RHETORIC AS

PERSUASION
ENG 211: RHETORIC
T U E S D AY J A N U A R Y 1 9 2 0 1 6

400 BCE TO 100 CE:

CLASSICAL RHETORIC
G R EE C E (A N D R OM E, SO RT O F )

DISTINCTIVE CHARACTERISTICS OF
CLASSICAL RHETORIC
Rhetoric was oral.
Rhetoric was thought to be primarily persuasive.
Judicial rhetoric argued for or against the innocence of an
accused person.
Deliberative rhetoric was used to pass laws.
Demonstrative rhetoric praised or blamed an individual on a
special occasion.
Rhetoric was public.
Rhetoric was verbal.
Rhetoric was expositional.
Rhetoric was discrete.

MAJOR CLASSICAL RHETORICIANS

The Sophists traveled through Greece teaching for a fee.
Plato believed in absolute truth and viewed rhetoric with
skepticism.
Aristotle created an extensive classification for rhetorical
techniques and situations.
Isocrates viewed rhetoric as a practical art with political
purposes.
Cicero was a Roman politician who revived many Greek works.
Quintilian developed a comprehensive method of teaching
rhetoric.

CLASSICAL VIEWS OF RHETORIC &

ITS PURPOSES
Definitions of rhetoric focused on its purpose, components, and
relationship to truth.
The three main functions of rhetoric were thought to be
judicial, deliberative, and demonstrative.
Rhetoric was contrasted with dialectic, which is a rigorous
interaction between ideas to determine truth.
Rhetoric was thought to be an important component in the
education of ancient students.
Five canons of rhetoric: Invention, Arrangement, Style,
Delivery, and Memory

INVENTION: THE LOCATION AND DEVELOPMENT

OF CONTENT AND ARGUMENTS
Stasis is a method of finding arguments for judicial
rhetoric.
Inartistic proof is given by the situation.
Artistic proof is invented by the rhetor. Example:
Barack Obama.
Ethos is the credibility of the rhetor.
Pathos refers to the emotional arguments used by the
rhetor.
Logos includes inductive and deductive arguments.

ARRANGEMENT: THE ORDERING OF

ARGUMENTS
In modern essay writing we refer to this
as organization, argumentative structure,
and metadiscourse, along with a few
other terms.

STYLE: THE ORNAMENTAL FEATURES

OF A SPEECH
A speech can achieve a grand, middle, or
simple style.
Style also includes taste, artistic composition,
and distinction.
Figures of diction derive adornment from the
rhetors choice of words.
Figures of thought derive distinction from the ideas
involved.

DELIVERY: THE VOCAL QUALITIES AND

PHYSICAL MOVEMENTS OF THE SPEAKER
Tone, pitch, modulation
Clarity of speech
Physical gestures, head and hand
movements, movement
Example: Martin Luther King.

MEMORY: THE GUARDIAN OF ALL

PARTS OF RHETORIC
In an age where writing materials were
expensive and cumbersome (think of
huge rolls of papyrus or tablets. Literally
wooden tablets, all heavy and splintery)
speakers had to memorize their speeches.