Thank You For Arguing: The Art Of Persuasion By Jay Heinrichs

Arguing is an Art
Jay Heinrichs is a former editor of multiple magazines, such as National Wildlife and “Dartmouth Alumni” while also being a group publisher of the Ivy League Magazine Network. He's the author of many books including The Yankee Way to Simplify Your Life and is the co-author of Home Remedies from a Country Doctor. What will be discussed throughout this essay though is his famous New York Times bestseller Thank You for Arguing: What Aristotle, Lincoln, and Homer Simpson Can Teach Us about the Art of Persuasion. Luckily for those who don’t speak English but are interested in reading up on arguing tips, this book has been published in a total of 12 languages. There are also three editions for this leading modern work on rhetoric.

Although this topic may seem boring, he does it in a way that's entertaining while continuing to stay on track with what he's teaching. In the book, he unfolds the secrets persuasive people like Abraham Lincoln, Cicero, and Aristotle have used throughout different time periods to persuade an audience. Heinrichs stresses that no matter the era, the same rhetorical techniques could still be used to win over a crowd. He believed that as long as the correct tools he was teaching were used at the correct time, the argument would end positively. The strategy he discusses the most throughout the book is for the persuader to act like they're on the audience’s side. He believes that one must not only have the appropriate attire and speech to convince an audience to follow them, but they must also have the same values. Having the same values means finding a core commonplace, common belief, or common opinion with the audience. That way, the speaker and the audience will both have something to agree on and go back to when there's a

In this book, Heinrichs teaches the reader valuable information which can be extremely useful in today's society to get someone what they want. He states that the reason for writing this book is “to lead [the reader] through this ill-known world of argument...”(Heinrichs 5). Whether the persuasive criteria is used in regular advertising seen on television or the well-thought-out speeches that make the audience want to get up and do what the speaker is saying they should do, this book provides plenty of thoughtful examples. This proves that what the author is saying is valid, making this seem like a resource anyone can use. In the book, Heinrichs goes in depth on how to use certain forms of rhetoric with vivid explanations on how to apply them for everyday life circumstances. This book does an exceedingly good job on teaching the readers good tips on arguing, making it an exceptional book to assign for students to read, because knowing exactly how to use these tools can no doubt persuade the audience to feel the need and want to get what the speaker wants