Rhetoric As The Art Of Rhetoric

As Gorgias spread his wisdom and skill through the Encomium of Helen, other philosophers also expressed their wisdom and skill through contributing multiple perspectives on rhetoric. As other philosophers have studied rhetoric, there has been many different perspectives and criticisms that add to the complexity of understanding rhetoric and its effect on society. The Dissoi Logoi adds a

Rhetoric is something that at least everyone uses in his or her everyday life. Rhetoric can be used in the form of social media, politics and even making the decision on how you are going to communicate. In the Youtube video titled In Defense of Rhetoric: No Longer Just for Liars, Professor, Dr. Ann George states rhetoric as how we persuade each other or how we make arguments. George believes we can do this by the words we use, the gestures we make and the facial appeals that can break down the language and encourage the argument one might be making.

Rhetoric is the art of using language to persuade an audience. Writers and speakers often use rhetoric appeals. Aristotelian Rhetoric appeals are used in arguments to support claims and counter opposing arguments. Rhetoric used four different approaches to capture its audience’s attention: pathos, logos, and ethos. Pathos bases its appeal on provoking strong emotion from an audience. Ethos builds its appeal based on good moral character of the writer or speaker and relies on good sense and good will to influence its audience. Logos persuades its audience through the use of deductive and inductive reasoning. The kiaros approach requires a combination of creating and recognizing the right time and right place for making the argument in the first place. All of these appeals are important tools, and can be used together or apart to persuade an audience.

Rhetoric is a course in which students are taught the values of persuasion. And yet, behind this course is the utmost power to corrupt the world, changing it into a world of our own policies. This power, even though seldom discussed, has lead to many intriguing discoveries. One such discovery is how people are able to shape the world they live in simply by choosing the right words. Therefore those who would want the world to be a better place must protect this power. If in the wrong hands this power could cause serious damage. Several authors have striven to protect rhetoric and its power. Few agree on the matter of defining rhetoric, but they know that they must protect rhetoric from dark souls. A single definition of rhetoric must maintain a simplistic nature while incorporating every aspect of rhetoric. However, I argue that rhetoric is a means of persuading audiences of a situation and a particular reality through language and personal appeal. In order to prove this definition I will discuss how rhetoric creates a situation, the shaping of a different reality, the audience, the use of language, and the personal appeal. Finally, I will demonstrate the absolute need for rhetoric.

Aristotle views rhetoric as the counterpart to dialectic, and points out several key differences. Aristotle says that both rhetoric and dialectic begin with “endoxa”, or reasoning from a commonly held belief or opinion (Herrick, 2016, p. 71). Both rhetoric and dialectic must be based on a logical argument. Rhetoric takes that argument and adds elements of the speaker’s character and emotions, creating a more diverse method of persuading an audience. Dialectic favors a fact-based dialogue and does not rely on the speaker’s character and emotions. Rhetoric and dialectic are both methods of addressing questions. These questions do

Rhetoric is often denoted to as the art of persuasion. A set of linguistic traits and semantics used to evoke emotional responses from its intended audience, opening the floor for unanticipated influence by said audience. It would be an atrocity to ignore the efforts behind this simple yet powerful manipulation. This is referred to as rhetorical discourse. Essentially, there are six characteristics of rhetorical discourse, these characteristics being; rhetoric is planned, adapted to an audience, shaped by human motives, responsive to a situation, seeks persuasion, and is concerned with contingent issues (Herrick 8). Further, each of the characteristics lends itself to support the social functions of rhetoric; testing ideas, assisting advocacy, distributing power, unearthing facts, shaping knowledge, and building communities (Herrick 15).

"The study of rhetoric traditionally has aimed to equip students with an ability to identify problems and issues, to investigate, to interpret, and to communicate results -- whatever the subject matter. These abilities require higher-level thinking, not just skills; analysis and evaluation, not just observation . . . . The study emphasizes strategies and practice rather than a body of facts and contemplation; thus the study of rhetoric aims for social application. Students are studying rhetoric in a technical communication course even though they may never hear of Aristotle nor study history and theory of rhetoric. Identifying a problem, gathering, interpreting, and arranging information,

The term rhetoric came to life around the 8th century when sophist, who were originally poets and teachers began to spreading learning to those ready to pay. As years went by sophist focused more on expressive speech and rhetoric causing people to believe they can answer all questions. As a result, they were given the name “modern thinkers” because they knew everything, so everybody believed what they were saying. Yet Plato came along and said the sophist people were greedy people who decorated language to deceive and gain power(rhetoric). Then came along Aristotle who separated out philosophy, leaving sophism and coming to his own conclusion about rhetoric. “[The function of rhetoric] is not to persuade but to see he available means of persuasion in each case.”

Rhetoric is a word that when said many understand what you are talking about but not necessarily what the word truly means. Rhetoric is simply defined as the art of speech to persuade. Using the three fold process of rhetoric, you can easily sway someone to think something is right even though it may not be. As well, using rhetoric can cause people to act upon something you say. This three headed dragon is ethos, logos, and pathos. All ingeniously thought up by the great Greek philosopher Aristotle. William Shakespeare took Aristotle’s idea and put it in a form that today we can cipher through his famous play Julius Caesar. Shakespeare intelligently used the speeches of both Brutus and Mark Anthony to better explain ethos, logos, and pathos to the modern world.

Aristotle defines the word rhetoric as “the available means of persuasion”, that is rhetoric is the art of using language in order to persuade or influence others. Rhetoric exists everywhere within the world: in art, in movies, in books, and in conversation; and so surely rhetoric must be important in some way for it to be used so widely throughout different subject matters. Rhetoric is useful and needed to make any argument strong and valid.

To start with I would start explaining what is rhetoric and how I personally use it in real life. Rhetoric is a form of convincing people though gestures and speaking. Basically, rhetoric used to be used when we need something from another person. For example, this is basically the same what we used to do when we were young. We tried to ask our parents for new toy’s or some candy’s and saying them that for that we going to do everything. According to Kantz, people who are misled by rhetoric are because they misunderstand the difference between opinions and facts (437). So, rhetoric at the time of its origin in ancient times, rhetoric was understood only in the direct meaning of the term - as the art of an orator,

In this essay, Booth emphasizes that the value of communication as rhetoric can improve the quality of our lives. He gives a summary of pros and cons which rhetoric have over the time and quotes the definition of rhetoric by ancient and modern rhetoricians. According to Booth “rhetoric must include not only the art of removing misunderstanding but also the symbolic arts of producing misunderstanding” (Booth 9). He believes that rhetoric is the art of logical principles and share these theories in every

Scholars and historians of rhetoric consider the Greek philosopher, Aristotle, one of the great contributors to our present understanding of this art which, since its early origins and until present, has been a controversial field of study because of its association with persuasion and influence. However, readings of the many ancient and contemporary texts and analyses of the origins and the developments of this ancient art marginalized the role of the Sophists, who were the first to introduce rhetoric to Greece, and usually associated them with the bad reputation rhetoric has acquired over the years. Undoubtedly, Aristotle developed rhetoric in a more comprehensive and systemized explanation than what the Sophists offered, but an

Rhetoric is an art form created before the reign of Gorgias, by Aristotle. As time progressed throughout the ages, Aristotle taught the art of rhetoric to his student Socrates, who eventually taught it to Plato. The art gradually adapted into the rhetoric we use today, providing the reason as to why Plato chooses to recreate the account of Socrates and Gorgias’ discussion. Plato shows us how Socrates’ knowledge of proper usage of rhetoric is vaster than that of Gorgias’. He helps us visualize the various ways he uses rhetoric, to provide the reason for his ability to use rhetoric better than the other Orators. This is illuminated by Socrates’ use of pathos, in his argument of pain and pleasure, the use of ethos in speaking about the comparison of medicine and gymnastics, and his use of logos in his debate on the body and soul. Plato places special consideration into choosing the topics he highlights in the story because of Socrates innate ability to refute these topics the way does.

Plato is one of the greatest philosophers in history. Often his words and sayings resonate to this day. But, considering all what Plato has done, what is most peculiar about him is his condemnation of poets and sophists. Plato is in a constant fight to see that the way of true philosophy replaces these false arts. But even much more interesting is that Plato goes even further, and condemns the use of rhetoric, the art of persuasion, as a whole. He not only does this adamantly and with hearty conviction, he fights rhetoric with rhetoric itself. It is a contradiction that which seems laughable and intriguing. Through his works of the Phaedrus, in which Plato’s voice is heard through the mouth of Socrates and The Republic, Plato’s ultimate goal for civilization, the perfect place for society to function together. In these works, Plato demonstrates his dislike for the practice and implementation of rhetoric but also aims at taking sophistry and poetry down along with it.