13 Sep /16

Dispute

Dispute – Word of the day - EVS Translations
Dispute – Word of the day – EVS Translations

Scrolling is on its way to be recognised as an Olympic sport. Jokes aside, but it is a real fact that the time we spend on the Internet has doubled over the last decade, and that much of our communication is happening online, with a serious part of it – with perfect strangers.

And whether due to procrastination, boredom or more likely deeper rooted reasons, some of us frequently engage in disputes in the comment sections.

To have a proper conversation is challenging enough, and to criticize with kindness is an art by itself. And while it is all good to have an opinion, it is, of course, preferable to be informed rather than just opinionated. The freedom of speech is a fundamental human right, but when comes to disputes, we all should remember what Voltaire said five hundred years ago: “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to death your right to say it.”

The art of dispute is an idea worthy of the time of philosophers and thinkers, with its aim best defined by Arthur Martine, in his 1866 guide to the art of conversation: “let your aim be to come at truth, not to conquer your opponent. So you never shall be at a loss in losing the argument, and gaining a new discovery.”

In a dispute, the opponents’ goal should be coming at truth and not arguing for the sake of conquering. Furthermore, studies show that one has better chances of his criticism to be taken into consideration if they first agree with some part of their opponent’s opinion, as that makes the opponent a more receptive audience and helps to take the subject further to a constructive discussion.

The very word dispute entered the English language circa 13th century through the Old French desputer ‘fight over, contend for, discuss,’ which derived from the Latin disputare ‘weigh, examine, discuss, argue, explain,’ and the first written source to mention it was the historical and religious Middle English poem Cursor Mundi (from Latin “Ruler of The World”.) The Ruler of the World featured the verb infinitive, while the first source to use the noun, is most likely

Thomas Herbert in his 1638 Some years travels into divers parts of Asia and Enrique:  “Without more dispute or delay [he] commands them all to execution.”

After that execution, the etymological story of our word did not progress much further from its original meaning and vocabulary uses, up to the Internet era and today when every keyboard hit has certain potential to result in a huge international dispute.