Speech and Rhetoric ENG 3UI
What is rhetoric? Rhetoric is the art of discourse (communication of thought through words) Focuses on the capability of the speaker to inform, persuade, and motivate audiences in specific situations. The best known definition comes from Aristotle who considers it a counterpart of both logic and politics – a means of persuasion. Rhetoric provides a technique for problem solving for immediate goals, in order to speed up the process of finding a solution.
The five canons of rhetoric… The five canons of rhetoric, which trace the traditional tasks in designing a persuasive speech, were first codified in classical Rome: invention arrangement style memory delivery
Invention Means a systematic search for arguments A speaker uses Inventio when he or she begins the thought process to form and develop an effective argument. Often, the invention phase can be seen as the first step in an attempt to generate ideas or create an argument that is convincing and compelling.
Arrangement Concerns the crafting and delivery of speeches and writing. The orator or writer has to select various arguments and organize them into an effective discourse. Two essential parts of a discourse: the statement of the case and the proof of the case.
Style There are a number of things to decide in developing a style for a particular discourse. First, there was the level of style; plain, middle, or high. Writers were instructed to match the basic style to their subject matter and their audience. Good style included correctness, clearness, appropriateness, and ornament. The last and most important of the excellences of style is ornament, which is defined as extraordinary or unusual use of language A great amount of attention was paid to figures of speech. Also important to style is the proper use of punctuation and conjunctions; the desirable order of words in a sentence and the length of sentences.
Memory Memory is the discipline of recalling the arguments of a discourse. It generally received less attention from writers than other parts of rhetoric, as there is less to be said about the subject. However, the need to memorize speeches did influence the structure of discourse to some extent. Requires more than just rote memorization. The speaker has to have at his command a wide body of knowledge to permit improvisation, to respond to questions, and to refute opposing arguments.
Delivery Its importance declined even more, once the written word became the focus of rhetoric. In public speaking today, it may be somewhat over- emphasized. Rhetoricians laid down guidelines on the use of the voice and gestures, proper modulation of the voice (volume and pitch), as well as the phrasing, pace, and emphasis of speech. Also covered were the physical aspects of oration: stance, gestures, posture, and facial expressions. Delivery is based on the technology of the times. Written delivery developed because of the written language, and now delivery is both spoken and written. Technology has taken away the distinctions between written and oral delivery.
Rhetoric was a central part of Western education, filling the need to train public speakers and writers to move audiences to action with arguments.
Stylistic Devices commonly used in rhetoric… Alliteration: The repetition of a sound in the first syllable of each phrase.... Anadiplosis: The last word or phrase is repeated to begin the next.... Antimetabole: The repetition of words or phrases in successive clauses, but in reverse order.... Antithesis: A word, phrase, or sentence opposes the original proposition. Anaphora: successive clauses or sentences start with the same word(s. The same word or phrase is used to begin successive clauses or sentences. Thus, the reader's / listener's attention is drawn directly to the message of the sentence.
Martin Luther King Jr. – “I have a Dream”
Steven Paul Jobs – Commencement Address, Stanford University
Barack Obama -
Rhetoric Resources Speeches m/top100speechesall.html Stylistic Devices: Resource up/writing/style