--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Successful argument is a communication…" description: "\"Successful argument is a communication between the acknowledged authority of both parties to the argument.\" — Gerry Spence" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c6b/gerry-spence-9080_argument_successful-argument-is-a-communication-b_1955246.jpg" --- # Successful argument is a communication between the… ![“Successful argument is a communication between the acknowledged authority of both parties to the argument.” quote by Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c6b/gerry-spence-9080_argument_successful-argument-is-a-communication-b_1955246.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c6b/gerry-spence-9080_argument_successful-argument-is-a-communication-b_1955246.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c6b/gerry-spence-9080_argument_successful-argument-is-a-communication-b_1955246.jpg) > “Successful argument is a communication between the acknowledged authority of both parties to the argument.” [Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Effective debate requires both sides to recognize each other's authority and engage respectfully. **In simple terms:** Both sides must respect each other's authority. Key Takeaway Treat opponents as equals. Themes communication authority debate respect Mood thoughtful analytical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - courtroom - negotiations - public forums - policy discussions Key Concepts legitimacy dialogue mutual recognition Questions to Reflect On - How do you ensure mutual respect in heated discussions? - What happens when one side refuses to acknowledge the other? A Different Perspective Power imbalances can still skew dialogue. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Argument](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/argument/) [Argument Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/argument-communication-3197388/) [Authority](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authority/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Communication Acknowledged](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication-acknowledged-3197390/) [Parties Argument](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parties-argument-3197389/) [Party](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/party/) [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) [Successful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/successful/) [Successful Argument](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/successful-argument-3197387/) ## Related quotes > [We are afraid. But fear confirms life and identifies the source of every successful argument - ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/we-are-afraid-but-fear-confirms-life-and-identifies-the-source-of/) [Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) > [“I don’t think it’s healthy to have an argument about communication barriers on the date you’ve been manipulated into taking.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristy-cunning/i-don-t-think-it-s-healthy-to-have-an-argument-about-communication/) [Kristy Cunning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristy-cunning/) > [Anarchism, in my view, is an expression of the idea that the burden of proof is always on those who argue that authority and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/anarchism-in-my-view-is-an-expression-of-the-idea-that-the-burden-of/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [People who reject transcendent authority can no longer persuade one another through rational arguments; everything is reduced to personal opinion. Debates about ideas thus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-colson/people-who-reject-transcendent-authority-can-no-longer-persuade-one/) [Charles Colson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-colson/) > [“Arguments led by subjectivity are a waste of time. And, if they take place online, add to that, a waste of one’s keyboard.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/arguments-led-by-subjectivity-are-a-waste-of-time-and-if-they-take/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [All of the barriers to innovation in the energy sector are arguments for a big commitment to public investment. Only the public sector can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-nordhaus/all-of-the-barriers-to-innovation-in-the-energy-sector-are-arguments/) [Ted Nordhaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-nordhaus/) > [One argument goes that recessions are good for female artists because when money flies out the window, women are allowed in the house. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-saltz/one-argument-goes-that-recessions-are-good-for-female-artists-because/) [Jerry Saltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-saltz/) > [On the stage, the characters express themselves more through words than images. So the arguments of the characters and the tension between characters -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/on-the-stage-the-characters-express-themselves-more-through-words/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [There could be no more powerful argument against mixing religion and government than the success of independent African American churches in placing racial segregation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jacoby/there-could-be-no-more-powerful-argument-against-mixing-religion-and/) [Susan Jacoby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jacoby/) > [As opposed to getting into arguments about, well, these folks have been treated fairly so now we're going to be doing things that, very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/as-opposed-to-getting-into-arguments-about-well-these-folks-have-been/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Any comprehensive doctrine, religious or secular, can be introduced into any political argument at any time, but I argue that people who do this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-rawls/any-comprehensive-doctrine-religious-or-secular-can-be-introduced/) [John Rawls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-rawls/) > [Lutherans, whose arguments and mistakes will not be difficult to contest or discover, do not want to attribute any value to works, and they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-servetus/lutherans-whose-arguments-and-mistakes-will-not-be-difficult-to/) [Michael Servetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-servetus/) > [Preaching to the choir actually arms the choir with arguments and elevates the choir's discourse. There's a reason the right does it and does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-savage/preaching-to-the-choir-actually-arms-the-choir-with-arguments-and/) [Dan Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-savage/) > [A flourishing, morally credible media is a vital component in the maintenance of genuinely public talk, argument about common good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rowan-williams/a-flourishing-morally-credible-media-is-a-vital-component-in-the/) [Rowan Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rowan-williams/) ## More by Gerry Spence > [The function of the law is not to provide justice or to preserve freedom. The function of the law is to keep those who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/the-function-of-the-law-is-not-to-provide-justice-or-to-preserve/) [Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) > [Each of us has been endowed with the perfect power to be free. Slavery is a state of mind that fails to acknowledge the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/each-of-us-has-been-endowed-with-the-perfect-power-to-be-free-slavery/) [Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) > [When you are faced with prejudice, logic and justice are impotent. Still, we may have an obligation to argue directly into the face of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/when-you-are-faced-with-prejudice-logic-and-justice-are-impotent/) [Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) > [Under any religion, the preestablished impersonal code transcends the right of the individual to explore, experience, and marvel at the mysteries of his own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/under-any-religion-the-preestablished-impersonal-code-transcends-the/) [Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) > [The new and most powerful union of all will be a union of one one man, one woman, one worker with special skills, an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/the-new-and-most-powerful-union-of-all-will-be-a-union-of-one-one-man/) [Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) > [Once slavery in America was not seen as radical. It became, instead, a revolutionary idea that slaves should be freed. When we have lived…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/once-slavery-in-america-was-not-seen-as-radical-it-became-instead-a/) [Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) > [Love is how we feel toward those who show us that which is lovable about ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/love-is-how-we-feel-toward-those-who-show-us-that-which-is-lovable/) [Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) > [ Government \[is\] operated by deeply embedded, hopelessly entangled bureaus where nothing is accomplished because the function of the bureau is to intercept every living… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/government-is-operated-by-deeply-embedded-hopelessly-entangled/) [Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) > [What the insurance companies have done is to reverse the business so that the public at large insures the insurance companies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/what-the-insurance-companies-have-done-is-to-reverse-the-business-so/) [Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) > [A new fascism promises security from the terror of crime. All that is required is that we take away the criminals' rights - which,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/a-new-fascism-promises-security-from-the-terror-of-crime-all-that-is/) [Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) > [Nearly every day on the television set the hero cop breaks into the bad guy's house and beats a confession out of him and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/nearly-every-day-on-the-television-set-the-hero-cop-breaks-into-the/) [Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) > [Our prejudices - we all have them - are part of our personality structure. The problem is that our prejudices may lie lurking at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/our-prejudices-we-all-have-them-are-part-of-our-personality-structure/) [Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) > [Prejudice locks the mind. Nothing can enter. Nothing true can escape.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/prejudice-locks-the-mind-nothing-can-enter-nothing-true-can-escape/) [Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) > [Our willingness to openly reveal our feelings in our argument nearly always builds our credibility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/our-willingness-to-openly-reveal-our-feelings-in-our-argument-nearly/) [Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) > [. . . in America, we have achieved the Orwellian prediction - enslaved, the people have been programmed to love their bondage and are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/in-america-we-have-achieved-the-orwellian-prediction-enslaved-the/) [Gerry Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) [Explore all 75 Gerry Spence quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/) ## More Argument quotes > [A flourishing, morally credible media is a vital component in the maintenance of genuinely public talk, argument about common good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rowan-williams/a-flourishing-morally-credible-media-is-a-vital-component-in-the/) [Rowan Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rowan-williams/) > [Preaching to the choir actually arms the choir with arguments and elevates the choir's discourse. There's a reason the right does it and does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-savage/preaching-to-the-choir-actually-arms-the-choir-with-arguments-and/) [Dan Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-savage/) > [Lutherans, whose arguments and mistakes will not be difficult to contest or discover, do not want to attribute any value to works, and they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-servetus/lutherans-whose-arguments-and-mistakes-will-not-be-difficult-to/) [Michael Servetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-servetus/) > [Any comprehensive doctrine, religious or secular, can be introduced into any political argument at any time, but I argue that people who do this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-rawls/any-comprehensive-doctrine-religious-or-secular-can-be-introduced/) [John Rawls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-rawls/) > [As opposed to getting into arguments about, well, these folks have been treated fairly so now we're going to be doing things that, very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/as-opposed-to-getting-into-arguments-about-well-these-folks-have-been/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [There could be no more powerful argument against mixing religion and government than the success of independent African American churches in placing racial segregation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jacoby/there-could-be-no-more-powerful-argument-against-mixing-religion-and/) [Susan Jacoby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jacoby/) > [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [On the stage, the characters express themselves more through words than images. So the arguments of the characters and the tension between characters -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/on-the-stage-the-characters-express-themselves-more-through-words/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [One argument goes that recessions are good for female artists because when money flies out the window, women are allowed in the house. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-saltz/one-argument-goes-that-recessions-are-good-for-female-artists-because/) [Jerry Saltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-saltz/) > [All of the barriers to innovation in the energy sector are arguments for a big commitment to public investment. Only the public sector can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-nordhaus/all-of-the-barriers-to-innovation-in-the-energy-sector-are-arguments/) [Ted Nordhaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-nordhaus/) > [“Arguments led by subjectivity are a waste of time. And, if they take place online, add to that, a waste of one’s keyboard.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/arguments-led-by-subjectivity-are-a-waste-of-time-and-if-they-take/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [If in the middle of an argument I suddenly fall silent it does not mean you have won... No it means you should probably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hussein-nishah/if-in-the-middle-of-an-argument-i-suddenly-fall-silent-it-does-not/) [Hussein Nishah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hussein-nishah/) > [Don't get divorced after your first argument! I have a lot of friends that have one fight and that's it, they get divorced. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-ripa/don-t-get-divorced-after-your-first-argument-i-have-a-lot-of-friends/) [Kelly Ripa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-ripa/) > [“The motive behind my arguments have always been to come at truth. I am not interested in conquering anyone with my ideologies or seeking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/crystal-evans/the-motive-behind-my-arguments-have-always-been-to-come-at-truth-i-am/) [Crystal Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/crystal-evans/) > [In presenting a mathematical argument the great thing is to give the educated reader the chance to catch on at once to the momentary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-edensor-littlewood/in-presenting-a-mathematical-argument-the-great-thing-is-to-give-the/) [John Edensor Littlewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-edensor-littlewood/) [Browse all 3,479 Argument quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/argument/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Successful argument is a communication between the acknowledged authority of both parties to the argument.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gerry Spence" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/successful-argument-is-a-communication-between-the-acknowledged/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Argument" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/successful-argument-is-a-communication-between-the-acknowledged/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c6b/gerry-spence-9080_argument_successful-argument-is-a-communication-b_1955246.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c6b/gerry-spence-9080_argument_successful-argument-is-a-communication-b_1955246.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c6b/gerry-spence-9080_argument_successful-argument-is-a-communication-b_1955246.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Successful argument is a communication between the acknowledged authority of both parties to the argument.” — Gerry Spence", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Gerry Spence", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-spence/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Successful argument is a communication between...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/successful-argument-is-a-communication-between-the-acknowledged/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-spence/successful-argument-is-a-communication-between-the-acknowledged/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```