Everyman Knowledge - A Series
Language, writing, and rhetorical study: Is it still respected today as it was in classical times? I’d say it is in some academic circles, but now more than ever the citizen of our post-modern world should be aware of it. Aristotle defines rhetoric, in his treatise RHETORIC, BOOK I, when he states:
Rhetoric may be defined as the faculty of observing in any given case the available means of persuasion.
I’ve read 4 blogs already today (There are 75 million left to go), all of which used rhetorical devices whether they knew it or not. Those who proved most effective in those choices, were the best blogs, in my opinion. But the internet is not the only place in our times we find a vigorous interplay of rhetoric going on. It’s all around us.
The average person I talk to associates the word “rhetoric” with political scheme through language. ie; “That guy was so full of democrat/republican rhetoric.” Rhetoric really only means the art and science of persuasion. I think you’d be surprised once you look for it, how many people are trying to persuade you on a given day. I find rhetoric fascinating and I’m always looking for ways to spot it as well as use it to my advantage. Every person in the world is exposed to it and uses it whether they know it or not. It’s like breathing.
I, too, find rhetoric fascinating and look for ways to spot it and use it to my advantage.
And by rhetoric, I mean alcohol.
I have a feeling Aristotle enjoyed a drink or two while spending time with his pages. (By pages I mean as in the young boy apprentice laurel headband type)