Controversy

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A controversy is a dispute -- a disagreement about which parties are actively arguing. Controversies can range from a private disputes between two individuals to the largest social upheavals.

"Controversial" may be recognized as a self-fulfilling adjective, which, whenever the reader sees it, should be critically scrutinized:

"Andrew Mellon, the American banker..."

"Andrew Mellon, the controversial American banker..."

Propagandists characteristically employ "Controversial" as a "tar-brush," pejoratively to identify a subject and thus create a perceived atmosphere of controversy, where perhaps none authentically exists:

"Beatrix Potter's creation, Peter Rabbit..."

"Beatrix Potter's controversial creation, Peter Rabbit..."

It should be kept in mind that some quite genuine controversy is actually confined to a fanatical fringe element. During the American culture wars, when "Creationism" was a hot American topic, few educated Europeans could conceive how genuine the controversy was in the United States.

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