Purpose of this Blog:
Rhetoric is a concept used often, but infrequently understood. This post is to give an simple explanation for what rhetoric is, how it is used and its place in academic study.
What is Rhetoric?
Rhetoric is a broad subject with a
number of views and definitions. It’s
been studied and used since ancient times and has evolved in its scope and
practice over the course of centuries. As
such, it is difficult to give it one concise definition. Rhetoric is the use of discourse—be it
used in writing, speaking, or visual mediums—to persuade, inform, educate, or
motivate its audience effectively.
Three “modes of proof” are crucial in
use of rhetoric and are a focus of study in the field. They are pathos, ethos and logos. Pathos is where a piece tries to get
an emotional response from the audience. Ethos is the attempt of the author,
speaker or artist to establish credibility. Logos, finally, is the use of logic
through proof of their ideas or arguments.
A Brief History of
Rhetoric:
Ancient Greece is often credited as the birthplace
of rhetoric and the philosophers (Aristotle, Plato, others) of that time provided
the still standing basis for the study. It
was primarily studied for its use in speech at the time. Rhetoric in the middle shifted from a
political focus to that of a religious focus. Instead of rhetoric being a tool to
lead the state, it became a means of saving souls. Universities adopted rhetoric as a
field of study alongside grammar and logic. By the 18th and 19th centuries,
universities had devoted entire departments to the study of rhetoric. By this time rhetoric was once again a
political tool; spreading democratic ideals through American and European
colonies. By the 20th
century the study of rhetoric had expanded to include the study of visual arts
as well in large part due to the influence of television and other visual
mediums.
Why is Rhetoric Useful?
Rhetoric is something that many people
encounter on a daily basis. All conversations
held and text a person reads— intentionally or not — are practices of
rhetoric. An ad in a
magazine, on a billboard or on television is loaded with rhetorical choices. Even entertainment mediums are loaded with rhetoric. Politicians use rhetoric to gain
the support of the people. Advertisers
use rhetoric to convince consumers to buy their products. Even if a person does not intend to
write or speak publicly, it is important to be able to recognize the use of
rhetoric by others. Rhetoric
is essential in education for these reasons.
It could span beyond
the obvious subject matter like text and speech. In another blog post (link) I explored
the effects of rhetorical choices made by a gaming company and how those
choices were viewed by a group of students.
Rhetoric as a
Profession:
Rhetoric continues to be a field of
interest to scholars even after centuries of study. It includes the study of composition
as it relates to rhetoric; something I explored as a student of the field
myself (link). Further
study in that field expands to how the use of symbols—commonly language—can be
used to influence culture as a whole. Some
examples of works done by professionals in the field include:
Gender and Games in a First-Year Writing Class
by Rebekah Shultz Colby of University of Denver
by Rebekah Shultz Colby of University of Denver
by Kathryn Perry of the
University of Louisville
by Joshua Hilst of Utah
Valley State University
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