It must have been rather amazing to Corianton to have his father virtually read his mind and then begin discussing subjects which were troubling him. Of course he would have no way of knowing that Alma was listening to the whisperings of the Spirit. Alma's opening statement reveals that he knew his son was really mixed up concerning the justice of God.
Corianton's belief that it was unjust for God to punish sinners certainly indicates a spoiled, twisted, self-indulgent personality. The discovery of such irrational and confused thinking in Corianton may have come as a shock to Alma since he had spent nearly all of his time during the growing up years of Corianton trying to manage the affairs of the Church and going on frequent missionary assignments to suppress the elements of apostasy which kept springing up continuously among the branches of the Church. Apparently Alma recognized that this son had very little comprehension of the gospel and he therefore set out to give Corianton a basic course in the gospel plan.