Rhetoric
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Rhetoric
A Brief Description of Rhetoric
The act of speaking or writing that effectively communicates a topic to an audience.
Ancient Rhetoric
Aristotle
The faculty of discovering in the particular case what the available means of persuasion are. Rhetoric is looked upon as the power of observing the means of persuasion on almost any subject presented. In its technical character, it is not concerned with any specific class of subjects.
Aristotle had a very methodical approach to his rhetorical theory. He believed that his predecessors' theories were too narrow and touched on one aspect, but neglected others. Aristotle had three means of "artistic" proof: ethos, pathos and logos, which analyzed the effectiveness of a speaker. Ethos is established when the speaker uses his words to establish credibility with the audience. According to Aristotle, "...we trust good men more and sooner..."2 Pathos is established when the speaker uses emotional appeal to engage the audience into the oration. Logos is established when the speaker makes statements within the speech that are widely accepted as truth, or uses premises, or enthymemes that help logically and progressively establish the point being made as a truth.
Furthermore, Aristotle categorized occasions of speech into three categories: forensic, epideictic and deliberative.
Forensic
Discourse that relates to past events. Today, as it was in ancient Greece, forensic discourse is most prevalent in the courtroom. Criminal trials are the prime example of the use of forensic discourse, an previous occurrence is argued from an accusing and defensive point of view to convince a judge or jury of the right course of action.Epideictic
A speech addressing the present time to either give praise or assess blame. The former reason is the main usage for epideictic speech in today's society.Deliberative
A discourse that is used in advocating future actions. The best example in today's society is political debates in our legislative branches of government to determine the proper course of action to be implemented in the future.Aristotle believed that depending on the occasion, a person's speech should be tailored to be appropriate for the intended audience and the underlying goal.
Gorgias
Rhetoric can induce pleasure and divert attention from pain. The power of rhetoric, united with the soul, soothes and persuades and transports by means of "wizardry". It can make any impression on the soul it wishes.
Gorgias believed that we as a society are at the whim of language. Since the only way we can explain or communicate anything is through the language, we are constrained by it. As a result, he believed that since we could not know "Truth," and if we did that we could not communicate it due to the limitations of language that we are bound to. This is why he calls it a form of "wizardry," since reality is how we manipulate it to shape it, nothing absolute.
Plato
Rhetoric is flattery. It aims at what is pleasant, ignoring what is right, and it is a routine. It can produce no principle in virtue of which it offers what it does, and consequently is unable to point to the cause of each thing it offers.
Plato used dialogues to explain his philosophies of rhetoric, because he thought there was significant danger in having a unilateral speech, where one person utilized the tropes and elements of style to try engage and ultimately manipulate the audience. Although in a communicative sense the audience does give feedback in a speech non-verbally, Plato's idea of dialectical discussion allowed for there to be instant feedback that forced the orator to respond instantly (think on their feet so to speak) and essentially checked the "dangerous power" that they might have had if they were the sole speaker.
Contemporary Rhetoric
Kenneth Burke
Burke believed that the human ability of rhetorical communication is what sets mankind apart from other animals. He believed that communication was based on the use of learned symbols, that we interpret words, and symbols (like writing), then in turn communicate the information we interpreted to other humans.
Burke’s theory of “dramatistic pentad” was created to explain how rhetorical action in humans sets us apart from animals. The dramatistic pentad has five rhetorical components: Act, scene, agent, agency, and purpose, each helps develop the motive behind the creation of a symbol.
Ivor Armstrong Richards
Richards’ belived that “rhetoric is a study of misunderstandings and its remedies”. He condemned the teachings of classical rhetoricians. He is associated with the movement New Criticism that became popular in the 1920-30s. New criticism literary critics believe that a literary work has more than one meaning, and that the meaning is open for interpretation.
Richard’s also adapted an 850-word vocabulary with Charles K. Ogden that they hoped could be used by all people across the globe, called “Basic English”.
Lloyd Bitzer
Bitzer believes that the use of language can alter our perception of life, that by communicating with each other we are changing our own lives, altering our perceived realities. Bitzer created the “rhetorical situation” in which exigence, audience, and constraints are the main components.
Exigence: "An imperfection marked by urgency; it is a defect, an obstacle, something waiting to be done, a thing which is other than it should be." 1
Audience: “audience consists only of those persons who are capable of being influenced by discourse and of being mediators of change.” 1
Constraints: "made up of persons, events, objects and relations which are parts of the situation because they have the power to constrain decision and action needed to modify the exigence."1
Sources:
Bitzer. L. (1968). The rhetorical situation. Philosophy and Rhetoric.1
Golden, James, et. al. (2000). The Rhetoric of Western Thought. 2
