Arthur Schopenhauer, one of the greatest philosophers, wrote in the 19th century a sharp, angry, subversive and at the same time wise, vivid, and subtly humorous essay (published posthumously) under the eloquent title The Art of Always Being Right, which presents itself as a manual for prevailing over any opponent in a dispute.

“Eristic dialectic,” Schopenhauer himself wrote, thus concealing any ironic tone, “is the art of arguing—and of arguing in such a way as to defend one’s positions adequately, whether one is right or wrong.” And as if he wanted to assure his readers that he meant this sincerely, he added: “In a dispute, we must ignore objective truth, or rather regard it as a matter of chance, and focus only on defending our own position and refuting that of our opponent.”

Of course, Schopenhauer’s true intention was to draw his readers’ attention to the tricks so widely used by others, whether politicians, journalists, advertisers, or merchants. Pretending that he was teaching “sophistry” (as he himself later described rhetoric), he was in fact teaching how to recognize it and, consequently, how to deal with it. This biting little work remains, even today, a valuable tool for that purpose.

[Excerpt from the text on the back cover of the edition]