Rhetoric

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RHETORIC

Although it is frequently understood to refer to the art of effective discourse, the term "rhetoric" refers variously to the study or analysis of discourse, to the ability to create and deliver messages effectively, and to the study of the theoretical issues that underlie the relationship that exists between knowledge and language. It refers to both the study and application of communicative practices. Traditionally associated with the art of persuasion, especially in the oral tradition, rhetoric has at times been viewed as encompassing the study of virtually all communication interactions on the grounds that all communication can be viewed as intentional. Rhetoric is the foundational discipline on which contemporary concerns for subjects as diverse as audience research, media criticism, marketing, public speaking, semiotics, communication ethics, nonverbal communication, and the philosophy of language are based. The term also has a long history of pejorative use as a label for dishonest or empty discourse, such as when a politician characterizes the speech of his or her opponent as "mere rhetoric," suggesting that its claims are unsubstantiated or that its beautiful phrases are actually meaningless. One reason for the complexity of meanings in the term is simply that rhetoric is an ancient art, the practices of which are closely linked to political systems and cultural norms. As cultures have risen and fallen since ancient times, the significance, meaning, and practice of rhetoric has gone through a variety of transformations.

Rhetoric Emerges as a Discipline

The first formal discussions of the art of rhetoric in the Western tradition emerged in the fifth century b.c.e. in Greece, though more ancient texts of Chinese and Jewish origin as well the works of Homer indicate that there was an even earlier interest in speech making. The growing use of the courts to adjudicate disputes, such as those concerning property ownership, prompted by political changes in Sicily, led to the increasing use of oral public argument that was aimed to produce a decision that was favorable to an advocate. Some individuals began to observe that there were standard practices or lines of argument that were successful. Recognizing that people would pay to learn these strategies, these individuals began to teach the strategies that they had observed or used. News of these prescriptions for successful arguments was soon carried to Athens, where the emergence of increasingly democratic forms of government offered fertile ground for the development of the art of public oratory beyond the courtroom. The teaching of the art of rhetoric flourished in this environment.

From these early days, the teachers of rhetoric, who were often philosophers in a group that was known as the Sophists, faced opposition. Plato, a major spokesperson for this opposition, was concerned that rhetoric, at best, was no art but simply a knack, and, at worst, that it was a morally bankrupt endeavor. Rhetoric, he argued, was not concerned with discovering truth or reality; it was only concerned with appearances. Rhetoric was not considered to be a science, as it led to no certain knowledge, and it was not a respectable art such as dialectic (the use of strict deductive logic to test and defend claims when scientific demonstration was impossible). The Sophists defended their position on philosophical and practical grounds. Truth is rarely attainable and often what one imagines to be the truth of an issue will not be considered true elsewhere. "Man is the measure of all things," argued Protagoras in his contemporary-sounding expression of cultural relativism. For the Sophists, rhetoric was a necessary art, useful to discover and reach agreement about truths, as well as to decide on courses of action when no truth about an issue could be known.

In the most influential work on rhetoric from the Greek period, Aristotle's Rhetoric (circa 335

b.c.e.), an effort is made to transcend this debate. Defining rhetoric as "the faculty of observing in any given case the available means of persuasion," Aristotle offered a scientific examination of rhetoric to counter the almost mystical powers that the Sophists sometimes attributed to it. Aristotle saw rhetoric as a morally neutral art—a habit of mind and a systematic practice that could be of help to anyone who was engaged in persuasive practice in any situation. He agreed with the Sophists that rhetoric was necessary to answer questions about contingent matters—issues of discussion where "Truth" could not be known. He also identified three areas where rhetorical activity took place. These were the courtroom, where, in response to the presentations of advocates, judges rendered decisions about disputed past facts (e.g., Did they commit the offence? What offence was it?); the senate, where, in response to public arguments, judges rendered decisions about future actions(e.g., Should we go to war with Sparta? Should we spend public money for this building?); and the realm of what might be called public opinion, where the listeners in the audience rendered a decision about present attitudes toward a person who was attacked or praised in a speech or even about the speaker himself. For example, in his speech "On Helen" (circa 414 b.c.e.), Gorgias, a prominent teacher of rhetoric, beautifully exonerated the historical figure Helen of Troy—whom popular culture accused of causing the Trojan War. Aristotle also systematically addressed lines of argument, the psychological characteristics of audience members, cultural values and norms on which one could build an argument, and even how to use language successfully. Aristotle was most interested in the effectiveness of discourse because speakers functioned as advocates who were trying to persuade judges or audiences to decide in their favor. Perhaps his most long-standing contribution is his discussion of the three basic modes of proof. Aristotle identified (and modern textbooks on public speaking echo) three basic ways in which people come to be persuaded: logos, or appeals that are grounded in rationality or logical argument; ethos, or appeals that are grounded in the credibility of the speaker; and pathos, or appeals that are grounded in emotions or are aimed to arouse emotions in such a way that a listener is placed in the right frame of mind to render appropriate judgment.

Rhetoric as a Practical Skill and Master Art

Ancient Rome (from 200 b.c.e.) was deeply influenced by Greek thought about rhetoric and adopted rhetorical training into its emerging educational system. The Romans produced a clear course of study for the training and development of orators. Textbooks such as the Rhetorica ad Herennium (which appeared around 84 b.c.e.) set forth the five elements that students were expected to master. These are referred to as the "rhetorical canon," and they continue to influence how public speaking is taught. The first canon, inventio, or invention, referred to the creation or discovery of the content of the speech. This is the issue to which Aristotle had devoted most of his energies. Modern public speaking textbooks treat issues related to invention when they advise students about selecting and narrowing speech topics, conducting research, and developing supporting materials and arguments for their speeches. The second canon, dispositio, or disposition, referred to the selection and arrangement of this content to create the speech. Modern teachers of public speaking continue to advise students about appropriate patterns of organization and ways to connect one idea to another in an oral presentation. Elocutio, or style, constituted the third rhetorical canon, focusing on the creation of the right wording to express ideas and on the use of stylistic devices to enliven discourse. Modern courses in public speaking still discuss the use of strategies such as clarity, metaphor, antithesis, and parallel structure as ways to increase the effectiveness of a public speech. The fourth canon was called memoria, or memory. Ancient orators were trained to commit even lengthy addresses to memory. Special mnemonic strategies were developed to aid in this process. Contemporary public speakers are trained to use key-word outlines, TelePrompTers, and computer-generated visual aids to assist them in recalling the main points and details of their presentations. The fifth canon was training in pronunciatio, or delivery. To be effective, a speech must be delivered with the voice and body used in a way that enhances the ability of the audience to understand and/or be moved by the message.

The rhetorical canon and its institutional status in Greco-Roman culture, as well as its place as a pillar of the Seven Liberal Arts, demonstrates that from its earliest days, rhetoric has been linked to pedagogy; it has been recognized as a necessary skill of an educated person. However, there has always been a competing history that viewed rhetoric as more than a skill. The Sophists saw it as a way to generate truth. Cicero, regarded as the greatest of the Roman rhetoricians, saw rhetoric as a master art that was linked to the development of the person of public affairs. Cicero's eloquence in speaking in defense of the Roman Republic as it tottered toward monarchy in the first centuryb.c.e. demonstrates his powerful fusion of rhetorical theory with rhetorical practice. In the first century c. e., Quintilian's Institutes of Oratory set forth an exhaustive system for the education of young men, where rhetoric was no longer the neutral art of Aristotle but was deeply linked to ethics. Although written in Imperial Rome when the political structure constrained civic discourse and Cicero's vision of the rhetorician as a man of public affairs had become unviable, Quintilian's writings nevertheless held up the ideal of "the good man speaking well." Modern communication scholars continue to be concerned with the place of discourse in a democratic community as well as with the ethical dimensions of discourse.

The Persistence and Expansion of Rhetoric

From the Medieval period through the Enlightenment, the study of rhetoric passed through a series of highs and lows as the economic, religious, scholarly, and political conditions changed. Instruction in at least part of the rhetorical canon continued alongside studies of grammar and logic, but in some writings during the period, rhetoric was reduced to a focus on the single canon of style or expression, while logic (or dialectic) was elevated in importance. In the early Renaissance, manuals on the art of letter writing and on poetry were linked to classical treatments of rhetoric, but the oral tradition faded while the connection of rhetoric with style in writing was strengthened. Other handbooks on courtly etiquette and preaching kept alive some interest in other aspects of the rhetorical canon. These works clearly express human interest in developing rhetorical sensitivity; they underscore the belief that there is a strategy or art concerning how people know what to say and how they express themselves in language, whether written or oral. The rediscovery of key classical texts during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries renewed interest in rhetoric, and rhetorical training continued as a regular part of Western educational systems well into the nineteenth century. The Ciceronian ideal of the public orator experienced a renaissance in the nineteenth-century American oratorical tradition, but in schools, rhetorical training was typically limited to elements of composition and, in some quarters, practice at declamation (reciting speech excerpts) or elocution (developing skills of memorization and delivery).

The renewed interest in rhetorical studies in the mid-twentieth century grew out of several causes. Internationalism, wartime propaganda, new media, and the growth of advertising all increased attention to the creation and analysis of persuasive messages. Academic interest in argumentation, a maturing sense of the complexities of audience analysis, and a renewed interest in the relationships that exist among knowledge, language, and power have supported a burgeoning field of study that reaches across disciplinary boundaries. Practitioners such as motivational speakers, marketers, and politicians are interested in how to discover information about their audiences and, once they have that information, how to create appeals that will be successful.

One way to learn how to create more effective messages is to study past rhetorical efforts. From this theory emerged the discipline of rhetorical criticism. When discourse intends to have an effect on an audience, the questions that are used to analyze it should concern rhetorical rather than simply literary features. In the 1940s and 1950s, Kenneth Burke argued that "identification" rather than "persuasion" is the key rhetorical concept, and he encouraged critics to investigate both the conscious and unconscious ways in which symbol users attempt to get an audience to share their beliefs and values. Rhetorical scholars have investigated a wide range of public discourse, examining everything from the arguments and appeals of the abolition movement of the nineteenth century to the rhetorical power of public memorials to the influence of media coverage of war.

Rhetorical studies is influencing and being influenced by many disciplines. Feminist rhetorical critics have added new perspectives by asking a new set of questions. A contemporary rhetorical study, for example, may investigate how many times women are cited as experts in hard news versus soft news stories and may hypothesize about what that data means as a reflection of the value system of a culture. Influenced by European thinkers such as Michel Foucault and Jacques Derrida, rhetorical critics have explored the hidden assumptions that are revealed by the choices that are made in the production of discourse. Even the discourse of the sciences has been examined to expose the rhetorical conventions that are common to the disciplines and to reveal the belief and value systems as well as the power structures that constrain and shape research questions, processes of investigation, and the reporting of results. The study of semiotics and the relationship among words, meanings, and reality offers further richness for analytical study that produces both practical and theoretic insight.

Although rhetoric as a discipline continues to offer opportunities to reflect on theoretical questions that concern the nature of knowledge and language, for the contemporary student, rhetorical study often remains focused on the effective use of discourse. Students of composition develop the skills that are necessary to improve the clarity and effectiveness of their writing. Students of public speaking practice analyzing the particular demands of a speaking situation and audience, creating materials for a speech, and then organizing, wording, and delivering it. Rhetoric instruction leads students to consider how their choices of content, structure, language, and/or delivery strategy will have a rhetorical effect. Students learn that their choices will influence how the audience receives the message; indeed, they will influence the very meaning of the message for that audience. By developing this consciousness, as well as by underscoring the potential power of discourse in shaping and maintaining culture, the study of rhetoric persists at being central to the mission of higher education.

Bibliography

Aristotle. (1954). Rhetoric, tr. Rhys Roberts. New York:Random House.

Bizzell, Patricia, and Herzberg, Bruce. (2001). The Rhetorical Tradition: Readings from Classical Times to the Present, 2nd edition. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's Press.

Burke, Kenneth. (1945). A Grammar of Motives. New York: Prentice-Hall.

Burke, Kenneth. (1950). A Rhetoric of Motives. New York: Prentice-Hall.

Brummett, Barry. (1994). Rhetoric in Popular Culture. New York: St. Martin's Press.

Cicero. (1979). De Oratore, 3 vols., trs. E. W. Sutton and H. Rackham. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Conley, Thomas. (1990). Rhetoric in the European Tradition. New York: Longman.

Covino, William A., and Jolliffe, David. A. (1995). Rhetoric: Concepts, Definitions, Boundaries. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Foss, Sonja K.; Foss, Karen A.; and Trapp, Robert.(1991). Contemporary Perspectives on Rhetoric, 2nd edition. Prospect Heights, IL: Waveland Press.

Kennedy, George. (1980). Classical Rhetoric and its Secular Tradition from Ancient to Modern Times. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press.

Medhurst, Martin J. (1993). Landmark Essays on American Public Address. Davis, CA: Hermagoras Press.

Medhurst, Martin J., and Benson, Thomas W., eds.(1991). Rhetorical Dimensions in Media: A Critical Casebook, 2nd edition. Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt.

Schiappa, Edward. (1994). Landmark Essays on Classical Greek Rhetoric. Davis, CA: Hermagoras Press.

Amy R. Slagell

Encyclopedia of Communication and Information