In philosophy and rhetoric, eristic refers to argument that aims to successfully dispute another's argument, rather than searching for truth. According to T.H. Irwin, "It is characteristic of the eristic to think of some arguments as a way of defeating the other side, by showing that an opponent must assent to the negation of what he initially took himself to believe." Eristic is arguing for the sake of conflict, as opposed to resolving conflict.
Use in education
Eristic was a type of "question-and-answer" teaching method popularized by the Sophists, such as Euthydemos and Dionysiodoros. Students learned eristic arguments to "refute their opponent, no matterwhether he yes or no in answer to their initial question". Plato contrasted this type of argument with dialectic and other more reasonable and logical methods. In the dialogue Euthydemus, Plato satirizes eristic. It is more than persuasion, and it is more than discourse. It is a combination that wins an argument without regard to truth. Plato believed that the eristic style "did not constitute a method of argument" because to argue eristically is to consciously use fallacious arguments, which therefore weakens one's position. Unlike Plato, Isocrates did not distinguish eristic from dialectic. He held that both lacked a "'useful application'... that created responsible citizens", which unscrupulous teachers used for "enriching themselves at the expense of the youth."
Philosophical eristic
considers that only logic pursues truth. For him, dialectic, sophistry and eristic have no objective truth in view, but only the appearance of it, and pay no regard to truth itself because it aims at victory. He names these three last methods as "eristic dialectic." According to Schopenhauer, Eristic Dialectic is mainly concerned to tabulate and analyzedishonest stratagems, so that they may at once be recognized and defeated, in order to continue with a productive dialectic debate. It is for this very reason that Eristic Dialectic must admittedly take victory, and not objective truth, for its selfish aim and purpose.
