Abstract of Rhetorical Mathematics

Rhetorical Mathematics in Magic and Law
by Curtis D. Frye
*President of Technology and Society, Incorporated, and past president of the Psychic Entertainers Association. Thanks to Nena Rawdah for copyediting assistance.

Abstract

At its heart, mathematics is a formal system with strict rules of proof. Pure mathematics is characterized in part by the search for exception and error, so much so that identifying a single flaw in an argument usually invalidates its associated claim unless and until the error is fixed. Once one moves beyond the realm of formal proof, however, mathematics becomes a rhetorical art.

Similarly, in the legal arena, even when the facts of a case are not in dispute, the interpretation and application of statutes and standards of evidence are open to argument, judgment, and appeal.

Lawyers and magicians, especially magicians who specialize in a branch of stage magic called mentalism, often use math in their arguments and presentations. Selecting the order of witnesses and exhibits, establishing the likelihood of an event by emphasizing the relative improbability of alternatives, and vastly overclaiming the importance of evidence and objections during summation all play a central role in trial strategy and tactics.

Rhetorical Mathematics in Magic and Law addresses these and other issues by showing how performers and advocates can:

• Manipulate both math (as practiced in the courtroom) and the law to move from persuasion to syllogism
• Use fact patterns to frame arguments and define ground at the start of proceedings
• Advance or challenge arguments based on conditional probability
• Construct novel presentations and methods designed to persuade audiences in the court and the theater

​Drawing on works such as Lawrence Tribe’s classic article “Trial by Mathematics: Precision and Ritual in the Legal Process”, Leila Schneps and Coralie Colmez’s popular book Math on Trial, and Ashley Saunders Lipson’s reference work Courtroom Use and Misuse of Mathematics, Physics, and Finance: Cases, Lessons and Materials, Rhetorical Mathematics interrogates the persuasive milieu where audiences encounter argument as finders of fact, participants in a magical demonstration, or both.