Rhetoric The Art of Public Speaking, The Art of Writing or Speaking Effectively

The History of Rhetoric As defined by Aristotle, rhetoric is that branch of discourse that concerns persuasion. The Greek word “rhetor” means “speaker in the assembly.” In ancient times, rhetoric was concerned with the practice of oratory or formal public speaking.

Modern Definition In modern times, rhetoric is the study of speaking or writing memorably and effectively.

The Origins of Rhetoric This art is said to have originated with Corax of Syracuse and his pupil Tisias in Greece during the first quarter of the 5 th century BC in response to the citizens’ need for help in pleading their own cases in court for the restoration of their property, which had been confiscated by the tyrant Thrasybulus. Aristotle’s On Rhetoric (330 BC), the oldest extant complete text on the subject, contains most of the concepts and principles that informed education in rhetoric and oratory for the next 2,000 years. His classifications follow on the next three slides.

Three Means of Persuasion LOGOS The appeal to reason This includes any ordering of the content, any patterns used to present the words, such as repetition, alliteration, assonance, and allusion PATHOS The appeal to emotion This includes all the actual words—the diction (word choices), images, anecdotes, etc., used ETHOS The appeal of the speaker himself or herself This includes the actual delivery of the speech, the appearance of the speaker, the values of the speaker

3 Types of Persuasive Oratory The oratory of the courtroom Its purpose: to determine the justice or injustice of a past action Its concern is the past. Forensic or Judicial The oratory of the public forum Its purpose: to move an audience to take or refrain from taking an action Its concern is the future. Deliberative The oratory of ceremony Its purpose: to praise or blame Its concern is the present moment. Epideictic

Aristotle said that the study of rhetoric may be divided into five parts: Invention: the process of finding arguments for the speech Arrangement: the process of organizing the speech Style: the process of putting into words what has been discovered and arranged Memory: the techniques for memorizing the speech for oral presentation Delivery: the techniques for managing voice and gesture in the act of presenting the speech

Speech Purposes 1) To inform – to give information, explain a topic, help an audience learn about a subject 2) To convince or persuade – To convince – to convince the audience to think your way on a certain matter – To persuade – to convince the audience to think your way on a certain matter and then go a step further by taking action in regard to the matter in question.

Speech Purposes (con’t) 3) To instruct or demonstrate – to teach or explain a process using equipment, models, charts, etc… 4) To entertain – to amuse the audience 5) To inspire – to stimulate or arouse the audience’s emotions

What Type of Speech is it? __________ Begin watching this television show from this week on. __________ Learn to make flowers from egg cartons __________ The country of Sweden __________ Support your local merchants __________ My favorite kindergarten memories __________ Our town needs more recreational facilities __________ Salaries and professional sports __________ A speech to someone who is retiring __________ A speech from someone who just won the Nobel Peace Prize

How do I start? Introduction Strategies – Quotation – Startling Statement – Question – Humor – Demonstration or Visual Aid – Story – History or Background Information – Challenge – Reference to the Occasions