Persuasion vs Manipulation
From the moment we were born, we have been schooled in the art and science of manipulation. So much so, in fact, that we hardly recognize it anymore, both as targets and purveyors of manipulative influence.
It doesn’t take a cynic to admit that such ploys surround us at every turn, from a daily onslaught of advertising messages to organizational politics to a looming performance review. Our lives run on some combination of contingent consequence and tantalizing reward, the latter often simply being the avoidance of pain (obeying the law to sidestep a tax audit, for example).
To escape this vicious circle of doomed cause and effect of a manipulative management style you need to understand the difference between manipulation and the eminently finer art of influence through persuasion.
Manipulation is defined as action to change by artful or unfair means so as to serve one's purpose.
Manipulation is all about getting someone to do something for you, rather than influencing them because of something that’s in it for them. The magic pill of the art of persuasion, conversely, is to get others to take action for themselves, and in a direction that serves the needs of the persuader. It is a win-win proposition.
Persuasion is the act of causing people to do or believe something. In order to best accomplish this, speakers use a variety of arguments and strategies, most of which can be summed up into the three rhetorical appeals: ethos, logos, and pathos.
Ethos is related to the persona or reputation associated with the speaker. This persona is constructed based on the credentials and reliability of a speaker, and can often be established prior to a speech or presentation in situations where the speaker is widely known to the audience.
Logos is the logical appeal based largely in facts or logic and attempts to appeal to a person’s ability to reason. Logos may have been a helpful strategy to use in situation when you arguing with your friends over something you knew to be true but just couldn’t find a way to convince them to believe you.
Pathos appeals to the audience in a way that relies on their emotional or personal connection to the subject matter. Some of the more obvious examples include speeches or presentations which use visual aids such as images or videos. For example, an image of an animal covered in oil to invoke guilt or anger toward big oil companies.
"THE MOST AMAZING THING FOR ME IS THAT EVERY SINGLE PERSON WHO SEES A MOVIE, NOT NECESSARILY ONE OF MY MOVIES, BRINGS A WHOLE SET OF UNIQUE EXPERIENCES. NOW, THROUGH CAREFUL MANIPULATION AND GOOD STORYTELLING, YOU CAN GET EVERYBODY TO CLAP AT THE SAME TIME, TO HOPEFULLY LAUGH AT THE SAME TIME, AND TO BE AFRAID AT THE SAME TIME."
STEVEN SPIELBERG
"THE BASIC TOOL FOR THE MANIPULATION OF REALITY IS THE MANIPULATION OF WORDS. IF YOU CAN CONTROL THE MEANING OF WORDS, YOU CAN CONTROL THE PEOPLE WHO MUST USE THE WORDS." PHILIP K. DICK
"CHARACTER MAY ALMOST BE CALLED THE MOST EFFECTIVE MEANS OF PERSUASION."
ARISTOTLE
"I THINK THE POWER OF PERSUASION WOULD BE THE GREATEST SUPERPOWER OF ALL TIME."
JENNY MOLLEN
Запоминаем:
so much so - настолько
a target - цель
a purveyor - поставщик, распространитель
onslaught - натиск
contingent - условный, случайный
tantalizing - мучающий
to sidestep - уклоняться
vicious circle - порочный круг
magic pill - волшебная таблетка
a win-win proposition - беспроигрышное предложение, обе стороны остаются в выигрыше
ethos - этос
logos - логос
pathos - пафос
credential - рекомендация
reliability - надежность
to convince - убедить
visual aids - наглядные пособия
to invoke - вызывать
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