The Difference Between Truth and Opinion: How the Misuse of Language Can Lead to Disaster (Hardcover)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

In this brilliant analysis of the role of language in confrontation, Timothy J Cooney asks 'Who would go to war under the banner, 'We believe we may be right' or 'In my opinion God is on our side'? Most people will passionately defend what they believe to be true - whether it's true or not. We state what we believe to be true in what Cooney calls the bold, declarative form. Instead of saying, 'It is true that the world is round!' we just say 'The world is round!' and the form implies that our message is true. Unfortunately, the easiest thing in the world is to take what is actually an opinion and put it in a declarative form. One need only drop the first three words of the message 'In my opinion there is other life in the universe' to demonstrate how meaning can shift dramatically.But it is still an opinion, despite its form; it is what Cooney calls a 'phony declarative' or 'an opinion masquerading as truth', and he illustrates that if phonies were recognised for the opinions they actually are, many a heated public debate would be exposed as word play. The distinction between truth and opinion is much more than an exercise for those who enjoy unravelling the distortions of language; it has become a matter of life and death in a world that is crowded, polluted, obsessed with religion, and armed-to-the-teeth.Opinion, recognised and expressed as such, generates little fury; but if opinion is believed to be truth and expressed in the bold, declarative form, it can drive us to distraction - and destruction. If we refer to our opinions as opinions, we can develop a more relaxed attitude toward our fellow human beings, even as we also (by the way we express ourselves) undermine the grip of dogma on the minds of others. But in order to put our opinions in their proper form, we must first be able to recognise the difference between truth and opinion, and this is no easy task. Cooney patiently and precisely opens up the background arguments of various messages expressed in the bold, declarative form, demonstrating which of them are true and why - and which are matters of opinion.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 127 pages
• Publisher: Prometheus Books (May 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879756683
• ISBN-13: 978-0879756680
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,695,312 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Hayakawa Deserves Far Worthier Company, January 7, 2004

By	First Things First "captainreflection" (Burbank, CA United States) - See all my reviews

I checked this book out of the Los Angeles Library on the recommendation of the previous reviewer, who, in a glowing 5-star review, lauded it as a "wonderful companion to Hayakawa," referring to his seminal "Language In Thought and Action" which I've always considered one of the great and accessible works concerning human communication. Now that I've read it, I would like to caution those who would read it as I did, on that reviewer's description alone, to be very wary... this book, although a quick and easy read, and not without some merit of its own, is in a class far below a great work of linguistics theory, like Hayakawa's. This book's purpose is a noble and important one: to establish basic language protocols and universal societal rules, whereby truth and opinion are expressed as such and are easily distinguishable from one other. This, in an attempt to remedy the state of perpetual confusion caused when opinion is stated as truth, a mistake which according to our author, is the cause of most of the world's strife and bloodshed historically and presently. He does have a point, albeit a rather unoriginal one, and despite the fact that, "in my opinion" he does a reasonably good job of expressing his ideas, one feels at book's end that the treatment was so brief and simplistic as to be a bit banal. A point in the book's favor is that these very factors might make it a useful introduction for readers new to such subject matter. I, for one, felt like I was reading a children's book when the author was setting up his hypothetical societies and morality codes, all the while peppering his text with original terms to season his ideological burgoo. Particularly annoying was his arrogation of "PC" to mean, "primary code" in his special language, an abbreviation I never ceased to equate with "political correctness" no matter how many times I tried to train myself to react otherwise. Furthermore, there is an unmistakable vibe running through the text in which the author, apparently a bit drunk on his self-perceived gravitas, seems to think that via this book he has singlehandedly taken the first giant leap towards solving the world's worst problems, this despite the brevity of his text, his lack of a particularly impressive or intellectual writing style, and the abundant typos which get worse and worse towards the end of the book. Lastly, and please forgive me for making such a superficial observation, the picture of the author on the back cover, in which he looks like a cross between Chuck Conners a.k.a. the Rifleman, and hairdresser to the stars Jose' Eber - complete with hat and holding a favorite pussy cat of his no less, fails to engrave the image of a trenchant philosopher of language on one's mind's eye, at least in this reviewer's opinion.