This blog echoes the title of Amartya Sen's recent collection of essays, the "Argumentative Indian" (2005). Sen argues that healthy and open debate is essential to inculcate tolerance, develop democracy and for the creation of what he calls a "good society". He posits that this goes a long way in explaining why India is one of the few post-colonial countries that has been able to maintain democracy over the past 60 years.
As a Jew - and thus the scion of a culture with a long tradition of argumentation and prolixity - I could not agree more.
Sen shares a humorous poem by Ram Mohun Roy that nicely underlines the centrality of argumentativeness:
"Just consider how terrible the day of your death will be. Others will go on speaking, and you will not be able to argue back."
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