Thank You for Arguing, Third EditionA master class in the art of persuasion, as taught by professors ranging from Bart Simpson to Winston Churchill, newly revised and updated. The time-tested secrets taught in this book include Cicero's three-step strategy for moving an audience to action, and Honest Abe's Shameless Trick for lowering an audience's expectations. And it's also replete with contemporary techniques such as politicians' use of code language to appeal to specfic groups and an eye-opening assortment of persuasive tricks, including the Eddie Haskell Ploy, the Belushi Paradigm, Stalin's Timing Secret, and the Yoda Technique. Whether you're an inveterate lover of language books or just want to win a lot more anger-free arguments on the page, at the podium, or over a beer, Thank You for Arguing is for you. Warm, witty, erudite, and truly enlightening, it not only teaches you how to recognize a paralipsis when you hear it, but also how to wield the weapons of persuasion the next time you really, really, want to get your own way. |
Contents
Open Your Eyes | 3 |
Set Your Goals | 15 |
Control the Tense | 27 |
Soften Them Up | 38 |
Get Them to Like You | 47 |
Make Them Listen | 57 |
Use Your Craft | 69 |
DEFENSE | 136 |
Capture Your Audience | 319 |
Write a Persuasive Essay | 333 |
Use the Right Tools | 348 |
Run an Agreeable Country | 361 |
Argument Lab | 375 |
The Tools | 419 |
Chronology | 437 |
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS | 443 |
Common terms and phrases
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