The unit or minicours in logic so frequently favored in high schools has the laudable objective of familiarizing the student with the format of rigorous thinking. This, however, is but the bare though necessary skeleton of daily thought. Pushing the metaphor a bit, the nerve ends of the thinking person must analyze the emotional aura surrounding the ideas expressed by others. In a word, the thinking person must be able to distinguish between the form of thought (logic) and the dressing of thought (propaganda). This game, Propaganda, addresses itself to clear thinking, so that the student becomes familiar with the six major techniques of swaying the thinking of people. Each technique has at least, eight and at most ten varieties. The players (there must be two, but. better if there are more) first, learn how they fool themselves; then, they proceed to techniques of influencing others. Given concrete situations. the players seek to identify the precise variety of technique used in the propaganda statement. Twenty plays constitute a game. The winner is classified as a “clear thinker” for that, round; the loser may be anything from a “ding-a-ling” to a “Gullible Gus.” The explanation book is quite clear. The authors, Robert W. Allen of Nova School and Lorne Greene of “Bonanza” (!), have created a most useful tool for thinking one's way through the porridge of propaganda.— Barnabas B. Hughes, San Fernando Valley State College, Northridge, Calif.
Instructor or Assistant Professor, San Fernando Valley State College, Northridge, Calif.
