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Controversy is a state of prolonged public dispute or debate, usually concerning a matter of conflicting opinion or point of view. The word was coined from the Latin controversia, as a composite of controversus – "turned in an opposite direction," from contra – "against" – and vertere – to turn, or versus (see verse), hence, "to turn against."

The most applicable or well known controversial subjects, topics or areas are politics, religion and sex. Other areas of controversy include history and philosophy. Other minor yet prominent areas of controversy are economics, science, finances, culture, education, the military, society, celebrities, organisation, the media, age, gender, and race. Controversy in matters of theology has traditionally been particularly heated, giving rise to the phrase odium theologicum. Controversial issues are held as potentially divisive in a given society, because they can lead to tension and ill will, as a result they are often taboo to be discussed in the light of company in many cultures.

Legal controversy

Benford's law of controversy

Benford's law of controversy, as expressed by science fiction author Gregory Benford in 1980, states: Passion is inversely proportional to the amount of real (true) information available. In other words, the fewer facts are known to and agreed on by the participants, the more controversy there is, and the more is known the less controversy there is. Thus, for example, controversies in physics are limited to subject-areas where experiments cannot be carried out yet, whereas Benford's Law implies that controversy is inherent to politics, where communities must frequently decide on courses of action based on insufficient information.

Psychological bases of controversy

See also

2. Part 2

• Argument
• Bipartisanship
• Dialectic
• ProCon.org

References

1. U.S. News & World Report, Volume 117, Issues 10-17, 1994 quotation:

   Perhaps that was inevitable, since abortion touches on three of the most contentious subjects in human discourse: religion, sex and politics.

2. Kenneth L. Karst (1995) Law's Promise, Law's Expression p.137 quotation:

   Religion, sex and politics: in my younger days, these were the subjects you weren't supposed to discuss at the dinner table.

3. Susan Spencer, Margo Collins, Albert J. Rivero (2004) The eighteenth-century novel: Volume 4 p.6

   ...the expiration of the Printing Act in 1695 swelled the number of licensed printers, while the relaxation of censorship under the Restoration opened once-guarded topics, especially religion, sex, and politics, for public discussion

4. "EFF Quotes Collection 19.6". Electronic Frontier Foundation. 2001-04-09.
5. "Quotations: Computer Laws". SysProg. Archived from the original on 2008-08-22. Retrieved 2007-03-10.

• Controversies
• Conflict process
• Interpersonal relationships
• Legal terms