I noticed someone pulling a jade's trick on a friend's blog today, and decided to procrastinate by ranting about the tactic: I abhor it. It's crap and completely disrespectful of one's interlocutor. It usually indicates that the debater is unable to answer some key point by his opponent. In response, he frames the debate in his own terms and declares an end to the discussion.
I take the term "jade's trick" from the first scene of "Much Ado About Nothing," wherein the two characters Beatrice and Benedict engage in a "merry war" of verbal jabs which ends with this exchange:
BENEDICK: Well, you are a rare parrot-teacher.
BEATRICE: A bird of my tongue is better than a beast of yours.
BENEDICK: I would my horse had the speed of your tongue, and so good a continuer. But keep your way, i' God's name; I have done.
BEATRICE: You always end with a jade's trick: I know you of old.
"Jade's trick" is one Shakespearean term that has not managed to hang around, however, it seems reasonable to guess that it refers to Benedick's attempt to get in the last word by simply declaring "game over" before Beatrice has a chance to respond.
Of course, for a spirited, comedic battle there may be nothing wrong with taking this rhetorical out. When it comes to serious discussion (or even quasi-serious, such as blog commenting), however, the maneuver can only be appropriate when one has a position of authority, such as a teacher or moderator, and is exercising that authority to avoid fruitless banter. If one wishes to end a debate, then the respectful thing to do is to retire while refusing to respond. Or, declaring that this particular point will be one's last, it may be presented with a rebuttal allowed before retiring. But attempting to make an opponent seem petty for responding is simply bad form.
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3 comments:
A Jade was an old, broken down horse. In order to present the horse as younger and useful in the market place, a "jade's trick" was employed wherein they would paint the horse, or use painful methods to make horse appear more lithe.
Beatrice, I believe, was implying he was no match for her wit, and had to hide his inferiority through a jade's trick.
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