Rhetoric is the art of speaking or
writing effectively. This article tries to answer the question - how you can
use Aristotle’s technique to better your persuasive power?
What is it?
Aristotle believed that rhetoric must
be employed in persuasion, as it made the rhetorician see clearly what facts
are, and that, if another person argued unfairly, the rhetorician may be able
to refute the wrong facts. In his text; which was never meant for publication,
he argued: what a successful rhetoric entails? For what purpose rhetoric should
be used? And, what an effective rhetorician does?
Where it originated?
Rhetoric is generally thought to have
originated in Greece at the beginning of the fifth century B.C. Its first use
appeared to have been in the law courts. Isocrates, 436-338 B.C., was the first
to develop a systemic theory of rhetoric. The Sophists such as Protagoras, 486
B.C, and Gorgias, 483-374 B.C, took up rhetoric and charged fee for preparing
speeches for others and for teaching others to argue either side of the case.
It was against the Sophists that Socrates argued and against them that Plato
established the distinction between opinion; doxa and knowledge; episteme. And
it was Plato’s; Aristotle was his student, negative view of public speaking in
Athenian life that Aristotle disagreed against.
What did Aristotle believe?
Aristotle was born in Stagira, in the
Chalcidice, 384-322 B.C. He was son of a physician in the service of the Macedonian
court. He saw rhetoric as a neutral tool with which one can accomplish, either
noble or deceitful ends, because he believed that – truth is inherently more
acceptable than false, nevertheless, dishonest persuaders may fool an audience
unless an ethical speaker uses all possible means of persuasion to counter the
error, and speaker have only themselves to blame for failure. As for Aristotle,
rhetoric was the discovery in each case of the available means of persuasion.
Aristotle speech on civic affairs
Aristotle in terms of speech situation
focused on: civic affairs pertaining forensic speaking which considers guilt or
innocence, deliberative speaking which considers future policy, and epideictic
speaking which considers praise and blame. Furthermore, he classified rhetoric
as the counter part of dialectic, where the differentiated between the two in
the following ways. Dialectic is one on one conversation, while rhetoric is one
person addressing the many. Dialectic searches for truth, while rhetoric
demonstrates existing truth. And, dialectic deals with certainty, while
rhetoric considers probability.
Mode of persuasion
According to Aristotle, there are
three kinds of the mode of persuasion governed by rhetoric–the character of
speaker, the opinion of audience and the persuasive argument as proof. In
character of speaker, authority is measure of other people’s confidence, and
ways of establishing confidence is through use of medium, knowledge of subject
and verification of source. In opinion of audience, all audience are in the
position of judge, because it is the audience that determines the argument’s
end. And finally, in persuasive argument as proof, persuasion is effected
through the speech itself when the truth or the apparent truth is proved by
means of persuasive argument suitable to the case in question.
Means of persuasion based on proofs
Aristotle believed that the available
means of persuasion are based on three kinds of proofs – logos, pathos and
ethos. Logos appeals to reason, the logical proof or appeals used to support a
claim, induction and deduction, can also be the facts and statistics, used to
help support the argument. Pathos appeals to the emotions. The emotional proof
or motivation appeal are done through - vivid language, emotional language and
numerous sensory details. Ethos appeals to the character. The speakers or
writer’s credibility and authority are based on intelligence, character and
goodwill. Considered together these appeals form what later rhetoricians have
called the rhetorical triangle. Which suggests that logos, pathos and ethos
should be balanced? However, which aspect of the rhetorical triangle the
rhetorician favors depends on both the audience and the purpose of that speech
or writing.
Rhetoric in present times
In contemporary times, the art of
rhetoric appears in advertising, where it is not only concerned with the
successful sale of commodities. It is also used in persuasion in relation to
politics and ideology. And the information is dissipated from images to copy,
footage to music. Aristotle’s rhetoric transcends both the medium and time.
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