Abstract
What happens when we can no longer persuade each other? As a rhetorician, who is interested in processes of persuasion in all spheres of human activity, I believe many of us would agree that we have entered a period of acute breakdown in our willingness and ability to persuade each other of opinions, the validity of beliefs, and even of facts, which we do not already ourselves believe. Thousands of commentators have described the symptoms and some of the effects of this difficult and potentially dangerous state of affairs.What is needed is an analysis of root causes, both to understand the current crisis of failed persuasion, and remedies and potentially cures for it. I propose completion of four chapters of a book entitled From Scapegoats to Citizens: Religion, Law, and the Architecture of Blame. It will offer both a root cause analysis and insights for a way forward for organizations and individuals.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Place of Publication | Lanham, MD |
| Publisher | Lexington Books/Rowman & Littlefield |
| State | Accepted/In press - 1964 |