Classical Rhetoric: Definition, Principles, and Enduring Relevance

Classical rhetoric, the art of persuasion through effective communication, boasts a rich history and a set of enduring principles that continue to hold relevance in the modern world. Rooted in ancient Greece and refined by Roman thinkers like Cicero, rhetoric encompasses much more than just flowery language or manipulative tactics. It is a comprehensive discipline that aims to equip individuals with the tools to communicate truthfully, effectively, and ethically.

The Essence of Classical Rhetoric

At its core, classical rhetoric, as defined by Aristotle, is the ability to identify in any given situation the available means of persuasion. This definition emphasizes the importance of understanding the context, the audience, and the purpose of communication. It's not simply about using persuasive techniques, but about discovering the most appropriate and effective ways to convey a message in a particular setting. The effective use of language in persuasion, was studied and refined by the greatest minds of ancient Rome, with Marcus Tullius Cicero standing as its most influential teacher. For Cicero, rhetoric was not merely a skill useful in politics or law, but a vital part of the good life, an essential art for anyone aspiring to virtue and wisdom in public and private affairs.

Why Study Rhetoric?

In modern times, the word "rhetoric" often carries a negative connotation, suggesting manipulation or empty words. However, the classical understanding of rhetoric emphasizes its importance in various aspects of life:

Magnifying Influence: The ability to persuade others through language is crucial for success in various roles, be it as an employee, a friend, a parent, or a citizen. Studying rhetoric equips individuals with the tools to become more persuasive in their interactions, thereby expanding their sphere of influence.
Becoming a Better Citizen: In a world saturated with information and persuasive messages, understanding rhetoric is essential for discerning truth from falsehood. Politicians and special interest groups employ experts in rhetoric to craft messages that sway voters. A well-informed citizen must be aware of these tactics to make informed decisions.
Protecting Against Intellectual Despotism: Rhetoric acts as a shield against manipulation and propaganda. By understanding persuasive techniques, individuals can resist being easily swayed by external messages and maintain control over their own minds.
Becoming a Savvy Consumer: Corporations invest heavily in advertising to persuade consumers to buy their products. A knowledge of rhetoric helps individuals see through these persuasive tactics and make informed purchasing decisions.
Empowering Rigorous and Constructive Debate: Rhetoric provides the tools for engaging in meaningful discussions and debates with intelligence and civility. It helps individuals avoid logical fallacies and engage in constructive dialogue.

The Five Canons of Rhetoric

Cicero's formulation of the five canons of rhetoric has endured for over two millennia, providing the structural foundation for both classical and modern approaches to persuasive communication. These canons offer a framework for effective communication, encompassing everything from the initial development of ideas to the final delivery of a speech. These five general principles, or divisions, which, when we come to understand and apply them, will make our communication more effective. The five “canons” of Rhetoric - discovery, arrangement, style, memory, and delivery - offer a course outline for us.

1. Invention (Inventio)

Invention, or inventio, is the process of discovering the arguments that will be used in a speech. It involves identifying the available means of persuasion in a given situation. For Cicero, invention includes both logical reasoning and the understanding of common beliefs, values, and emotions held by the audience. In this way, the speaker considers both universal truths and particular circumstances. Invention involves deliberation, research, and reflection. It is the process by which one determines what should be said, the key step before considering how it should be said.

Read also: ACE Curriculum Explained

Invention is the process of coming up with what to say. Its root is the Latin word invenio, meaning “to find or discover.” In order to write something, we must have something to write about. We have all experienced the pain of the blank-page-blank-brain problem. Often teachers will hear students say, “I can’t think of anything! I don’t know what to write!” And unfortunately, this can stop the writing process before it begins, as well as cause students to hate writing. However, in the ancient rhetoric exercises known as the progymnasmata, the first task was not to “think of something to say” but to “retell a fable.” Imitation is vital to the learning of a skill, so why not start by retelling good stories? Thus students are free to begin without the perceived burden of having to “make up” something original. The relationship between the words shows a truth of creativity-to invent something, you have to have some stuff to begin with. Only God produces something from nothing; the rest of us are kind of stuck with what we’ve got. So when teaching writing, begin by providing stories, facts, and ideas, letting students play with them, retelling and representing. In doing so, they will discover the amazing power of combination and permutation. Very soon they will find new thoughts, similar but different from what was provided them. At some point, we expect students to invent on their own. This requires another type of thinking which is, at its most basic level, getting stuff out of one’s mind. One sad fact we all must face is that we can’t get something out of a mind that isn’t in there to begin with. We can’t use words we don’t know. We can’t articulate concepts we don’t understand. We can’t think a thought we’re incapable of thinking. Which is why Memory (see below) is the foundation of all. Fortunately, however, we can develop the ability to find what we do know, and that is the result of asking ourselves questions. Often I will ask a room full of students, “How do you think? How is it done? How do you get stuff out of your brain?” Few can articulate an answer of any substance. Once, however, a boy of around thirteen hit it spot-on, responding, “Well, you kind of have a conversation with yourself.” And how do you start a conversation? With a question.

2. Arrangement (Dispositio)

Arrangement, or dispositio, concerns the ordering of the material so that the speech will be clear, persuasive, and appropriate to the occasion. Cicero understood that the way a speech is structured greatly affects its impact. A poorly organized argument, however true or well-reasoned, may fail to persuade simply because it is confusing or lacks momentum. Arrangement, therefore, turns the material discovered through invention into a coherent and effective whole.

Arrangement is fairly simple, but it is often despised by modernists. Things like story sequence, paragraph structure, and a five-paragraph essay may be considered formulaic or oversimplified, but they are ideal for helping young children see that in writing and speaking, the ordering and framing of ideas can make the difference between something pleasant and enjoyable to read and something haphazard and confusing. Even young children can be taught to write stories wherein the first part describes the characters and setting, the second part describes the conflict or problem, and the third provides the climax and resolution to the problem. In learning expository writing, young students can learn a rule that a paragraph must have a topic sentence and a clincher (ending) sentence that repeat or reflect two or three key words-a simple but effective way to help children write in a more focused and cohesive way. A simple essay format teaches essential organizational skills: Divide your subject into three topics, collect details about each topic, and frame those three topical paragraphs with an introduction which enumerates and a conclusion which recapitulates those topics.

The standard structure of a classical speech includes six parts:

Introduction (Exordium): Gaining the goodwill of the audience and preparing them for what is to come.
Statement of Facts (Narratio): Laying out the background of the case in a clear and persuasive manner.
Outline of Arguments (Partitio): Previewing what the speaker intends to prove.
Proof (Confirmatio): Developing the arguments in detail.
Refutation (Refutatio): Addressing and disproving opposing arguments.
Conclusion (Peroratio): Summarizing the case and appealing to the audience’s emotions and reason.

3. Style (Elocutio)

Style, or elocutio, refers to the way the orator expresses the material he has discovered and arranged. Style encompasses the choice of words, the structure of sentences, the use of rhetorical figures, and the overall tone of the speech. Cicero believed that style should be appropriate to the subject, the audience, and the occasion. He identified three levels of style: the plain style, which is used for instruction; the middle style, which is used for pleasing the audience; and the grand style, which is used to stir emotions and inspire action.

Read also: Explore Classical Education

Elocution basically means the way something is said. The vocabulary, sentence structure, and expressions used will affect the reader’s perception of the ideas. Again, Memory (see below) is critical because the power of expressive language will be a function of the great database of language in the brain. However, we can promote greater facility by using imitation and exercise. Rubrics or checklists can stretch students to use words in ways they might not naturally use them, and by the requirement to include such things as an adjective clause, a participle opener, or a simile, students will be challenged to use words, expressions, and devices beyond their everyday habits. Of course any checklist should start small and grow slowly so that the challenge is not overwhelming, and the teacher should give as much help as needed, offering suggestions for appropriate words, rephrasing awkward clauses, demonstrating devices again and again.

4. Memory (Memoria)

Memory, or memoria, was essential in Cicero’s day, as orators were expected to deliver lengthy speeches without notes. However, memory is not only about memorization; it is about the internalization of knowledge. Cicero taught that the orator must store in his mind not only his own speech but also a wealth of historical examples, legal precedents, proverbs, poetic lines, and philosophical principles. This storehouse of knowledge allows the orator to adapt, respond, and enrich his speech with depth and context.

Memory, of course, is where it all begins and ends. If, as was most often done in ancient times, one’s rhetoric was spoken rather than written, it was critical that such speeches be well memorized and practiced for a powerful delivery. However, the function of memory as a component of rhetoric goes far beyond just memorizing a speech. The modern educationists who condemn memorization as useless, boring, rote, tedious, and harmful to children, fail to notice that if we hadn’t memorized anything, we wouldn’t know anything. And yet children are wired for memorization; if you don’t give them beautiful language to learn, they will memorize the garbage of pop culture. speeches. The ancients called memory “the furnishing of the mind.” One may have a million-dollar mansion, but without beautiful and useful furniture, it is somewhat useless. Likewise, one may have a humble house, but when furnished well with comfort and elegance, it can be the best of homes. It is the same with our minds. The language and vocabulary, sentence patterns and syntax, imaginative schemes and tropes that we store in our mind through memory-both informal through casual exposure and formal through repetition-are the stuff from which all our thinking and writing and speaking becomes possible. Therefore, above all, provide your students with the opportunity (and accountability!) to memorize all the good and beautiful language they can. Memory, as St.

5. Delivery (Pronuntiatio)

Delivery, or pronuntiatio, refers to the actual performance of the speech: the voice, gestures, facial expressions, and overall presence of the speaker. Cicero considered delivery to be the most powerful of all the canons, for it is through delivery that the orator stirs the emotions of the audience and brings his words to life. A well-reasoned argument, beautifully written and memorized, may still fail if it is delivered in a flat or inappropriate manner. Conversely, a simple argument, spoken with passion and sincerity, can be unforgettable.

Delivery involves control of the voice: volume, pitch, pace, and tone. It also involves physical expression: posture, movement, and gesture. Cicero taught that these should not be theatrical or artificial but should arise naturally from the emotions of the speaker. The orator must feel what he says. When he speaks of injustice, he must feel righteous indignation. When he calls for mercy, he must show compassion. The audience will believe him only if they sense that he believes himself.

Delivery pertains to the mechanics presenting the created speech or composition. If speaking, then memory and preparation play a large part in a student’s confidence and mastery, and such things as vocal modulation, projection, eye contact, and gestures can be practiced and executed. It has been said that “drama is the capstone of rhetoric” for this very reason-that the final polish can make the good speech better and the better speech superb. Young children can begin practicing delivery even before they learn to write a speech, by memorizing and reciting short poems and then longer ones, speeches from plays and from history. Thus, rhetoric is not the evil sophists’ science, nor the liberal art to be reserved for the upper school.

The Three Elements of Communication

Aristotle taught that there were three elements of communication: the speaker, the audience, and the speech itself. There are also, says Aristotle, three kinds of persuasive speech: political speech, legal speech, and ceremonial speech. In political speech, the audience is some body of decision-makers like a political assembly. Its subject is the future, and its object is to move the audience to take some course of action. The end of this kind of speech is expediency, which is a kind of good. In a legal speech, the subject is the past, and the object is the determination of what has or has not in fact happened. A lawyer arguing a case in court would be an example of a legal speaker, although anyone who argues to an audience about past events would count as a legal speaker. A ceremonial speaker would address the present and would concern himself with the present honor or dishonor of someone. He would engage in the praise or blame to achieve his object. The person giving a eulogy and certain kinds of sermons would engage in this sort of rhetoric.

The Three Modes of Persuasion

In addition to the three kinds of speech studied in rhetoric, there are also three modes of rhetoric-three ways in which persuasion is accomplished.

Ethos: Ethos refers to the character of the speaker. We generally determine very early on whether the speaker or writer is worthy of our trust.
Logos: Logos refers to the strengths and weaknesses of our arguments. When we hear or read a persuasive appeal of some kind, we will judge it, in part, on the logical strength of the arguments. The enthymeme is the form an argument takes in persuasive speech; it is the deductive part of our argument. In logic, we would spell out all of our assumptions and perhaps use a full logical syllogism in making our point. However, when speaking or writing to a larger audience-or perhaps even talking to a friend who is not familiar with logic-we would use an abbreviated form of the syllogism called an enthymeme. We might also tell a story or joke, or relate some real-life experience we have had to make our point.
Pathos: Pathos refers to the emotions of the audience. When we are trying to persuade people of something, we have to take into account how they feel. To establish our point, we might want to elicit pity for someone or something from our audience-or possibly anger or enthusiasm or skepticism.

tags: #classical #rhetoric #definition #and #principles