1. What did you learn about rhetoric and persuasion from the beginning of the course? What were your expectations of rhetoric and persuasion? After completing the course, what is now your understanding of what rhetoric and persuasion is? Please explain and defend from examples from the book. How the rhetorical persuasion you use might be utilized for: social justice for you, others, communities, or the world at large. Please explain and defend your answer using examples from the book.
From the beginning of the course, I learned that rhetoric and persuasion posed significant challenges as a result of diverse meanings it has managed to acquire in the contemporary cultural setting. My expectation of rhetoric and persuasion was that my understanding of the concept would improve significantly. It is my desires that I will be able to develop a fundamental skill in the efficient use of language through engaging with important social controversies. It is where rhetoric will gradually become one of the most important topics as far as the discussion of the fundamental political, social and scientific issues are concerned. Upon completing the course, my understanding of what rhetoric and persuasion has changed substantially. Rhetoric is an art of writing and speaking that is highly persuasive and equips an individual with skills to create a flourishing writing. Rhetoric helps in the development of core competencies in an efficient use of language by having individual engage with various critical social controversies. In the rhetoric class, I have learned how to carry out a rigorous and responsible knowledge production. I firmly believe that I have been transformed from being an attentive interpreter of the world to writing intensive, critical, evocative and even persuasive presentation. I can comfortably contribute usefully to major discussions, social debates and what fallacies I should avoid.
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According to Aristotle, rhetoric can be understood as the art of viewing available means of persuasion. Currently, rhetoric is widely applied to almost all forms of communication. In his analysis, Aristotle came up with three different types of persuasive speech. For instance, the use of the forensic or judicial rhetoric is critical and can be used to efficiently establish facts and judgment concerning the past similar to detectives at a given crime scene. Epideictic, or demonstrative, rhetoric makes a proclamation about the present situation, as in wedding speeches. Further, Aristotle came up with three different persuasive appeals including pathos, ethos and logos.
Rhetorical persuasion might be utilised for social justice for an individual, other, community and the world at large in various ways. Rhetoric evidently, teaches essential personal skills critical for advocating for social justice. A person learns how to think logically, discover some weak and wrong argument, build a strong case on a social justice controversial issue and overcome what can be considered as the common fear of speaking in public to deliver crisp and a well-prepared speech that would help advocate for social justice.
2. From Chapter 1: What are the common meanings of rhetoric? Explain and provide examples and the significance to persuasion. From Chapter 1: There are different themes about the art of rhetoric. Explain and provide examples comparing and contrasting the differences of two themes and their significance on persuasion.
From the book, the author brought out certain common meanings of the concept of rhetoric among them including; persuasion, empty talk and even beautiful language. Over the years, such meanings were developed to understand rhetoric as the study or even practice of a powerful symbolic expression. It can be argued that rhetoric refers to the type of discourse that is marked by various features including being planned, adopted to a given audience and responsive to a particular situation. Typical social functions of rhetoric include building up the community, testing certain ideas and even assisting in advocacy. Rhetoric has for years been associated with persuasion and further, it is related to gaining of consensus. Rhetoric’s relationship to the concept of persuasion can be seen in the manner in which the ancients employed rhetoric in making critical decisions mediate various public discussions and even resolve major disputes.
Based on chapter one, there are numerous recurrent themes that the author has brought out. Diverse issues emerge when one begins to think critically concerning the art of rhetoric and its application. When focusing on rhetoric and power, it is clear that rhetoric tries to bear a vital relationship to power within the larger society. The art of rhetoric comes out bringing a measure of power, and the rhetorical practices play an important role regarding distributing power. It is true that all society makes decision-related to who might speak before a given audience and the topic to be covered. The second element is rhetoric and truth where rhetoric discovers core facts in decision making. It has been established that rhetoric helps in shaping what one believes in. The third concept is rhetoric and ethics where persuasion has been shown to be critical in rhetoric. Therefore, it can be argued that rhetoric raises particular moral and ethical questions. Therefore, in a situation where persuasion is wrong, it follows that rhetoric shares such moral condemnation. On rhetoric and audience, it can be true that the concept of ethics is highly inseparable from that of rhetoric's significant influence on the audience. Since rhetoric has been shown to be a form of power, then it might be the case that ethical considerations often attend to the rhetoric. For instance, there are contingent issues that are often solved by rhetoric such as the matters that tend to confront members of the society and where there exist no precise or even unavoidable answer.
3. From Chapters 2-5: Compare and contrast the differences between these chapters. Describe one influential person of rhetoric from each of these chapters and describe the influence on persuasion. Provide examples.
These chapters recognized that rhetoric taught diverse habits that are critical to democracy. It is crucial for one to be familiar to endure unusual perspectives and at the same time take pleasure in their counter play. Further, an individual should be eager to listen and speak, therefore; being a listener, it is critical for one to appreciate the art that has been applied. The sophists from the ancient Greece helped in the development of the art of rhetoric and democracy development. In chapter 2, Protagoras was influential in the development of the philosophy that underlies the practices revolving around rhetoric. Based on this chapter, it is evident that Protagoras pioneered charging for lectures. Protagoras’ famous maxim is that man a major measure of everything. Protagoras further taught the practical strategy to reason focusing on both the personal and the political issues.
Focusing on Chapter 3, Plato’s rhetoric was simply to create a health-giving a strategic order to the city-state and the people. Plato recognized the power of persuasive language, especially when employed by a trained practitioner of rhetoric. He also attempted to reveal the inherent problem in the rhetoric practice when it fails to bring together justice and wisdom. It is important for the readers also to consider what exactly constitutes the good life. In chapter 4, Aristotle Rhetoric asserted that rhetoric is the counterpart of dialectic. Aristotle attempted to answer Plato’s charge that rhetoric had no identifiable study of its own. Based on his argument, no art can achieve its goal in every case. Rhetoric plays a role in discovering the means to accomplishment as allowed by circumstances. Rhetoric for Aristotle was the faculty to unveil the persuasion means within a given environment. Aristotle contended that rhetoric is a form of art; therefore it can be studied systematically. His rhetorical theory became of greater interest to the historians of rhetoric than to the practicing orators.
In chapter 5, Cicero was one of the greatest orators and a rhetorical theorist of Rome. He wrote extensive, elaborate approaches to teaching rhetoric. He was very prominent in the Senate. The rhetorical prowess was one of the most crucial factors in attaining and holding power and determined the government conducts in Rome. Therefore, Cicero laid emphasis on the importance of rhetoric to individuals in power.
4. From Chapters 6-8: Compare and contrast the differences between these chapters. Describe one influential person of rhetoric from each of these chapters and describe the influence on persuasion. Provide examples.
Based on these chapters, rhetoric attained its prominence as a subject throughout the Renaissance. Rhetoric became the language of education throughout the Renaissance. These scholars focused critically on understanding how classical rhetoric utilisation throughout the medieval Europe represented the imitation of the ancient structures. They also concentrated on the critical role of rhetoric during the Renaissance. In chapter 6, Augustine played a significant contribution in the rhetorical education and how he treated rhetoric. He believed that Christians required training to read the Bible and to defend it if it had to be propagated. His practice was central in his approach to training rhetoric. The truth and false are specifically urged using the art of rhetoric. Therefore, it follows that the truth requires its rhetorically trained defenders. The people’s happiness can be attained if all can be brought to understand and accept the truth of the gospel. Further, the truth of the gospel will be propagated when Christians understand the principles defining rhetoric. Therefore, it has been established that Augustine established a trajectory for rhetoric throughout the medieval Europe.
In the chapter, Agricola was the greatest rhetorical theorist. The Italian Humanist tradition influenced him, and his idea has thus influenced most of the Humanist writers. Agricola like the rest of the Humanists argued that oration and speaking were God’s gift meant for the advancement of the human civilization. He was drawn more into the argumentative use of speech rather than the ornaments of the rhetoricians. He emphasised the notion that a clear reasoning in addition to an effective teaching must be the objective of dialectic that he made superior to rhetoric as a study and practice. His rhetorical theory emphasises on the activities of both inventing and assessing arguments. In chapter 8, Margaret Cavendish was one of the most interesting and provocative rhetoricians throughout the mid 17th century. She was the first English woman to write with the primary purpose to seek publication of her works. She preferred a plain style of writing accessible to a larger audience. She sided with the scientific advocates who advocated for the plain styles and against the ornate style of Renaissance of Humanism.
5. From Chapters 9-11: Compare and contrast the differences between these chapters. Describe one influential person of rhetoric from each of these chapters and describe the influence on persuasion. Provide examples.
Chapter 9 to 11 focuses critically on the contemporary rhetoric and arguments of influential people. The chapters provide a means to assess the rationality of day-to-day arguments. The chapters highlighted the importance of discourse practices within a modern world to enhance the overall practice of discourse in the contemporary society, cultivate a more rational society and improve the overall quality of the human social life. In chapter 9, Perelman, a Belgian philosopher was interested in how the moral assertions could become coherent where core values become highly disputed. His rhetorical theory emerged as a comeback to his experience throughout WWII that persuaded him that Western Civilization’s survival greatly relied on the lucid public discourse concerning morals. According to him, the new rhetoric revolves around the audience which is induced by the thought of the speech. He, therefore, laid much emphasis on the audience and intellectual contact. According to him, the audience can determine the direction of the argument and character.
In Chapter 10, Lloyd Bitzer seems, to begin with, a problem. He defined the concept of exigency as a form of imperfection that is marked by urgency. Bitzer stated that not all forms of exigencies could contribute towards the rhetorical position. He went further to give an example of President John F. Kennedy in 1963 as a rhetorical exigency. The second concept in his analysis of the rhetorical situation was the audience which must be able to take action in response to the exigency. He lastly maintained that the rhetorical situations exhibit constraints.
In chapter 11, Michel Foucault was highly influential European intellectual figure around the 20th century. Arguably, Foucault analysis of the relationship between the rules of discourse and language in addition to the power of appropriation has significantly informed various critiques of the contemporary social practices. On the other hand, his view of power and language could further be applied to the analysis of the religious discourse, political practices and the utilisation of the mass media shaping opinion. He, therefore, offered a broad range of possibility to people who are interested in using discourse to shape culture and the power distribution.
