“The hierarchy of disagreement is a concept proposed by Paul Graham in his 2008 essay How to Disagree [lots more information about each of the levels listed below]. His hierarchy has seven levels, from “Name-calling” to “Refuting the central point”.
- Name-calling
This is the lowest form of disagreement, and probably also the most common. - Ad Hominem
An ad hominem attack is not quite as weak as mere name-calling. - Responding to Tone
The next level up we start to see responses to the writing, rather than the writer. - Contradiction
In this stage, we finally get responses to what was said, rather than how or by whom. - Counterargument
At this level, we reach the first form of convincing disagreement: counterargument. - Refutation
The most convincing form of disagreement is refutation. - Refuting the Central Point
The force of a refutation depends on what you refute. The most powerful form of disagreement is to refute someone’s central point.
Paul Graham’s Disagreement Hierarchy
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