"Bulverism" Response

"The modern method is to assume without discussion that he is wrong and then distract his attention from this (the only real issue) by busily explaining how he became to be so silly." This is Bulverism, as Lewis names it.

Immediately I am reminded of my relationship, throughout my life, with my brother. In typical brotherly fashion we would bicker and fight all the time. It didn't really matter who was right, but only who won. I remember that quite often we would have a sever disagreement about something like who would win the basketball game tomorrow, and instead of arguing against my pick, my brother would simply say that I don't know anything about basketball and disregard my choice (though our roles were often reversed). We would be brutal, attacking the other person's character, throwing out insults left and right, until in the end we didn't really care about the game, or whatever it was, we were only mad at each other. When the game finally did roll around, it didn't matter very much, the argument was already over by that time.

Bulverism just seems childish to me (perhaps because I was so guilty of it as a kid). Every time I am guilty of it today, I feel like I have done a discredit to myself and whoever I was arguing with at the time. Bulverism doesn't seek truth, it doesn't make you gain knowledge, the only thing one can gain from employing it is the self-satisfaction of winning.

Lewis also makes the point that simply because a person wants to believe something (Lewis uses the phrase "tainted thought") this does not mean the person is wrong. The belief is not invalid simply because a person has ulterior motives for believing it.

Bulverism is also rampant in politics. Every politician attacks his or her opponent's views not only by trying to show that they are wrong, but merely assuming it and insulting the other candidate. It is often easier to attack a person's character than it is to be willing to admit you might be wrong. Because, if you are not going to employ Bulverism, there is a chance you will lose the argument. With Bulverism, you don't ever have to be wrong if you are more skilled at arguing. It is difficult to escape Bulverism, but in order to be a real seeker of truth, I feel Bulverism must be discarded.