Asking for a friend: ‘My partner refuses to back down or compromise when we argue and it’s making me feel hurt and frustrated. Is this normal behaviour – am I overreacting?

Q: I’ve been dating this guy for a couple of months now, and it’s mostly going great. However, whenever we have a disagreement or an argument, it goes pear-shaped. It seems like he just says the opposite of what I say just to wind me up, and he refuses to back down or compromise. Sometimes it happens in bigger conversations like politics, but often it’s smaller things and I don’t know why he finds them to be such a big deal. I’m left feeling frustrated and hurt. Surely this isn’t normal? I’m relatively inexperienced when it comes to relationships so I don’t feel too sure of myself. I don’t know how to respond when he is like this. I’ve tried arguing my point but he doesn’t seem to listen, and I usually end up just giving up and trying to change the subject. But it never feels resolved. He says it’s no big deal, and that I’m being silly. I’m not sure if I’m overreacting or if this is how relationships work in real life, but I don’t know how to manage this. Most of the rest of the relationship is good, and we are almost six months together. I have feelings for him, but this is making me worried. What should I do here?