C.S. Lewis made a very intriguing point in his essay "God in the Dock." In it, Lewis talks about a term he coins 'Bulverism.' Bulverism, is according to Lewis, the art of arguing where one makes an attack not on the validity of an argument, but rather on the person arguing a certain point. This poor style of argument was named after Ezekiel Bulver, who discovered this from of debating while observing his parents fighting. This form of argument, where a person attacks the credibility of the debating person, rather than his argument, has become common place, and there are many areas where you can observe this.
Perhaps the most disturbing area where this has been used is in politics. In politics, it is common place to attack the name of a politician rather than his position. This can be seen most vigorously during the campaign season, when ads bombard our televisions, radios, and mailboxes. Often times, the ads negatively attack the opposing candidate, rather than their positions, or even the position of the candidate sending the message. Another political example is the thoughts of the voters. Oftentimes, voters will vote strictly on party lines, rather than on the candidate who best represents their views. This is seen on election day and also in the chambers of our politicians; for instance, the health care debate has fallen into a partisan debate, where politicians are voting almost entirely on party lines, rather than on their own beliefs, or the beliefs of their constituents, who politicians to often forget is who they are really voting for. This is Bulverism, as the attack is coming on not a view or an opinion, but on a label of a person. These are disturbing examples, which show the true state of our politicians, and the extremely negative affect Bulverism has had on our society.
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I agree, Nate, that politics are filled with Bulverism. I like your point made about negative television ads during political campaigns. These ads are filled with exxagerations and bias that gives a false representation of a person. Politicains are trying to use fear as a tool against a person instead of truth or reason.
ReplyDeleteWhat I find most intriguing about your post, Nate, is the part in which you address voters making decisions along party lines. I find it highly unlikely that a voter, looking at objectively at each issue, would just happen to agree on dozens of points with one of the two major political parties. If more people avoid Bulverism, I presume, party lines would not be so rigid, and real good could come out of politics.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you in how disturbing it is to see Bulverism used in politics. I often wonder how good of decisions Congress can make when it's debate uses Bulverism so heavily. I also find it harder to make good decisions on who to vote for because of the political ads that are based on discrediting opponents.
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