In ancient Greece, oratorical skills, the ability to conduct a conversation, to defend one's point of view and to convince opponents were very highly valued. It is no coincidence that many terms related to the art of dispute and polemic are of Greek origin. One of these terms is ericism. What is it?
Where did the word "eristika" come from?
Translated from the ancient Greek language, "eriste techne" means "the art of arguing, " and "ericicos" means "arguing." That is, ericism is the ability to argue, to debate with opponents.
It would seem that there is nothing wrong with such a definition, because everyone has the right to their point of view, beliefs, and, accordingly, the right to dispute on any matter of interest to him. However, for example, the great scientist and philosopher Aristotle disapproved of ericism, calling it the art of argument by dishonest means. Why?
The fact is that initially the adherents of ericism set as their main goal to achieve victory in the dispute, convincing the opponent of the weight of their arguments, but over time their behavior has completely changed. Now they tried not so much to convince the opponent of their innocence (which is understandable and natural), how to achieve victory in any way, not paying attention to whose arguments, arguments look more believable. At the same time, they did not even disdain unworthy tricks: lying, conducting a dispute with elevated tones, and switching to personalities.
It is no coincidence that the word "eristicos" means not only "arguing, " but also "grumpy."