Acknowledgment and its Absence

Acknowledgment and its Absence

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1994 10 October 11 Acknowledgment and its Absence (256)

The well-known English writer, G.K. Chesterton (1874-1936) once made the observation that “people generally quarrel, because they cannot argue.”

Whenever a discussion between two people on a controversial subject becomes heated, when one of the two starts raising his voice, or starts talkingly offensively to the other, this is a clear indication of his own sense of inadequacy in argument, and of his desire to compensate for this shortcoming with torments of words. Turning a conversation into a quarrel is proof of one’s own weakness vis-à-vis the other party.

Argument is more powerful than anger just as a bomb is more powerful than a sword. One equipped with a more powerful weapon will never turn to a less powerful weapon. Similarly, one who has the strengths of skill in argument will never stoop to display anger to his rival. Sure of his ground, he will demonstrate confidence, while his opponent, standing on the shaky ground of fallacy, will display signs of irritation and lack of confidence.

Regardless of the topic under discussion, after there has been a certain amount of argument on both sides, it becomes clear at some stage that one viewpoint is correct, the other incorrect. Very often, instead of acknowledging the truth, the holders of the wrong viewpoint gives vent to a burst of anger. This is because he does not understand what greatness of spirit it shows to bow to the truth, while admitting that one was wrong. He is generally more concerned with loss of face than acceptance of the truth.