Everyday Canvas

Arguments and Writing

Prompt:
“Anytime you get two people in a room, who disagree about anything, the time the day, there is a scene to be written. That’s what I look for.”
Aaron Sorkin
Does a situation like what Aaron Sorkin describes upset you or do you take it as a chance to write it in a scene or a story? For that matter, can you think of similar negative situations you have used or plan to use in your writing?

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I can certainly appreciate how Aaron Sorkin's mind works on the subject.

I’ve been there thousands of times, in the middle of an argument when suddenly it dawned on me that I had no business being there, listening to people argue their hearts out. But I stayed.

At first, I stayed watching the arguing parties because I was young and I was learning how to argue by example; then as much as the arguments upset me, I began to find idiosyncrasies in them and even thought some ideas to be baseless and funny. Later, much later, when I was writing something, if an argument I had witnessed surfaced in my mind, I realized I could use it in a story; however, the arguments between my story characters are much milder than the real-life ones, usually.

Most people think if they have paid a good amount of emotional currency to an idea they are right or rather, they have an insatiable need to be always right. Now, that is a great character flaw for the writer to bank on and can very well be used in developing a fictional character.

Getting back to real-life examples, one memorable argument both my husband and I never forget took place on a tour bus in Canada, about two or three decades ago. A couple sitting in front of us started arguing. The argument jumped from one thing to another and the man came up a sarcastic comment. Suddenly, the lady stood up, screaming, “I shall not be insulted.” Then she insisted that the driver stop the bus and she wanted, no demanded, to get off, but the driver would do no such thing. So, she had to sit alone at the very back until the next stop. My guess is that their relationship didn’t last very long.

Now, her words have left an indelible mark in our minds, and anytime an opportunity arises, we say, jokingly, “I shall not be insulted!”

Even so, I haven’t used that scene in my writing, at least not yet.

In an argument, it is a good idea to consider the opposing point of view and also, figure out why the other person isn’t giving in or trying to find the middle ground. Nobody should feel bad about conceding especially when there is a good reason to concede, and in any case, as hard as it may be, avoiding sarcasm could help greatly.