In my personal opinion, it can be argued that it is an art. Socrates considered ‘trolling’ an art, and while there are artistic aspects, trolling nowadays is meant to be provocative, aiming to upset an individual or a group of people. There are a surprising number of trolling guides online. Trolling can be seen as a divergence from rhetoric when rhetoric begins taking on new meanings. In the beginning, Socrates’ overall belief in rhetoric is that it’s more about ‘flattering’ your audience than actually saying anything of value. It can be argued that this belief can be applied to trolling, but in the opposite direction, as trolling commonly has a malicious and antagonizing aspect to it. A big thing for Socrates is that he suggests that people who master any type of art must be able to explain their success. I don’t think that trolling is something to be considered a success, at least to most. Those who troll and pull off trolling consider it a ‘win,’ as they were able to fool the person being trolled.
The aim of trolling, in a modern context, is for someone who posts or makes inflammatory, aggressive, rude, or excursive comments to either a group or an individual. The trolling is meant to provoke a reaction and elicit an emotional response. Trolls usually do this behavior for amusement or to achieve a specific result they have in mind, which makes it different from other art forms in this discourse. In Gorgias, Socrates establishes that rhetoricians say that rhetoric deals with what is ‘just’ and ‘unjust.’ However, it’s possible to abuse this kind of power, which is seen in trolling. A lot of the time, trolls see themselves as justice collectors, especially if the trolling is targeted to get revenge. Other art forms don’t deal too much with considering if something is ‘just’ or ‘unjust.’ Trolling is unique and almost an outlier when it comes to other art forms. When it comes to ‘success,’ in trolling, it’s only truly celebrated by the trolls. While other art forms can be appreciated and celebrated by all groups. And like other art, trolling does provoke a response, but it’s usually at someone else’s expense. Also, while other art forms can be loud, big, and obvious, trolling must have a level of subtlety.
I think trolling is teachable, to an extent. I mean that’s why there’s such vast information and knowledge on trolling. There are even ‘guides’ to help people troll successfully. But like any other form of ‘art’ or rhetoric, there also has to be some kind of natural talent. Some people are surprisingly good at being mean and leading others astray. It’s scary. And I think there does need to be some knowledge of the subject you’re trolling someone about. It’s easy to poke holes in something that has no foundation on the truth. It’s easier to troll and lie when you sprinkle an ounce of truth in there. The knowledge can be surface level, but there needs to be some. No matter the subject, whether it be about law or memes. I also think the form of trolling works against the ignorant first and foremost, but it can also affect those in the know, although arguably not as much. It affects the ignorant harmfully, playing on that ignorance in the rhetoric and the signs of blasphemy, harming them in the long run. I think it only affects trolls if they do it to each other, thus one troll becomes part of the ignorance.
Trolling Blog 