Winning Arguments

What Works and Doesn't Work in Politics, the Bedroom, the Courtroom, and the Classroom

By: Stanley Fish

Narrated by: Joe Barrett

Length: 6 hrs

Publisher's summary

A lively and accessible guide to understanding rhetoric by the world-class English and law professor and best-selling author of How to Write a Sentence.

Filled with the wit and observational prowess that shaped Stanley Fish's acclaimed best seller, How to Write a Sentence, Winning Arguments guides listeners through the "greatest hits" of rhetoric. In this clever and engaging guide, Fish offers insight and outlines the crucial keys you need to win any debate, anywhere, anytime - drawn from landmark legal cases, politics, his own career, and even popular film and television.

A celebration of clashing minds and viewpoints, Winning Arguments is sure to become a classic.

©2016 Stanley Fish (P)2016 HarperCollins Publishers

Somewhat useful

Listener gets dragged through quite pile of ridiculous religious examples in order to find actionable information. Between the gems are lots of blah blah blah.

Stimulating enough to complete

This is a "good enough" book to read all the way to the end. I was particularly interested in the section on law as well as academia, and for me, these two chapters are possible future books for the author to amplify as stand alone detailed books on their own.

Too much academia

This book is geared toward academics who enjoy using their immense vocabularies to impress laymen. Unfortunately is does nothing to teach one how to win an argument.

Lots of theory, little practicality for daily use

Narration was great. The material was more an intellectual exercise with multiple paradigms to famous arguments referenced and less a practical breakdown of the useful anatomy of an argument. More for the student than the general consumer.

It's meant tongue-in-cheek

This book is about the paradox that the title is meant tongue-in-cheek. And I highly recommend it to everyone, especially if you are looking for a book to help you win more arguments.

Postmodern shit

Postmodern shit



Absolutely sad




Terrible





For a lack of better words of course hmmm


God ha.

Not what I was expecting...

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

I was hoping that this would be a book about a practical system of argumentation (i.e., a practical book on how to win arguments). That is, I was expecting a book that distilled classical and modern argumentation theory into a simplified practical system for the layman on how to win arguments.

This was not such a work, in my opinion. This books seems to be comprised of some disparate tips scattered throughout. Personally, I did not find the tips helpful, and I found them to be few in number.To give an example - regarding one of the chapters - there are a few useful tips for someone who has little or no background in constructive communication, these tips can be found for free on the Internet in any interpersonal communication self-help site (e.g., using "I" statements" to own your feelings, or saying something to the effect of "that makes sense" to allow the person to feel understood and reduce defensiveness).

The author's credentials are fantastic, and I'm sure he has the potential to create a work that is a practical and simplified system of argumentation for the layman, if he has the inclination. I hope that he does, as I would purchase it. This book was not for me, though.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

I liked the narrator, and will check out some audiobooks he has done.

Raising the Level of Discourse

First of all, this books is terrific. However, the other reviews are correct about the title being misleading. This isn’t a book on how to win an argument, because that is technically impossible. Rather, this is a book about what arguments actually are and how they function in human society.

This isn’t easy reading, but you will definitely walk away from this book wiser for having had the experience. Fish covers many different types of arguments including political, legal, domestic, and academic arguments. The setting, rules, and functions are all different, but Fish’s central thesis remains the same: argument is both unavoidable and necessary for human progress, so it’s best to know how to play the game. Finally, Joe Barrett is a fine narrator, albeit a bit dry. However, that may be excused given the subject matter. Overall, very highly recommended!