Paula Marantz Cohen: Good conversation is a basic human need

A face-to-face amiable debate, the polite airing of contrary view seems to be becoming increasingly rare. Are we losing the art of conversation? 

Dr Paula Marantz Cohen is the distinguished professor of literature at Drexel University in Philadelphia. Her book Talking Cure: An Essay on the Civilizing Power of Conversation looks at the art of good conversation, how it connects us in ways that social media never can and explains why simply talking to each other freely and without guile may be the cure to what ails our troubled society.