Show L listening too dr donald E bird really said it when he said that listening is the neglected link m the chain of human communications the stephens col I 1 lege e g e p professor e s s 0 r 0 of f speech ech who i is s e exe x e c autive u t iv e s secretary e c r e t u y of f the N national a tl 0 n ai society for the study of communicate ions recommended that a lot more listening of an attentive sympathy sym pathe tic and critical nature be done dean swift noted the poor quality of listening in his famous essay on the art of conversation most alost of what passes for listening is little better than impatient forbearance until the non speaker gets his turn turri alexis de tocqueville ville the brilliant frenchman who pictured the united states more than log loo years ago regarded the de dine cline of the take end qt the giveand give and ind take of conversation as a peculiarly converse but he can discuss and his talk falls into a dissertation he speaks to you as if he was address mg g a meeting ith the e overweening ening desire to be heard and the under desire to pay heed are rather more widespread then M de tocqueville ville suggested however oliver goldsmith borrowed a witty image from one of bibber s comedies to say of sam johnson there is no arguing with johnson for if his pistol misses fire he knocks you down with the butt end of it listening remains not only a reward ing ng but also an field a resolve to practice more of it mi ml be an apt move as 1956 sea 0 |