An Introduction to Rhetoric

• often used as a synonym for deceit, trickery or manipulation;

• Aristotle: “the faculty of observing in any given case the available
means of persuasion”
• The power to appeal to an audience
• The rhetorical situation:
 occasion = the time and place the speech was written or spoken;
 context = circumstances, atmosphere, attitudes;
 purpose = the goal the speaker wants to achieve;
The Rhetorical Triangle (Aristotle)
• Persona = the mask of the speaker;
• Thesis = the main argument of the speech;
• Bias = prejudiced points of view;

Ethos, Pathos, Logos

• Ethos = appeal to character to prove credibility and trustworthiness;

(often to emphasize shared values between speaker and audience)
• Logos = appeal to reason (clear and logical thesis, details, examples,
facts, statistical data, expert testimony, defining the terms and
explaining connections, concession and refutation etc.)
• Pathos = appeal to emotions (1st persona narration, figurative
languages, personal anecdotes, humor) – propagandistic, polemical
The Classical Model
1. Exordium (Introduction)
2. Narratio (narration) – factual information
3. Confirmatio – development of proof
4. Refutatio – addresses a counterargument
5. Peroratio – conclusion
Patterns of Development
• Narration – recounting a series of events
• Description – specific details about how something looks, smells,
tastes, feels and sounds
• Process analysis – explains how something works
• Example – specific cases in which the speaker’s claim is true
• Comparison and contrast – highlighting similarities and differences
• Classification – separating into categories
• Definition - explaining the meaning of a term or a situation
• Cause and effect – foregrounding a causality