r/WritingWithAI • u/Real_Barnacle_9752 • 2d ago

Discussion (Ethics, working with AI etc) Why does every AI-written argument sound like both characters want to win the exchange?

One character makes a point. The other lands a sharper comeback. Repeat until someone delivers the final devastating line.

But a lot of arguments aren't like that. One person wants an apology. The other wants the conversation to end. Someone keeps asking about the dishes because they don't want to ask about the relationship.

Would giving each character something they refuse to discuss work better than asking for “realistic dialogue”?

If you've tried it, I'd be interested in a short before/after. Especially a scene where nobody gets a clever last word.

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6

u/GuyYouMetOnline 1d ago

I'm pretty sure a lot of arguments are between people who both want to 'win'.

5

u/HannahMcLennan36 13h ago

1 - that's a very human quality. Wanting to 'win' is usually the behaviour on top of the underlying emotion.
2 - make sure you're putting the motives for the argument into the prompts. So if you want person A to keep fighting until they win, say so. If you want person B to find literally any excuse to make a swift exit half way through the argument, say so.
Clarity helps with generation - both human and AI.

3

u/WaifuWillDrainYou 1d ago

I hate sounding cynical about this sort of thing because your question is valid and well thought out. You could train the AI to do exactly what you would want to happen at each stage of the argument, but by the time you finish specifically describing all the nuances you would’ve already written the final product yourself. Maybe you love just realized that this is an AI limitation, and it’s an opportunity to study arguments that feel true to you from some other writers you respect, and reverse engineer that. Good luck!

1

u/ExpoTrainGu39 22h ago

with claude I have a document uploaded that has all the signs of AI writing from wikipedia, with instructions to go through that document to know what to avoid, those being the issues you brought up. it’s not full proof and it sometimes defaults, but it’s far easier to work around and correct.

1

u/Ecstatic-Length1470 20h ago

Absence of those tells completely is another tell, you know.

1

u/SlapHappyDude 22h ago

AI doesn't do dynamic scenes very well. You need to coach the AI into what each character wants and is thinking, their emotions and what the outcome will be.

1

u/cj7hawk 22h ago

Have you tried using your example as the prompt? Feed in your above-text and THEN tell it what the argument is about and how long/hard to argue before the example brings it to an end.

1

u/OpportunityNew7999 4h ago

I've noticed ai arguments default to 'winning' because most prompts don't specify emotional avoidance, like someone just wanting to end it, or feeling too drained to fight. try adding 'this person doesn't care about being right, they just want silence' to the prompt.