| Rhetoric is taught with academic pride and flourish at | | | | passions, and thereby mislead the audience's judgment; |
| major universities around the world, and it's closely | | | | and he claimed that the techniques of Rhetoric are |
| associated with the prestigious, ancient name of | | | | "perfect cheats... wholly to be avoided... rhetoric, that |
| Aristotle, one of the greatest thinkers that Western | | | | powerful instrument of error and deceit" (An Essay |
| Civilization has ever produced. Yet --- though most | | | | Concerning Human Understanding, 1690). What a |
| people don't know it, including many teachers of writing | | | | powerfully negative statement! |
| --- Rhetoric has historically been surrounded by a | | | | Most probably the most brilliant --- yet commonsensical |
| tradition and reputation for deceit and corruption. | | | | and scholarly --- modern text on Rhetoric is the 1984 |
| Just about everyone knows that Socrates was | | | | book by C.H. Knoblauch and Lil Brannon, Rhetorical |
| negative about Rhetoric, as shown by Plato in his | | | | Traditions and the Teaching of Writing. In this largely |
| Gorgias dialogue. In it, Socrates concludes, "Rhetoric is | | | | ignored book of keen insights into Rhetoric, the authors |
| mere flattery and disgraceful declamation." What most | | | | actually attack the revival of classical Rhetoric as |
| don't know is that even proponents of Rhetoric have | | | | being a barrier to the creation of a new rhetoric, which |
| had a lot of negative things to say about it. | | | | a lot of experts have been clamoring for. |
| Negative Statements from PROPONENTS of | | | | Why? Because, as they show, the ancient creators of |
| Rhetoric | | | | Rhetoric believed that it merely provides a means of |
| For instance, the ancient Roman philosopher and | | | | presenting or displaying truths which have been |
| statesman Cicero (106-43 B.C.) taught Rhetoric to the | | | | independently validated in a traditional but unnecessary |
| sons of the aristocracy in Rome. And he wrote major | | | | verbal dress, that Rhetoric was largely a ceremonial |
| works on Rhetoric, including De Inventione (On | | | | exercise. In other words, Rhetoric has always provided |
| Invention) and De Oratore (a dialogue that discusses | | | | mainly the forms of speaking and writing without |
| the principles of Rhetoric). However, Cicero thought | | | | substance or content --- and what greater |
| that the most important factor in eloquence is to --- | | | | condemnation can you have than that? |
| exaggerate and amplify the truth!!! In fact, he thought | | | | Stephen Spender (1909-1995) --- English poet, novelist, |
| that speaking the truth was something that a speaker | | | | essayist --- provided an interesting negative insight into |
| should do only when it suits his purpose! And Cicero's | | | | both Rhetoric and rhetoricians when he opined, |
| overarching purpose in life was---"To plant in the world | | | | "Rhetoric is the art of deception, isn't it? And when you |
| an everlasting memorial of myself." What an idealist.... | | | | become good at using rhetoric on other people, you |
| Quintilian (35-100 A.D.) also taught Rhetoric to the youth | | | | eventually and all unknowingly use it on yourself." |
| of the nobility of Rome, as his chief occupation. His | | | | Rhetoric Corrupted the Roman Empire |
| master work was Institutio Oratoria, a twelve-volume | | | | The first interaction of Romans with professional |
| work on Rhetoric that borrowed from many sources, | | | | Sophistic Rhetoricians was to expel them from the |
| but more from Cicero than from any other. Quintilian | | | | city. How could that happen? Well, even Roman |
| felt that verecundia (Latin for a combination of | | | | peasants knew that Rhetors were notorious for |
| modesty, decency, and restraint) was an absolute vice | | | | lacking in values and virtues, being interested almost |
| in an orator because it would make him hesitate, | | | | exclusively in money and fame (like Cicero). And |
| change his mind, or possibly even stop his talking to | | | | Sophist Rhetors were widely known to criticize and |
| think things over! Heaven forbid! | | | | tear down everything of moral repute. That's what |
| Dio Chrsysostom (40-120 A.D.) was a Roman | | | | they had done to the Greek culture. |
| philosopher, orator, and historian who was banished | | | | But the Sophistic Rhetors were great entertainers. |
| from the Roman Empire at one time. He protested | | | | They persevered and finally broke down the Roman |
| that he was not a Rhetorician because he did not | | | | public's prudent resistance towards them through |
| make money, he was not interested in crooked deals, | | | | excessive flattery and through an intensive campaign |
| and he did not promote things in the market place --- | | | | of debunking established values, confounding |
| for he was not a Rhetorician! | | | | commonsense conclusions, and turning on a vast |
| Another Roman writer who agreed with Dio | | | | amount of charm, wit, and synthetic sincerity. As |
| Chrsysostom was Lucian of Samosata (125-180 A.D.), | | | | Rhetors overcame the public's resistance and became |
| who was formally trained as a rhetorician. Lucian | | | | almost their only source of entertainment, the insatiable |
| claimed that a Rhetor is a "pushing, driving, | | | | hunger of the people for such entertainment |
| money-chasing operator who leaves any sense of | | | | everywhere throughout the Roman Empire was |
| decency, propriety, moderation, and shame at home | | | | matched only by an unbridled passion for the spoken |
| when he goes to work." How's that for putting down | | | | word. There was nothing they would not pay for |
| yourself, your profession, and your fellow practitioners | | | | suaviloquentia, "pleasing speech," the top-selling product |
| of Rhetoric? | | | | of the Second Sophistic period that caught on and |
| Probably a turning point for Rhetoric was St. | | | | stuck. |
| Augustine's (354-430 A.D.) acceptance of Rhetoric as | | | | As St. Augustine pointed out, the dominating desire of |
| a major tool in his ministry with the Catholic church. He | | | | people through the Roman Empire was to relax and |
| felt that, since the devil uses the powerful devices of | | | | enjoy themselves at the theaters and games (sound |
| Rhetoric, those on God's side should also be free to | | | | like anything you're familiar with?). Lucian was more |
| use it in self-defense (I don't quite understand that logic | | | | specific: He explained that the Rhetors simply got them |
| --- Let me get this straight, now: So if the devil uses | | | | drunk and went to work on them; the huge audiences |
| lies and deceptions, then The Church should do so, | | | | that filled amphitheatres were paralyzed before they |
| too? What about murder --- same reasoning? Doesn't | | | | knew what hit them. They were putty in the hands of |
| sound like very Christian logic to me... ). | | | | well-trained Rhetoricians, helpless automatons without |
| St. Augustine made several statements indicating he | | | | a mind or will of their own, as some critics have |
| was well aware of the deceptive nature of Rhetoric, | | | | pointed out. |
| especially in letters, where he often had to tell his | | | | Because of the popularity and influence of professional |
| readers that his enthusiasm was real and truthful, and | | | | Rhetors, Rhetoric became the chief study in schools |
| not just rhetorical activities, rather than truthful activities. | | | | for the elite throughout the Roman Empire. Parents |
| A much more modern negative comes from | | | | didn't want their children to study the hard way. They |
| Professor Wayne C. Booth (1921-2005) of the | | | | insisted that eloquentia or Rhetoric was the most |
| University of Chicago, in his last book published before | | | | important thing in the world for their children to learn, |
| his death, The Rhetoric of RHETORIC (2004). In it, | | | | and that's what they were taught, almost exclusively. |
| Professor Booth points out that, beyond a doubt, in the | | | | And so schools were not interested in turning out |
| United States and surely throughout much of the world, | | | | experts. They gave their students just enough |
| we are harmed daily by floods of careless or even | | | | background to enable them to follow the main ideas of |
| deliberately harmful "Media Rhetrickery." | | | | scholarly authors. And along with merely the main idea |
| That term, "Media Rhetrickery," is Booth's unique term | | | | of every subject, every treatise, every speech studied, |
| for the widespread misuse of Rhetoric in the media, | | | | they were taught the Rhetorical techniques that |
| which incessantly employs Rhetoric for tricky, deceitful, | | | | allowed them to supply simplistic, entertaining prose |
| and corrupt purposes. Booth spends a great deal of | | | | that allowed them to appear knowledgeable when |
| time in his book talking about various forms of | | | | they weren't, eventually reducing all scholastic output to |
| "rhetrickery" (Rhetoric used for tricky and deceitful | | | | impotence. Thus, the educated elite perpetuated a long |
| purposes), often apologizing for the demeaning use of | | | | line of Rhetors that achieved wonderful reputations |
| Rhetoric that occurs so frequently in all walks of life. | | | | and acquired great wealth in public activities from cities, |
| Coming from Booth, this is a heavy indictment of | | | | dynasts, kings, and private individuals. They spoke a |
| Rhetoric, though he doesn't mean it to be an indictment, | | | | great deal, but were sadly lacking in intelligence, |
| since he has always been a highly respected authority | | | | according to Dio Chrysostom, an eye-witness of the |
| on, and proponent for, the positive values of Rhetoric. | | | | times. |
| Negative Statements from OPPONENTS of Rhetoric | | | | From 100 A. D. onward in the Roman Empire, in every |
| Of course, opponents have been plenty frank about | | | | branch of science and art, there was a universal |
| their own assessments of Rhetoric, and we'll examine | | | | inability to create new compositions, as well as a |
| a few of their sentiments, as well. | | | | complete incapacity to invent anything new, which is |
| For example, Francis Bacon (1561-1626) --- English | | | | typical of an age devoid of all creative power. It's not a |
| philosopher, statesman, scientist, lawyer, jurist, author --- | | | | new story. As Rhetoric came to be the dominant |
| thought that Rhetoricians of his time were far too | | | | force in other flourishing cultures, such as Greece, |
| much interested in the nice arrangements of their | | | | Egypt, Babylonia, and the Arabic empire, the same |
| sentences, and the decoration of their works with | | | | mental and moral degradation occurred as Rhetoric |
| tropes and figures, than in the weight of matter, worth | | | | began to dominate each of them. |
| of subject, soundness of argument, originality, or depth | | | | Other forces had their telling influences, to be sure. But |
| of judgment of their writing and speeches (The | | | | it was the universal worship and practice of Rhetoric |
| Advancement of Learning, 1605). | | | | that corrupted the Roman Empire and brought it to its |
| John Locke (1632-1704) --- the great English thinker | | | | knees. |
| and philosopher --- concluded that the purpose of | | | | You wondered where Rhetoric got its bad reputation? |
| Rhetoric was to imply wrong ideas, inflame the | | | | Now you know. |