Three ways to tell people what you don’t want to hear

in rhetoric (4th century BC) Aristotle identified three modes Persuasionor persuasive appeal, i.e.: the speaker’s personality (spirit), the audience’s emotions (Pathetic), and the argument itself (logo).

Spirit, pathos, and logos are called artistic means of persuasion, in contrast to non-artistic means: harsh evidence of law, witnesses, contracts, etc.

Spirit and worship

In speakers, spirit is also a matter of consent, meeting the expectations of the audience in terms of appearance, dictionary and comment. The Romans called this aspect of the spirit courtesy.

Anything that holds you together with the audience or makes you stand out from it is a violation of politeness. This may vary from audience to audience. For example, an academic audience would expect jargon that could cause discomfort to a typical audience. Unfortunately, complexity and subtlety can be a polite violation, exaggeration and vulgarity.

in rhetoricAristotle states that it is their simplicity that makes people less educated than those who were educated before a general audience.

It is this simplicity that makes people more effective than those who are less educated when addressing popular audiences, as the poet says, “makes the ears of the crowd more finely.” Educated men established a wide range of general principles. Uneducated men argue from general knowledge and draw clear conclusions.

Time to break courtesy

Rhetorician Quintilian (DC 100 CE), author of The Oratory Institutepointing out that what may be refined in the eyes of the audience may be abominable in the eternal aspect, namely God’s eyes.

Quintilian, for example, cites the trial of Socrates. How will this paragon of virtue be remembered today if, instead of facing them, he shed tears, relying on prayers and pleas, and attempting to meet the expectations of the ju-cited ju-san by asserting young children?

Today, many politicians in America are tackling this issue when dealing with their bases. It is much easier to be decorated in front of an audience that is refined in itself.

How to break courtesy

So, how do you tell your audience something you don’t want to hear?

One strategy is to reluctantly seem to have been driven only by the overwhelming force of discussion. Sometimes we use a technique known as Suspicioninvolves expressing doubts and uncertainty about what to say.

Another approach is to make your conclusion look like a concession in the face of even greater evils, such as inflation or recession.

And the third thing is to make your stance appear to match with orthodox, like when Elon Musk (he himself a South African) defended a skilled immigrant visa as “America.”

These techniques work for politicians and public figures and also work for you.