The Etiquette of Blogging

Editorial

montaigne

The other day someone asked me about the etiquette of blogging. My first thought was that anyone who asked that question probably already knows the answer; the people who really need to know wouldn’t bother to ask.

We live in a very contradictory culture. On the one hand we are told that authenticity is good and the more authentic you are the louder and more obnoxious you are encouraged to be. Popular culture celebrates unrestrained rudeness; “that’s my opinion” gets issued almost as a challenge, “and if you have a problem with that, go fuck yourself!” (I actually read that recently in a positive review of quite an appalling book in a national newspaper. So it’s not just bloggers!)

On the other hand we aren’t allowed to criticise anymore. “Judgmental” is a word used almost as an insult, and can you even imagine the fuss if you called someone “discriminating”? The word not so long ago was a synonym for precise and sensitive thinking and now it’s just another term for blind and nasty prejudice. The notion that everyone is entitled to an opinion and all opinions are sacrosanct means that opinion is beyond inspection. We are encouraged to share our opinions. But sharing isn’t a neutral word. It implies generosity, as if you were bestowing a gift. Just as it would be rude to criticise a gift that someone had given you, it’s considered rude to criticise any thought that gets shared. You cannot criticise another person’s confession.

Bloggers are guilty of both excesses. How many blogs do you know that indulge in a rhetoric of ranting? I just did a Google Search for “blog rant” and came up with 102,000,000. How many more do the syrupy sharing stuff? Sorry, I’m too sickened by the idea to do the search, but I bet it’s even more.

If I were ever going to suggest an etiquette for blogging I couldn’t do better than suggest a 400 year old essay by a guy who has been called the first blogger, Montaigne. It’s called “On the Art of Conversation” though the only version I could find on the internet is this stuffy old translation. It’s a gem, but this passage especially sums it up … bites and scratches, ha!

…contradictory judgements neither offend me nor irritate me: they merely wake me up and provide me with exercise. We avoid being corrected: we ought to come forward and accept it, especially when it comes from conversation and not a lecture. Whenever we meet opposition, we do not look to see if it is just but how we can get out of it, rightly or wrongly. Instead of welcoming arms we stretch out our claws. I can put up being roughly handled by my friends:”You are an idiot!” !You are raving!” Among gentlemen I like people to express themselves heartily, their words following wherever their thoughts lead. We ought to toughen and fortify our ears against being seduced by the sound of polite words. I like a strong, intimate, manly fellowship, the kind of friendship that rejoices in sharp vigorous exchanges just as love rejoices in bites and scratches which draw blood. It is not strong enough nor magnanimous enough if it is not argumentative, if all is politeness and art; if is afraid of clashes and walks hobbled. “Neque enim disputari sine reprehensione potest” [It is impossible to debate without refuting: Cicero.]

Come to think about it, that’s about as perfect a definition of critical friendship that I know … not sure I’d go all the way to hobbling though. Hobbling is a bit much.

11 comments

  3. This is a great, thought provoking post. I agree that there is room for lots more intelligent debate, judgement and ranting online and in society as a whole but blogging is a platform for so many things and sharing is rightly so one of them. I just two minutes ago read a post by @tiredmummyoftwo whom after finding out her daughter has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia yesterday shared her shock with her readers and received amazing support in response. This is the kind of sharing which can be found commonly within blogging communities and is certainly not sickening to me, but immeasurably moving.

    1. I entirely agree with that. I’m not entirely heartless, Sarah.

      But I also think that we should have a sense of proportion. You give a perfect example of a case that’s deserving of support, and “sharing” is appropriate. But when we extend that to people who may have been mildly insulted on social media (Giles Coren for example) or get less than wholehearted adulation for a fairly average piece of theatre (mentioning no names there) or receive a narky comment on a blog post, then I would say that’s a completely different thing … those sort of silly people need slapping with a cold wet towel and told to grow up or go home.

      There’s a heck of a lot more of this nonsense in the blogging community than I think is healthy. It’s just puerile and saps attention from the genuinely needy people. So, I say let’s have less in general and more in particular.

      1. I agree. Your post has made me think about how I can improve my own writing in the future by being more authentic so thank you. It takes confidence to publicly challenge, criticise or judge particularly when like you said it’s not always well received. I now aim to seek out some of those ranting bloggers and learn a thing or two.

        1. Ranting is easy, conversation takes skill and tact, both of which are in sort supply in popular culture … but why don’t you write a post about it here?

          What do you think?

        2. do … you have my email? … reply in a new comment, WordPress doesn’t like conversations … but would be good to get your views, so do it.

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