the techniques of sophistry and how to deal with them using concrete examples.
'Rhetoric and Sophistry' will become a very powerful ally in this world that is difficult to live in.
I think it is truly wrong that the world is such that the most earnest and kind people suffer the most.
Certainly, this has been repeated endlessly throughout human history. If someone says, "That's reality," there is nothing more to be said.
However, as the author states, there are things we can do. There are practices we can implement to protect our own hearts. Just knowing that is a great source of strength. I, too, was saved by this book.
I highly recommend this book. The self-protection techniques you can learn from it will not only protect you but also contribute to protecting society. I hope this book reaches as many people as possible.
Also, for those who are troubled because they cannot win against people who are good at arguing, the following articles are also recommended.
These articles also introduce techniques and recommended books for protecting yourself, so I hope you find them helpful.
That concludes "'Rhetoric and Sophistry' - A must-read for earnest and kind people! Why do you lose arguments?"
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