The Philosophy of Argument and Audience Reception

Recent work in argumentation theory has emphasized the nature of arguers and arguments along with various theoretical perspectives. Less attention has been given to the third feature of any argumentative situation - the audience. This book fills that gap by studying audience reception to argumentation and the problems that come to light as a result of this shift in focus. Christopher W. Tindale advances the tacit theories of several earlier thinkers by addressing the central problems connected with audience considerations in argumentation, problems that earlier philosophical theories overlook or inadequately accommodate. The main tools employed in exploring the central issues are drawn from contemporary philosophical research on meaning, testimony, emotion and agency. These are then combined with some of the major insights of recent rhetorical work in argumentation to advance our understanding of audiences and suggest avenues for further research.

• Takes argumentation theory in a new direction
• Draws on recent aspects of contemporary philosophy, such as theories of meaning, testimony, emotion and agency
• Reviews some of the major historical philosophical attempts to deal with a theory of audience, including those by Aristotle, Perelman and Habermas