Recommendations for public discussion
Communication and Argument included his recommendations for civilized public discussions.
Næss argued for abstaining from the following to make discussions as fruitful and pleasant as possible:
1. Avoiding tendentious irrelevance
Examples: Personal attacks, claims of opponents' motivation, explaining reasons for an argument.
2. Avoiding tendentious reciting
Reproductions should be neutral regarding the subject of the debate.
3. Avoiding tendentious ambiguity
Ambiguous arguments may be easily adopted to suit criticism.
4. Avoiding tendentious use of straw men
Assigning views to the opponent that he or she does not hold.
5. Avoiding tendentious original research
Information put forward should never be untrue or incomplete, and one should not withhold any relevant information.
6. Avoiding tendentious tone of voice
Examples: irony, sarcasm, pejoratives, exaggeration, subtle (or open) threats.
For many years these points were part of the two compulsory courses in philosophy taught in Norwegian universities ("Examen philosophicum" and "Examen facultatum").
May our arguments be for clarification and for the spreading of light, and the heat shouild be only for those who deserve it.
