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Literature
Pricks and Arrows
It is an easy way to demolish an opponent in discussion. If they say something profound, giving their words a universal dimension, then just declare:
I see you are familiar with that soldier known as General Ising.
I saw this tactic deployed in a discussion on To Kill a Mockingbird. Amidst the near-universal expressions of acclaim, one dissonant voice averred that it was boring and pointless.
In response, another chimed in that,
This will probably offend, but honestly, if you find it “boring” then you just aren’t mature enough to take in the message. — FB discussion
And then the “General Ising” line was marched out.
There are some areas where we, as humans, share universal intersections with reality.
We grow and develop, for example, from helpless infants to creatures of skill, perception, and wisdom.
We share a kinship that goes beyond kin with our fellow humans. In another courtroom drama Shylock the Jew put it nicely, listing qualities of similarity:
